13x02 - Episode 2

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: Tonight, global business
tycoon Peter Jones joins the t*nk.

Peter is the most seasoned
investor on "Dragons' Den,"

the U.K. version
of "Shark t*nk,"

with 18 seasons under his belt.

[ British accent ] I can
help you scale this business

from a global perspective.

That's what I
bring to the party.

The British are
coming![ Laughter ]

Ocean plastics are
one of the biggest

environmental challenges
of our generation.

[ British accent ] We have
got the meals for busy people

who care about what
they put in their bodies.

Parm: It's a perfect tool
when you're multitasking

or when you have a
coworker like Mr. Wonderful

who keeps on ranting.

[ Laughs ]

This is a lifelong
dream realized,

to be able to put my passion
for music into my career.

Jones: I could be
your perfect partner,

and that's why I'm
gonna make you an offer.

I know how to
make this thing huge.

I'm afraid you guys
might hold me back.

Who's ready to take the bait?

- It's a no-brainer.
- It's time to make some money.

♪♪

Narrator: First in the t*nk

is a way to give the
most memorable gift.

♪♪

Hi, Sharks. I'm Ellen Hodges.

And I'm Omayya Atout,

and we're seeking $400,000
in exchange for 10% equity

in Songlorious.

Do you want to give
a gift that you know

will get a strong
emotional reaction,

a gift that captures memories,
a gift that creates new ones?

Greeting cards,
flowers, they all fall flat

'cause they're
kind of impersonal

and, sooner or later,
and up in the trash.

That's where
Songlorious comes in,

with a gift that lasts forever.

Songlorious is a website
that anyone can use

to have a personalized,
studio-quality song

made completely from
scratch for any occasion.

All you have to do
is go to the website,

choose a genre,
tell us your story,

and one of our artists
will have a song created

especially for your loved one.

Let us give you a little taste

of what you could
expect from Songlorious.

♪ Kevin, oh, Kevin

♪ Your bald head reflects me ♪

[ Laughter ]

♪ That don't mean
that you ain't sexy ♪

♪ Ooh, she's selling
things on TV ♪

♪ Yeah, sweet Lori

♪ Her long blond hair
makes me really jelly ♪

[ Laughter ]

♪ Hey, Mark Cuban

♪ We don't want
to hear crickets ♪

[ Laughs ]

♪ Let's make a deal

♪ And throw in some
courtside tickets ♪

♪ Back in New York City

♪ Daymond John is making bank ♪

♪ And Peter Jones
from across the pond ♪

♪ Is here on "Shark t*nk" ♪

- John: Yeah!
- Jones: Very good.

[ Applause ] Greiner: Yay!

- Alright.
- Good job.

So, Sharks, which one
of you wants to rock...

And roll with us...

Into the future of gift giving?!

[ Chuckles ]

- John: Alright.
- Greiner: Good job.

How does it work?

So, every song is completely
unique and made per order.

So, you go to the website,
you choose a genre,

you tell us how long
you want the song to be.

We've got options from 30
seconds to three minutes.

And, you know, the price
depends on those two factors.

And then you just
tell us your story.

You tell us the occasion
and about the person it's for.

Part of the order process,
you choose the genre,

And some of them
are acoustic genres,

which are priced
a little cheaper,

and some of them
are full production.

We've got pop-rock,
country-rock, EDM.

And then it's up to the artists

to provide all of
the instrumentation.

What's the price
between a 30-second

versus a three-minute?

So, a 30-second is $45.

That's what it starts
at for an acoustic song

And for a full
three-minute song,

if it's acoustic, $205.

And if it's a full
instrumentation, it's $230.

Jones: So, how
does it work, then?

So you've got a load
of freelance singers?

Yes. Yes.

We have about 100 musicians
on our team right now.

And how much do you pay
them each time they do a song?

So we pay them anywhere
between 35% to 55%

of the song's order cost,

plus any tips that they
get, they get 100% of.

And the average
tip is about $51.

- Wow.
- Good for them. That's awesome.

What have your sales been
so far since you've launched?

So last year we made $700,000.

- Oh!
- Wow.

This year to date,
we've made $1.1 million.

Wow. That's so great. Whoa!

O'Leary: You made $1.1 million.

What do you get
to the bottom line

by the time bottom
line by the time...?

The bottom line
is 9% profit so far.

- 9%?
- And that's after you guys pay yourselves, obviously.

No, that's before
we pay ourselves.

Ohh.

Well, when we started,

we were living in Brooklyn

in an apartment with
four other roommates,

and I just basically used
my personal credit cards

to start the website.

And basically any
money we were making,

we were putting back in.

How did you come
up with this idea?

So, we're both musicians.

We made a personalized song

for one of my friends
for their wedding

right before the pandemic hit,

and then we decided to kind
of turn that idea into a website

and make the songs ourself.

We hoped to do about
three songs a week

just for fun and
some extra money.

And then put some
advertising money behind it

because we believed in the idea.

But then we started getting
more orders than we could handle.

We were staying up all night
in our apartment, making music.

- Writing music, too.
- And we were overwhelmed.

And that's at the same time

artists were
contacting us, like,

"Hey, we saw your ad.
I'm looking for work."

