As Anton Willis was living in a studio apartment and realized he had a big problem. He loved the outdoors and going kayaking but simply could not store his 16 foot kayak in his apartment. He had to pay for storage fees for five years. But then, he came across a newspaper with a man named Dr. Robert J. Lang, an origami master. He then began to wonder if a kayak could be folded like an origami masterpiece. So he took a business card out of his wallet and began to tinker by folding it into a kayak shape. His life was never going to be the same after that.

Anton began expanding upon this idea and made prototypes out of paper and then cardboard. His first cardboard boat sunk after 30 seconds but didn’t get discouraged. He revised it and then took it to a friend’s barbecue where they would take turns paddling around in it. This time it didn’t sink! An acquaintance even asked if he was selling them. He later became the first backer on Kick Starter. Anton revised it even more, having gone through about 25 prototypes. He decided to use a corrugated plastic material and made it so that it can be stored in a closet.

He launched a Kick Starter campaign and then applied for Shark Tank. Anton and the help of his partners, Roberto Gutierrez and Ardy Sobhani, asked for $500,000 for a 12% stake in the company. Oru Kayaks did $1.1 million in sales before the airing, having sold only one thousand of them. Sharks went out one by one due to profit margins but the last one, Robert Herjavek, gave Anton a rebuttal: $500,000 for a 25% stake. Anton then asked for 15% but Robert stayed firm at 25% which is where they made the deal.

I couldn’t find much information on the success after the show, but they seem to be doing well. Annual sales are about $3 million on Amazon alone, so anywhere from $4-10 million through all channels. Anton says that the hardest part was making it fold into a case. At first it was a jumbled mess of plastic but then he figured out how to make it in the form of a case where you could store the paddles and seat. Anton had to go through many roadblocks and is now sitting on a cash pile.

Website: https://www.orukayak.com/

Sources:

https://gazettereview.com/2015/11/oru-kayak-update-see-what-happened-after-shark-tank/

https://kirktaylor.com/oru-kayak-shark-tank-pitch-and-after-show-update/

https://gearpatrol.com/2017/05/18/anton-willis-oru-kayak/

Squatty Potty is yet another Shark Tank success. This product helps you do your business in the bathroom. It all started with Bobby Edwards’ mother, Judy Edwards. Judy always had constipation growing up, and her doctors told her that it was only going to get worse as she aged. There was no help but one physician told her to lift her knees up when she is defecating. He thought that this would relieve discomfort and make it easier for her. She took his word and it actually worked!

She used a stool but it didn’t store away easily. She told her son, Bobby about it and he got to work. He realized that there was nothing on the market for a stool when you go to the bathroom. They made a stool with a half circle cut out so that it could slide under the toilet easily. He also added some great branding and marketing techniques to get this simple product selling. Bobby sent it to YouTubers who would review the product which got the ball rolling. He later appeared on Dr. Oz and then filed for Shark Tank.

In his pitch, he explained the story and the anatomy of the human body when one goes to the bathroom. your colon muscle is not fully relaxed when at a 90 degree angle. This is because another colon is pulling on it, creating restricted flow. The Sharks were skeptical but then Bobby shared that he has millions of dollars of sales. They eventually worked out a deal with Lori Greiner for $350K for 10% stake of the company. This was just the beginning.

Squatty Potty experienced post-Shark-Tank success, a phenomenon that even the Sharks recognize themselves. They even turn down people who just want exposure and who aren’t trying to get a deal with the Sharks. But Squatty Potty was trying to get a deal and after their exposure, they got $1 million in sales days after they aired. In the next three months, they got $12 million in sales and received another $15.7 million in funding. You can find them in many big name retailers today.

Links:

https://www.squattypotty.com/

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/09/moms-constipation-turns-into-33-million-juggernaut-squatty-potty.html

http://sharktanktales.com/squatty-potty-update/

Nick and Elyse Oleksak are the founders of a bagel equivalent of doughnut hole. They have a line of products that have different bagels with different cream cheeses filled inside. They are arguably one of the most successful companies that has aired on Shark Tank.

