Entrepreneur Conundrum From 3 Stores to 200+: Mike Seitz on Building a Household Pet Brand
Show notes (bullet style)
- Mike’s path from dentistry plans to pet franchising
- Scaling EarthWise Pet: 3 stores → 200+ units; 9 acquisitions; 51 corporate stores
- Ideal franchisee profile: passion, alignment, “in the trenches” grit, financial readiness
- Regionality & marketing: different buying habits, local ad spend, video & reviews
- Pet nutrition edge: 3-tier Dietitian certification; vet advisory council; AI dietitian for accessible guidance
- Total Pet Care plan (24 months): 250 stores, 150 mobile units, bi-coastal warehouses, e-com + DTC
- Mobile grooming & mobile nutrition pros; delivery tactics
- Culture shift: owner-operator → multi-unit; avoiding “weeds” thinking
- M&A realities: due diligence, fees, team acqui-hires, and bank/attorney orchestration
- Leadership & resilience: risk, failure as learning, anti-shame ethos for customers
Resources & Links
- Guest: Michael Seitz — LinkedIn
- EarthWise Pet (Franchising): https://www.EarthWisePetFranchise.com
- EarthWise Pet (AI Dietitian on homepage): https://www.EarthWisePet.com
- GroomBar: https://www.GROOMBAR.com
Key Questions
(01:37) How did you get to where you are today?
(04:30) Who would you say are your ideal clients?
(07:54) When you say pet store, are you more what would live inside my house
(08:28) If we have the nutrition side of it. Tell me a bit more about that one. That one I didn't think about. Is it like, My doctor said this, or is it just, Hey, my dog is old?
(11:30) With having the AI version of it, does that make it more accessible, even just financially for people, too?
(12:20) How do you get in front of your ideal people?
(14:46) Do you help your store owners with their digital marketing? Do you provide that for them or do you host it for them? How does that work?
(15:39) Do you give them training on the marketing side of it?
(16:09) What are some big goals that you have in the next year or two?
(18:25) What's involved in your mobile unit? Is that when someone comes to my house.
(19:13) What do you think is the number one roadblock stopping you?
(21:35) What are some of your thoughts on entrepreneurship and franchising?
(24:13) How has your experience been with mergers.
(29:48) What's some of the best advice that you have ever received?
(33:00) What's the best advice that you've ever given?
(34:24) We have covered a lot of different things, but is there something that we haven't touched on that you want to?
(36:49) All right. Where can we go to learn more about you and what you do?
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Michael Seitz
www.linkedin.com/in/michaelseitzceo
Virginia Purnell
Funnel & Visibility Specialist
Distinct Digital Marketing
(833) 762-5336
virginia@distinctdigitalmarketing.com