And we were like, "Join the
team 'cause we need people."

This is a lifelong dream
realized, to be able

to put my passion for
music into my career.

It's the best
feeling in the world.

And to do it with, you
know, the love of my life.

Now, who has
knocked you off so far?

How many competitors
do you have?

So, there are other
businesses that do this.

You know, personalized
songs have really been around

since the singing telegram.

It's not... it seems
new, but it's very old.

There are some websites out
there that are just one person.

They typically have long
turnaround times and high prices.

And then the other ones
that have a roster of musicians

are typically templated songs

where they just change
a name, and, you know...

Is it just the two of you
running the company?

It started just the two of us.

Now we have four
full-time employees.

So, where do you see
this company going?

We can copy and paste this
model into other languages.

Right now we only
do songs in English.

We really want to dive into
the wedding sector as well.

We do a lot of songs
for weddings already,

but we feel like there's
a lot of opportunity there.

Wedding sector.

And then additionally,
with the corporate world,

you know, we already
have a couple of companies

who are ordering
songs all the time.

Anytime somebody
gets promoted or hired,

they buy them a custom song.

What would you like
to use the money for?

We're going to use it for
all the marketing expansions

that we're looking for,
whether it's digital, you know,

television, radio, et cetera.

The truth is, you
know, we're musicians,

we're not marketing experts.

We've come this far,
but we really need...

You want to use the $400,000

to professionalize the
whole operation, basically.

Exactly. Exactly.

I get the feeling and sense that

you're not businesspeople.

That's why you're
here. You need help.

Kevin. Do you like this?

- So do I.
- But do you have a forecast?

Do you have any idea
of where this could get to?

We have a general
idea from just forecasting

regular numbers-wise.

We're looking at
$2.5 million this year,

and we're looking out for about

$5 million next year.

So, in the U.K., I
used to own a company

called Red Letter Days.

Basically, it was an
experience company.

You could buy a recording
for whatever you wanted,

for a birthday, for whatever.

Very, very similar.

We sold it, and we
made a lot of money.

One thing that was really
interesting is it took off.

Yeah. Yeah.

It was really, really big.

But it took off
because we decided

to make it really simple.

Mm-hmm.

And your website

and your technology you're using

is absolutely vital
to get that right.

But I do think, with the right
backup in terms of technology,

I think this could be huge,
particularly for weddings.

That means so much - to hear it from you.
- Thank you.

Cuban: Guys, with
what's happening

in artificial intelligence,
you've seen, you know,

emulated voices that sound
really, really, really good.

Mm-hmm.

I have a company
called Synthesia,

and that's all they
do is replicate voices.

- Wow.
- So you can take my voice

saying this and convert it
to 30 different languages.

Jones: Ellen, Omayya,

based on this
experience that I have

in growing businesses like this,

I could be your perfect partner.

And that's why I'm
gonna make you an offer.

- Okay.
- John: Oh!

Jones: But my offer
doesn't come cheap.

I'm going to offer you $400,000,

but I'd like to share the
business with you equally,

I'd like a third
of the business.

- Oh!
- We appreciate the offer very much.

Yeah. Thank you.

This type of business
could be huge.

I can help you
scale this business

from a global perspective,
and I think that's

really important for
a business like this.

Absolutely. The global market is
definitely something we're interested in.

I think Peter has a
great offer on the table.

That's why I'll match
that, but for 20%.

Wow. [ Laughs ]
Appreciate the offer.

♪♪

Narrator: All
sharks are still in.

Ellen and Omayya have
two offers on the table

for their custom song
business, Songlorious.

But Mark and Kevin
may also be interested.

I'm huge in the wedding
industry, obviously,

but I like Cuban's
technology idea,

and he owns that company
that has a piece of it.

How about we partner,
Cuban and I, 50/50,

offer you the $400,000?

We'll do it for 25%.

♪♪

Cuban: Actually, what we
should do is we should see

if Peter wants to come
in and go to the 33%,

but let Peter handle
the international,

Kevin handle the
weddings and everything.

I can deal with the
technological side.

Now, we'd still need the 33%.

That gives us
enough each to care.

If Peter's in for that.

I would love to do that.

Come on, guys, give
me some room here.

[ Laughter ] Hey, why
don't we take it up to 40%?

I'm gonna add the diversity.

No. [ Laughs ]

You know how close I am
with the music community.

Come on, man.

Wait, listen, this is gonna
be a social-media play, right?

African-Americans,
we like to talk.

So, why don't you let
me in on it a little bit?

- Give me a little sidewalk here.
- O'Leary: Daymond, Daymond.

Another 7%, we all split it.

I'm feeling very left
out all of a sudden.

Cuban: Can you sing, Lori?

Right now we've got...

We're gonna throw
Daymond under the bus

unless you're
willing to go to 40%

to give us 10% each.

Then we get everything
he's got on social.

You got four Sharks.
We love the deal.

Everybody brings
something special.

To go to 40%, we should
put in a little bit more money.

Agreed.

So that it should be


Done. Right?

Now, look, it seems like a lot,

but, effectively, we're
letting you just stay creative

and you guys will
own the majority still.

