‘Shark Tank’: Stylish Wrist & Ankle Weight Company Sparks Major Interest (RECAP)
Spoiler Alert
Season 11 of Shark Tank returns tonight at a brand new date and time. To kick off the new episode, guest shark Maria Sharapova joined Mark Cuban, Kevin O’Leary, Lori Greiner and Daymond John as four hopeful companies — Bala, Shake It Pup, Pips & Bounce, and Fur — pitched their business proposals. Read on to find out what happened on tonight’s episode and which entrepreneur walked away with a deal!
Bala Bangles
Maximilian Kislevitz and Natalie Holloway were first up in the tank, seeking $400,000 in exchange for 10% of their company Bala Bangles — a stylish wrist and ankle weight that conveniently adds resistance to any workout look.
In the first six months of sales, the company did $260,000 and this year, they’re on track to hit $2.2 million, with orders in big box stores like Bloomingdale’s. The couple plan to use the money for inventory and to bring in an external sales person to help market the product.
Kevin was the first to throw out a deal, offering $400,000 as a loan at 7.5% interest for a 5% stake in the company.
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Maria also expressed interest, given that she’s a professional tennis player and sees great value in the product. She initially offered $200,000 and asked the entrepreneurs to get another shark to put up the other half — but added that she’d need 30% for her time. Almost immediately Lori and Daymond starting fighting over who would partner with Maria, but after she started whispering with Mark, Lori ended up offering her own deal of Lori offered $500,000 for 18%.
Mark and Maria then offered the couple $900,000 for a 30% stake of Bali Bangles, which they happily accepted.
Shake It Pup
AJ Crook and Brett Maiolfi were next up in the tank seeking $100,000 for 20% of their handcrafted dog food seasoning company, Shake It Pup. “You’ll be your dog’s personal gourmet chef with just a shake of the bottle,” they said.
In their first year of business, they did $105,000 in sales and have invested everything they made back into the company. The sharks were especially impressed with the $12.99 per bottle price point, with each bottle lasting 30-60 meals.
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“I think this idea is nuts but it’s going to work,” Kevin said, before offering $100,000 for 50% due to how early on they are in their company. AJ and Brett didn’t seem to pleased with the offer.
Daymond added that the company is a “genius idea” but feels that the bigger dog food companies would be too difficult to compete with, and ultimately went out. Maria also went out, adding that it was too niche of a company.
Lori saw a bigger vision for the company, adding that they could expand into cat food seasoning if the continue to grow — and offered $100,000 for a 3% stake of the company plus a royalty of $1 per unit until she’s repaid, which would then drop to $0.25 royalty in perpetuity.
While the entrepreneurs seemed to like Lori’s deal at first, they ultimately made a deal with Mark, who’s currently working and seeing great success with organic dog food company Wild Earth — at $100,000 for 25% equity.
Pips & Bounce
Eugene and Michael Jung joined the tank next, seeking $500,000 for 10% of their event space that centers around ping pong. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, the partners were able to open up their first brick and mortar space for ping pong lovers to unite — and now, with the help of the sharks, their goal is to turn it into a successful franchise.
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After revealing that they’re currently setting up their second location with a million-dollar budget, the sharks started to get weary. “You haven’t proved that you can make enough money,” Mark said before going out.
Daymond also dropped out, saying he just wasn’t a fan of ping pong and couldn’t envision himself investing. Lori and Maria were quick to follow suit, saying it was far too early to invest.
Kevin was the last shark to drop out, saying that he “hates [the company] a lot.” Ouch!
Fur
Laura Schubert and Lillian Tung were the final entrepreneurs of the night, seeking $500,000 for 2.5% of their pubic hair care cosmetic company, Fur. The product line offers all-natural hair care oils, creams, serums, and scrubs that serves as treatment for ingrown hair and irritated skin.
Fur has been quite lucrative so far, with $5 million in sales in their first year alone. The sharks were especially impressed that the two entrepreneurs put in $500,000 of their own money to start the company with no other investors, and currently have no debt.
Mark admitted that the company wasn’t a fit for him and opted to remove himself, but Daymond and Kevin both expressed interest. Daymond offered $500,000 for 15% while Kevin was more interested in a royalty deal of $500,000 for 2.5% stake plus a royalty of $1 per unit sold until $1 million is paid. Lastly, Lori offered $500,000 for 12% plus $50,000 to a charity that promotes body positivity, which is the company’s mission.
The girls countered all three sharks with $500,000 for 5% — but none of the sharks were willing to drop down. In fact, their counter offer resulted in Daymond dropping out.
Lori then countered back at $500,000 for 8% as well as the charity donation as she previously mentioned, to which the entrepreneurs happily accepted.
Shark Tank, Fridays, 8/7c, ABC