Nick and Elyse were both big fans of Shark Tank and would watch it every Friday. Nick would constantly pitch Elyse his ideas but nothing really stuck. That is until one night when he claims he had a vision about these bagels stuffed with cream cheese. He woke up and started brainstorming about it. The next day, they had to research how to make a bagel. They went through many different recipes and combinations. They had friends test them, one of those friends being my uncle. Nick and my uncle were part owners of GFI Group, a financial company.

Eventually Nick and Elyse got the right mix and started cranking them out in their oven. They decided to go right into retail in order to test “to see if it had legs.” Elyse said, “If you can make it here (retail), you can make it anywhere.” Then they found a manufacturing plant that could pump out roughly a million bagels a week. Things started rolling.

Then they took things to Shark Tank, and the rest is history. They got $275K while giving up 25% of the company to Lori Greiner. They’re experience on Shark Tank can be summed up by Elyse’s words:

“We put together a study guide, we spent hours and hours watching every single episode, we wrote down every question and quizzed each other on how we would answer it, we had our study guide on numbers, cut our financials in every way possible, and we memorized everything. I think we studied harder than either of us did for the SATs. We went in there so ready—we even had signals of how to respond, like different nods for what we’d accept so we didn’t have to step out. Preparation was certainly key, and it showed because the Sharks responded well and we got a deal and it was so exciting.”

They got a ton of exposure and sold in retail, QVC, and later in Star Bucks. They even got Oprah to approve of their product when she said it was one of her favorite things in 2014.

Bantam Bagels wasn’t just a cake walk however. They admitted that they didn’t do the best job branding their product at first which would’ve grown the company faster and burn through less cash. Regardless, they learned and made it into an empire.

Links:

http://bantambagels.com

https://www.delish.com/food-news/a49617/how-bantam-bagels-got-on-shark-tank/

https://www.hercampus.com/money-career/how-she-got-there/how-she-got-there-elyse-oleksak-owner-bantam-bagels

Kanga is cooler specifically made for cases of beer, instead of large bulky coolers or cases made for a single beer. The idea was produced by a group of friends who were studying at Clemson University. They had a class assignment to find a solution to a problem in real life. They were at a football tailgate when the idea struck them as they were drinking warm beer. Logan LaMance thought to himself, “why isn’t there a can insulator for an entire case of beer, not just a single can?” This was a classic example of an idea that fills a great need that people will drop money for. They used this as their idea and later invested $833 of their own dollars to take it to the market where it made about $60,000 in just six months. They raised more than $34,000 from a KickStarter campaign as well. Then they took it to Shark Tank where they sought a $100,000 investment for 10% stake in their company.

Mark Cuban offered them $100,000 for 20% stake and these group of guys did something most people on Shark Tank fail to do. They didn’t want to hear from any other sharks and took the deal immediately. They seem to be doing great currently, but there is one thing I want to emphasize about this story. I  remember the first time watching this episode and actually being inspired by the words of Austin Maxwell, another co-founder.

“I just graduated in December and Logan just graduated a couple weeks ago. This show has actually inspired me to pursue entrepreneurship. So, I’m a die-hard fan. I’ll be honest I’ve seen every episode. I’ve seen your bald head plenty of times, Mr. Wonderful, and I love it, I love it. So back in season six, in October of 2014, I was watching a live episode and I saw a company come on and make a deal. I actually called the CEO the night that the episode aired to explain to him how I could provide value to them and I just worked my way up with this company from a customer, to a brand ambassador, to an intern. And after turning down multiple engineering offers, I decided to pursue that company full-time.”

“Are you gonna name that company? Is it a Shark Tank Company?” Barbara Corcoran asked.

“Sure it’s BeatBox Beverages, the craziest thing about it is now I’m up here and have the opportunity to present to you guys with my own company and this has already become a dream come true for me. And I hope that I’m able to inspire other people that are going down a similar path as I am.”

Anything is possible and we just may have some Elevator Pitch Competition idea be turned into a reality through a little bit of creativity and a lot of hard work.

Links:

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/09/shark-tank-college-kids-iceless-beer-cooler-gets-deal-from-cuban.html

https://www.inc.com/emily-canal/shark-tank-recap-season-10-episode-18-kanga.html

Company website: https://buykanga.com