How Contracts Work

Category: Shops Reading time: 3 min

Groomera's Contracts section is a secure document storage area for your business paperwork — specialist agreements, grooming waivers, service terms, and any other contracts relevant to your shop's operations. This guide explains how to upload, store, and access your documents.

What the Contracts Section Is For

The Contracts section stores documents — it is not an e-signature tool. Use it to:

• Store signed grooming waivers after clients have signed them (upload the signed copy)
• Keep specialist contractor agreements on file
• Store your standard terms of service
• Archive vendor agreements, insurance certificates, or lease documents
• Hold any other business document you want accessible from your dashboard

If you need clients or specialists to sign a document digitally before uploading, handle that process through a separate e-signature tool (DocuSign, HelloSign, etc.) and then upload the signed PDF to Groomera for your records.

Accessing Contracts

1. Log in as an owner
2. Click Contracts in the left sidebar
3. You'll see a list of all uploaded documents
4. Click any document name to open or download it

Uploading a Contract

1. Go to Contracts
2. Click + Upload Contract or Add Document
3. Fill in the upload form:

1. Click Upload — the file is stored securely via Cloudinary and linked to your account

Files are accessible only to you (the account owner) — specialists and clients cannot see your contracts section.

Document Types Explained

Categorizing documents consistently makes it easy to filter and find specific files later.

Recommended Documents to Keep on File

For every specialist:

• Signed contractor or employment agreement
• Copy of any grooming certifications they hold

For clients (especially if you use waivers):

• Signed grooming waiver — particularly important for pets with health conditions, aggressive behaviors, or elderly animals where grooming carries additional risk
• Any written agreements about specialty services or recurring booking arrangements

For your business:

• Your standard terms of service
• Insurance certificates
• Lease or sublease agreement for your shop space

Downloading and Sharing Documents

To download a stored document:

1. Open the document from your Contracts list
2. Click Download
3. The PDF saves to your device

Groomera doesn't have a built-in document sharing feature. To share a contract with a specialist or client, download it and send it via email or your preferred communication channel.

A Note on Grooming Waivers

If you're not currently using a grooming waiver for clients, consider adding one — particularly for:

• New clients (especially with senior pets or dogs with known health conditions)
• Aggressive or difficult pets where injuries to the pet or specialist are a real risk
• Any service involving sedation, dental work, or medical-adjacent grooming

A waiver doesn't eliminate liability, but it establishes informed consent and creates a record that the client acknowledged the risks. Consult a local attorney for a waiver appropriate to your jurisdiction.

Once signed (on paper or via e-signature), upload the signed copy to Groomera so it's on file and accessible from your dashboard.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What file types can I upload? Currently, PDF is the recommended and primary supported format. If you have a document in another format (Word, etc.), convert it to PDF before uploading for best compatibility.

Q: Is there a file size limit? Files up to 25MB are supported. Most standard contracts and waivers are well under this limit.

Q: Can I update a contract after uploading it? You can delete the existing version and upload a revised copy. There's no in-platform editing of uploaded documents — edit the source file externally and re-upload.

Q: Are my contracts backed up? Files are stored via Cloudinary, which handles redundant storage. That said, we recommend keeping a personal backup copy of all important documents in your own file system or cloud storage.

Q: Can clients sign waivers directly through Groomera? Not currently. The Contracts section is for storing signed documents, not collecting new signatures. For client-facing e-signatures, use a dedicated tool like DocuSign or SignWell and upload the completed document to Groomera.

Related articles:

• Managing Your Team of Specialists →
• Understanding Your Dashboard — A Quick Tour →