Steven: When we were kids we would always ask our parents for a dog for our birthdays and holidays. When I was 14 and Jason was 12, we said 'what if we start a dog-sitting business to show our parents we're responsible enough to take care of a dog?'
We [took care of 50 dogs] and went back to our parents, and they said 'it's not that we don't believe you have the responsibility, it's that we don't like dogs.'
But we loved what we were doing anyway. So we opened [a luxury dog hotel] in 2005 and it was an immediate success.
Jason: [To set ourselves apart, we have] cage-free rooms and suites, outdoor window views, and plasma TVs playing "Animal Planet."
Steven: In 2010, we started franchising, and we [just] sold our sixth franchise. We plan to open 100 stores within the next three to five years.
It's the American dream. We're first-generation Americans and came from humble beginnings, and we're just getting started. We want to be the Donald Trump of the pet care industry.
We like to have fun, too. Jason bought a Maserati. We took our mother to Hawaii for her wedding anniversary and to her hometown in Italy.
