Business snapshot: Sit Means Sit
Who: Trainer-owner Marvin Versteeg
What: A dog training company with outlets across the country. Versteeg owns one of the nearly 100 outlets around the county. He offers a free, no-commitment demonstration with a potential client’s dog. The average dog needs five to seven training sessions. Some clients can opt for one-on-one or group sessions. Versteeg also will board and train dogs. Training starts at $345.
Where: Versteeg’s business is based in Monroe but he serves customers throughout Snohomish County and beyond. He doesn’t own a storefront. Instead, he comes to clients in his van, painted with the company name and this caveat: “Sorry, we don’t train husbands, wives or kids.”
The company’s philosophy: The average person reprimands a dog’s negative behavior and doesn’t follow up, Versteeg said. “If you can get their attention you have a window of opportunity to make an impact,” he said. The company’s trainers get dogs’ attention using an e-collar, a device that delivers a mild electrical shock. “At first I thought they were lighting dogs up like Christmas trees — they’re not,” Versteeg said. “Picture my two fingers tapping on your neck lightly. It’s not painful.” Then, the trainer directs the dog to an acceptable behavior and rewards with affection.
Joining an established company: “The business profile is established. You don’t have to come with licensing agreements and logos and contracts,” he said. Versteeg did design his own advertisements and banners. The business isn’t technically a franchise; Versteeg pays a licensing fee each month to be associated with the company.
Training the trainer: Versteeg has owned dogs all his life but never trained them professionally. He has two German shepherds, Lantz and Hannah, and a pit bull, Cowboy. The company provided an intensive 13-week training session. Since opening his business in February, he has trained 300 dogs.
Notable: A former real estate agent, Versteeg prides himself on knowing the market. His research shows thousands of dogs in the area. “There’s an industry wide open, and nobody was offering a good product,” he said. “I felt like I had a better dog than anybody out there and there’s a big market for me.”
Quotable: “Â ’That is nothing short of a miracle’ — I hear that all the time,” he said.
More information: 425-681-8032
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