Own the training
layer of security.
A regulation-driven, recurring-revenue market hiding behind commodity coursework. Thruline enters with a proven de-escalation course, an AI authoring pipeline, and three operators who know the buyer. This is the case, the numbers, and the plan.
The delivery-model gap
CPI — the dominant de-escalation brand — sells only train-the-trainer certification. Nobody national sells a modern per-seat, self-paced online de-escalation course. That lane is empty. It's the one we already occupy.
The regulator's own gap
Minnesota's Board states in its 2025 plan that current curriculum "needs to better reflect" real working conditions. Pending bill SF2163 would mandate de-escalation content — our flagship topic, made law.
Compliance sits with the firm
MN licenses agencies, not guards. Firms must attest every employee was trained, at renewal. The buyer is concentrated, obligated, and recurring — ideal for seat licenses.
Lead B2B in Minnesota. Get the de-escalation course Board-approved as Continuing Training, build a 12-hour pre-assignment bundle, sell seats to the ~198 protective-agent agencies, and run a direct-to-individual storefront as secondary SEO capture.
Minnesota is a mandate,
not a market you persuade.
State law compels the training. Every licensed agency renews on an annual cycle and must certify its people were trained. Demand doesn't need to be created — it needs to be captured.
agencies (the buyer)
professionals in MN
+ hrs/yr continuing ed
processing time
12 hours of certified pre-assignment training within 21 days of hire, plus 6 hours every year of continuing training — for all license holders, managers, partners, and employees. Armed personnel add 6 more. Enforced by renewal affidavit. ✓ Minn. Stat. 326.3361
The Board lists ~1,500 courses from 259 providers — but most are security firms certifying in-house courses, not vendors selling training. The identifiable commercial online sellers are a short list of three. ✓ Board 2025 overview
MN SF2163 (pending): would raise requirements to 40 pre-assignment + 24 CE hours with mandatory de-escalation and mental-health-crisis content — roughly tripling per-guard demand and making our flagship topic legally required. Not law yet. Track it closely; it reshapes the model if it passes.
NATIONAL CONTEXT — unarmed initial-training mandates run 4–48 hrs (CA/FL 40, NY 24, IL 28, TX ~6). CA now requires 4 hrs in-person from Jan 2026, constraining online-only sellers in the largest state. MN, at 12+6, is a clean online-first beachhead.
Who's actually selling,
and where they're soft.
Sort and filter the field. Verified rows survived primary-source fact-checking. The national de-escalation leader doesn't sell what we sell — that's the opening.
| Provider ▲ | Type ▲ | Modality ▲ | MN approval ▲ | 12-hr ▲ | 6-hr renew ▲ | Signal ▲ |
|---|
The claim "incumbents are dated slideware" was refuted for lack of evidence — nobody verified their actual course quality. Our proven wedges are the delivery-model gap (CPI) and the regulator-stated curriculum gap. Before "we look better" goes in a sales deck, buy the $80–150 competitor courses and tear them down.
Size the opportunity.
Move the inputs.
A live model of the Minnesota B2B seat-license path, with a direct-to-individual storefront layered on top. B2B seat price is your assumption — no public benchmark exists yet, so pressure-test it here.
What we ship,
and in what order.
A focused catalog anchored on the asset we already have, delivered on infrastructure we already run, approved through a pathway that's a checklist — not a moat.
De-Escalation exists
The flagship. Assessment-gated, certificate-issuing, SCORM. Submit for Board approval as Continuing Training — Protective Agent.
12-hr Pre-Assignment Bundle build
Covers Rule 7506.2600 Subp. 3 topics. The mandatory entry course every new guard needs — highest-volume SKU.
6-hr Annual CE Track build
The recurring hook. Fresh modules yearly so agencies renew seats, not just buy once.
Expansion catalog later
Use-of-force decision-making, situational awareness, workplace-violence prevention. Ranked by verified demand before we build.
Delivery stack — phased
- Launch: LearnWorlds — proven SCORM 2004 tracking, certificates, payments. Zero risk to the runway.
- Phase 2: HyperAcademy gains SCORM playback + enrollment/tracking/certs → migrate Thruline onto our own platform. Thruline becomes its first real customer.
- Phase 3: Productize the delivery layer — SCORM host + track + sell + AI-remaster legacy courses, a wedge SCORM-hosting incumbents can't follow.
90-day ramp to first revenue
Board approval submission
File Training Course Applications for the de-escalation course + pre-assignment bundle. Instructor resumes attached.
Competitor teardown
Buy Defencify / NITA / NTS courses. Prove or kill the quality-wedge claim before it hits sales collateral.
Pricing + B2B outreach list
Dale/Erik map the ~198 agencies. Set seat pricing at/below the D2C band. Draft the pitch.
Approval clears (~30d) + storefront live
D2C SEO storefront on "Minnesota security guard training." First B2B pilots signed.
First seats sold · track SF2163
Convert pilots to seat licenses. Monitor the bill that could triple demand.
Open questions to close
- B2B seat pricing — what will MN agencies actually pay per guard/year, and will they buy vs. certify cheap in-house?
- SF2163 odds + timeline — the single biggest demand multiplier.
- Incumbent quality — teardown needed to substantiate differentiation.
- WPV expansion demand — size CA SB-553 / healthcare / OSHA before betting on it.
Sourced from primary-verified market research (July 2026). Claims tagged verified / unverified / refuted in the full report.
Committed to your mission.