Puppy Sphere is a wellness company that is best known for its puppy yoga experiences. The classes are 45 minutes of yoga with puppies tumbling across the mats, followed by 30 minutes of beverages, conversation, and puppy cuddles.
What started in a single Toronto studio two years ago has grown to 12 studios across the U.S. and Canada, with four classes a day every Saturday and Sunday. And in every one of those studios: a photo booth, running on Simple Booth’s HALO app.
Guests have taken more than 39,000 photos so far. Every weekend a fresh wave of them lands on social — branded, posted, tagged, and reposted. Word-of-mouth marketing has never been this adorable.
A Surprise Worth Posting 🐶
Puppy Sphere doesn’t advertise the photo booth on its booking page, guests simply find it when they arrive.
“It’s kind of a surprise. I think it drives people to come back, because we just make it more of a complete experience.”
– Alice Burbidge-Izquierdo, Global Business Manager at Puppy Sphere
The team surveys its guests regularly, and the booth consistently earns praise. Guests post their strips to Instagram Stories, and each week the team picks favorites from the galleries to repost on Puppy Sphere’s own account.
“Guests appreciate that. They like to see, ‘Oh my God, I was reposted.'”
– Alice Burbidge-Izquierdo, Global Business Manager at Puppy Sphere
One Strip, Every City 🌆
Every location uses the same branded photo strip. Only the city name changes. That single design decision keeps the brand consistent across all 12 studios, and it puts the Puppy Sphere logo on every photo received.
Two photos for the strip was an intentional choice. The traditional three-photo strip would be too long to hold a squirmy puppy. Two keeps it quick and still sends guests home with a unique, branded digital memento.
“It’s also a branded moment, which is very important. We get to add the logo there, and they save it on their phones. It’s so easy.”
– Alice Burbidge-Izquierdo, Global Business Manager at Puppy Sphere
The Puppies Call the Shots 🐾
Across every city, one pattern repeats: the perfect shot is never guaranteed. Puppies wiggle, wander off mid-frame, or decide mid-countdown they’re needed elsewhere.
Staff sometimes give first-timers a gentle disclaimer: if a puppy doesn’t want to be in the photo, let it be. Whether the strip catches a perfect cuddle or a puppy mid-escape, it ends up ridiculously cute either way.
“You can try five times and you won’t get that shot, but it’s okay. It makes it a memory anyway.”
– Alice Burbidge-Izquierdo, Global Business Manager at Puppy Sphere
Built to Grow Like They Do 🌱
In the early days, staff walked around with a Polaroid camera taking photos for guests. The prints were appreciated, but the workflow didn’t scale across a growing list of cities and a fast-moving weekend schedule.
The photo booth app solved the workflow problem. Guests can serve themselves and photos save straight to their phones, while staff pitch in where it helps, offering the booth as a souvenir to shy guests or bringing the camera to them.
The economics work the same way. 12 studios run on 11 licenses, with some studios sharing a license since classes only run on weekends.
If schedules shift or a studio’s needs change, the team can pause their subscription and start it back up without losing a thing. Their settings and branded layouts stay saved, and every photo stays stored, ready for the next class.
Why They Stay 💛
Puppy Sphere added the photo booth more than two years ago. It’s been part of every new studio since.
“There’s a reason why we stay. We just feel like it really captures the moment for you.”
– Alice Burbidge-Izquierdo, Global Business Manager at Puppy Sphere
For wellness and fitness studios, the lesson isn’t about equipment or even photography.
A small, well-placed moment of delight can do quiet work on retention, brand, and word of mouth. And if it can run itself through a room full of puppies, it can handle your busiest Saturday.
Thinking about a photo booth for your wellness or fitness studio?