Meet the Inventors: An Interview With Sterling and Alain

A Conversation Between Man and His Best Friend: The Origin of Doggy Bathroom

Sterling: Woof Dad — good morning! Are you ready to tell our story?

Alain: Good morning, Sterling. Yes, I am!

Sterling: Before we get started, may I have another treat? Plllllease?

Alain: You've already had three blueberries and three raspberries — I think you can wait until after the interview.

Sterling: Ok fine. But I’ll remember that.

Alain: Sterling – be a good boy.

Sterling: Remember when I was a young pup, just 11 weeks old, and you brought me home for the first time? You put me outside in -20°F weather and expected me to do my business?

Alain: I remember struggling to even get you past the stoop of our building.

Sterling: Yeah, that was not cool. But I’m glad it happened. We created something together that would change pet ownership—furever.

Alain: We did. I had no idea that you’d transform my design business into a whole new adventure.

Sterling: You’re welcome.

Alain (laughs): I didn’t say thank you.

Sterling: Tell everyone what the Doggy Bathroom is and why it matters?

Alain: It’s the first indoor bathroom for small dogs, designed with vertical pee pads for male dogs who lift their leg. Even though it started that way, we quickly found out that female dogs benefit from it too. It's clean, discreet, and helps dogs go when they need to—without having to brave the cold, the stairs, or the sidewalk. The rubberized base keeps it secure, and we even added entrance mats for a touch of style.

Sterling: Like a private ensuite just for me!

Design Roots and Purpose

Alain: Exactly. Before Doggy Bathroom, I was an interior designer working across residential and commercial spaces. I’ve always loved solving tough design challenges, so when this problem arose, I knew I had to tackle it myself. Cleaning up after dogs isn’t the fun part of pet ownership. I wanted to create something that made life easier for dog lovers and gave their pets more freedom.

Sterling: And you made it look super stylish, too.

Alain: That was the goal! We turned a not-so-glamorous problem into something both functional and beautiful. The Doggy Bathroom is recognizable by its clean lines and compact design. A lot of our customers buy multiple units—one for each floor or even for vacation homes. It’s also ideal for housebreaking puppies.

From Prototype to Production

Sterling: Tell them about our big moment in Vegas!

Alain: The very first Doggy Bathroom prototype was made from a plastic bin with pee pads. It wasn’t ideal, but it worked. Once we had a proper prototype, I debuted the concept at SuperZoo in Las Vegas in 2018. The response was incredible. We came home and launched a Kickstarter campaign that raised over $45,000.

Sterling: I was the star of that campaign, by the way.

Alain: You were a very cute star. After that, I flew to China to produce our first 2,000 units. They sold out in six months. We later brought our manufacturing to Montreal so we could keep production closer to home.

Expanding the Vision

Sterling: What about my tiny friends? Didn’t we do something special for them?

Alain: Yes! We introduced the Mini Doggy Bathroom for dogs under 10 lbs. Over 700 units were pre-sold, raising $100,000. Today, we hold multiple patents—including a U.S. utility patent—and we’ve shipped products around the world, from North America to Australia.

Sterling: And now comes the art part! My favourite.

Alain: We’re proud to be launching a limited artist edition of the Doggy Bathroom in partnership with the Keith Haring Foundation. It combines functional design with meaningful, joyful art. We're debuting it at Maison & Objet in Paris.

Sterling: I still don’t get to go to Paris, do I?

Alain: I’ll bring you back something special. Promise.

Looking Ahead

Sterling: Where can people get their paws on a Doggy Bathroom?

Alain: They can order it right from our website.

Sterling: Thanks Dad! Is it coffee time now?

Alain: Definitely.

Want to learn more? Explore our Doggy Bathroom collection and pee pads, or check out our blog for indoor potty training tips.

Stay tuned for the artist edition launch this fall!