About Us
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Steve Watters "Chief Deal Dog"Barking Deals founder and CEO Steve Watters spent his formative years with a menagerie of animals including everything from cows, pigs, and sheep, to chickens, ducks, and cats. Oh, and quite a few dogs ~ essentially every single mutt and stray to step “paw” on his family’s rural Ohio property. Eat your heart out Dr. Doolittle! The current animal count in the Watters household is a much more manageable number: two frisky felines, named Fred and Sammy, and Lexie, a gastronomically adventurous canine who eats almost anything (she’s even been known to snack on a Lego® brick or two!). Steve’s love for animals has been a tremendous influence on his professional life, as well as his personal life. For more than 10 years, he has been an influential player in the pet product manufacturing business. After graduating from Case Western Reserve University with an Executive Masters of Business Administration degree, Steve parlayed his passion for animals into a successful career as the CEO and co-owner of Vitality Systems, Inc., a leading brand of veterinary products that was sold to an international animal health manufacturer in 2008. Steve’s vision and talent for bringing together like-minded, pet passionate people has made Barking Deals possible.
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Sumit Birla "Chief Architecture Sire"Sumit Birla’s programming superpowers allow us to serve up hot, fresh deals on a daily basis. After graduating from the University of South Florida with a Masters in Computer Science, he started his career with a stint at Bear Stearns (editors note: Mr. Birla was in no way responsible for the investment bank’s eventual collapse, but can, in every way, be held accountable for the IT department’s high consumption of coffee during his tenure). From there, he went on to provide the technical leadership that grew SOE Software from a newborn start-up to a strapping young company of 50 employees generating more than $8 million dollars in annual software sales. Sumit is a man of many talents: master of the latest and greatest web technologies, worldwide webtrepreneur, avid photographer and travel-enthusiast. All he needs now is a fur covered, four-legged best friend to share in his adventures! The Birla household will soon be home to frisky feline or captivating canine, as Sumit and his wife are planning to adopt a pet from the SPCA Tampa Bay. With so many wonderful and deserving animals in need of a loving home, the decision won’t be easy. We’ll make sure to keep you posted!
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