When Barbie met barkie

I went to a dog-friendly showing of Barbie a few weeks ago and was knocked out by the personal service:

🐶 Each mutt was provided with a blanket and biscuit

💡Lighting was made slightly brighter, and sound slightly lowered

🧊 Water bowls were topped up throughout the screening

The atmosphere was electric – although I wasn’t sure whether the woofs were part of the film at first. In fact, a couple of misbehaving hounds were taking out early – a bit like when a screaming baby is taken out of a restaurant to calm it down.

But everyone soon settled in. I think the dogs just thought they were in a very big living room.

Special screenings like this are such a clever idea, especially when cinemas are struggling to get people in.

I’d be more than happy to peel myself away from the sofa and trundle all the way into town if it meant I got more than just a film. This got me thinking about what add-ons I might like:

🦶🏼 A foot massage would be great (very fitting for Pulp Fiction)

👚 An ironing service brilliant (My Beautiful Launderette)

📞 Someone who could be on hold to HMRC for me would be worth its weight in Gold Class tickets (Scream?)

What would you fancy? And how can you add these touches to your own service?

We’re all so demanding now, and we can get almost everything we want from the touch of a button. This makes the things we can’t so much more valuable. It’s just a question of working out what these are…

And, while you’re doing that, have you added a link to Claer Barrett's’s brilliant episode of the Money Clinic to your client newsletters this month?

“Barbie is a big spender and high earner, fast approaching the age of retirement. But after a long and varied career that has seen her build a portfolio of multiple dream houses and a low-commitment, long-distance relationship with casual boyfriend Ken, what financial advice should she be looking for?”

Finally, please enjoy this picture of Rupert, who loved the film (but feels bad about the patriarchy).

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