6 items, in order: certificate of formation (llc) or an assumed name certificate, employer identification number (ein), sales and use tax permit, certificate of occupancy, no state license for groomers or pet stores; check the city and unemployment tax account.
How to open, Texas
How to open a pet store or groomer in Texas
6 licenses, permits and registrations, in the order to get them, each with the agency, the fee and the official page, and what the Census counts of pet stores and groomers in Texas say.
6 licenses, permits and registrations, in the order to get them
Every row checked against its agency’s page; the latest on Oct 15, 2026.
Set up the business
Certificate of formation (LLC) or an assumed name certificate
Forming an entity is a choice, not a license. Most owners form an LLC for the liability shield; a sole proprietor only needs the county filing when trading under a name other than their own.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas Secretary of State; county clerk for sole proprietors
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Employer Identification Number (EIN)
Needed to hire, to open a business bank account under an entity, and for most state applications below.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Internal Revenue Service
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Register for tax
Sales and use tax permit
Required for anyone selling goods or taxable services in Texas. Prepared food, drinks, retail goods, gym memberships and most salon products are taxable; apply online, allow two to three weeks.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Approve the space
Certificate of occupancy
The certificate confirms the space is approved for your use under zoning and building code, after inspections. Get it before you open and before build-out money is committed; a space with a prior use like yours is faster.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Your city building or development services department
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Get the permits for your kind of business
No state license for groomers or pet stores; check the city
Texas licenses dog and cat breeders through TDLR, not stores or groomers. Some cities license groomers (El Paso does) and regulate stores that sell animals. A 2025 bill to end pet store sales of dogs and cats (HB 3458) died in the House without a floor vote; stores that sell animals follow city rules.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Your city animal services department
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Before the first hire
Unemployment tax account
Register within ten days of paying your first wages. Report each new hire within 20 days of their start date.
Checked Oct 15, 2026
- Agency
- Texas Workforce Commission
- Official page
- Members
- Fee
- Members
- Renewal
- Members
Pet stores and groomers already in Texas
- Establishments, County Business Patterns 2023
- 72
- Per 10,000 residents
- 0.0
- Change since 2018
- -107 (-59.8%)
Metro areas with the most
| Metro area | Pet stores and groomers | Per 10,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington | 596 | 0.7 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands | 447 | 0.6 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos | 262 | 1.0 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels | 194 | 0.7 |
| El Paso | 52 | 0.6 |
| Killeen-Temple | 39 | 0.8 |
How they fare in Texas
- Closed in 2023, retail trade
- 7.2%
- Opened in 2023
- 8.7%
Then pick the place
- The free location checkWho lives and works around an address, the pet stores and groomers already there and the traffic on its road, from public records.
- The full reportWhether the rules allow a pet store or groomer at that address, the rent it supports, what has opened and closed nearby, and the questions to settle before signing.
Have an address in mind?
Check the address freeNo account. The pet store or groomer check reads public records at the address itself.
Sources and dates
Texas Secretary of State Form 205 and Form 503 instructions; Dallas County Clerk assumed names page; IRS EIN page; Texas Comptroller sales tax permit FAQ; City of Dallas certificate of occupancy page and DSD fee schedule; TDLR licensed breeder program (breeders only); El Paso Animal Services groomer license page; Texas Workforce Commission new employer page; U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023; U.S. Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics. Fees are as published by each agency on the date checked; cities add their own.