But you've got four people
who touch every base,

so that makes it a home run.

Omayya: We'd
like to counter offer.

- Can we talk for a second?
- Cuban: Sure.

If you guys don't mind, - please?
- No, go ahead.

Think about the amount of
money that you would have to pay

to get four Sharks like us.

You know, the
expertise that we bring

is extreme in this case.

♪♪

Let's say $700,000.

You do what you
think is best. Okay?

♪♪

So, I'm just going
to counter with this.

Can we do $800,000, 40%?

♪♪

I think you might
be too greedy now.

I think you've got a good
deal at $500,000 at 40%.

O'Leary: If you give us the


and your competitors
will be in the dust.

You'll be playing tunes of
woe and misery for them.

[ Speaks indistinctly ]

♪♪

[ Sighs ]

Alright, you guys got a deal.

Yeah! [ Laughs ]

Cuban: Good job.

Lori: Good job, Peter.

O'Leary: Fantastic.

Oh, I thought you were
gonna lose that one.

- I'm so excited for you.
- Thank you so much.

That was - really impressive.
- Thank you.

Thank you. - We're so excited, you guys.
- Congratulations.

- Well done.
- This is wonderful.

- Alright!
- Thank you.

Congratulations. Well done!

Hodges: Thank you.

[ Exhales sharply ] I know.

♪♪

- I feel like crying.
- I know.

It's gonna be big.

I think it will be big.

♪♪

I was born in a small town
in England called Langley.

I come from a really
hardworking family,

and I think that that's
an essence of my identity.

I struggled at school. I
found it really difficult.

My parents wanted me
to get a good education,

go and get a nine-to-five job.

There was always
something inside me, though,

that wanted something different.

I used to play a lot of
tennis, and at the age of 16,

I started my first business,
the Peter Jones tennis academy.

It started out with five people.
Then it grew to 40 people.

The next thing I knew,

wow, I've got a serious
business on my hand.

Whilst I was still doing
my tennis academy,

I'd read about this
guy, Michael Dell,

building computers in his
bedroom, and I thought,

"You know what?
I could do that."

The minute I left school at 18,

I was learning about
how to build a computer.

By the time I'm 21,

I found myself with this
incredible computer business.

I had my own house, had
beautiful cars, and I thought,

"This is amazing.

Business isn't
that difficult, is it?"

Until recession hit in the U.K.,

and then everything
came crashing down.

Companies that owed me
money couldn't afford to pay me.

I'm now having to sell
my house, sell my cars.

It was a dark, dark moment.

But then that word
"failure" kept on resonating,

and that was my eureka moment.

I just went, "Hang on a minute.

There's no such
thing as failure."

That's feedback.

I ended up getting
a job at Siemens,

massive computer company.

I started in sales and
marketing, and I also thought,

"You know what? This
business could do so much more."

Some of the
decisions that I made,

I'm proud to say that the
business made a profit

for the first time
in a long time.

In nine months,

we were so successful
that the chairman decided

that I should be
running the business.

In 1998, I started a
telecoms company.

I knew that mobile phones

were gonna be
the next big thing.

I started with $10,000.

By the time I got
to my fifth year,

we turned over a
quarter of a billion dollars,

and, boy, was I happy.

I like impossible challenges.

Good.

I've been on "Dragons'
Den" since 2005...

Longest-standing Dragon
or Shark, for that matter...

Anywhere in the world.

So I can't wait to
get into the t*nk

and breathe a little bit
of fire on a few of them,

particularly Kevin.

Even though I'm on
"Dragons' Den" in the U.K.,

"Shark t*nk," it's
the Super League.

In my opinion, America is the
pinnacle of entrepreneurship.

There's something
uniquely different

about the American dream.

Three!

The experience I learned
from literally losing everything

was probably one of the
greatest experiences of my life.

It's made me really
care about other people,

and I want to help people
achieve their dreams.

It's one of the reasons
why I do "Dragons' Den,"

and it's certainly the reason
why I'm here to do "Shark t*nk."

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: Next up is a product

inspired by our new
work-from-home normal.

♪♪

Hi, Sharks, my name
is Parm, like Parmesan.

I know it's cheesy.

I'm from Sacramento, California,

and the CEO of MuteMe.

And I'm Tye, like
the tie that you wear,

and I'm also from Sacramento,
California, and the CFO.

We're here today
asking for $200,000

in exchange for 10% of
our company, MuteMe.

And joining us virtually today
are our two other cofounders,

and wives, Handeep and Brittany.

Hi, Sharks! I'm so
excited to be here today.

My name is Handeep,

and I'm the chief
operating officer at MuteMe.

I'm Brittany, and I'm the chief
marketing officer at MuteMe.

We wish they could
be here with us today.

Yeah, right.

They're so lucky we
let them on the t*nk.

We're the real talent. We
should have been on there.

Tell me about it.

You know it took Tye a month
to memorize his five lines?

I had them down in a day.
We would have been flawless.

We would have been.

- We can hear you!
- We can hear you!

[ Both gasp ]

[ Laughs ] There's
got to be a better way.

Well, now there is!

Sharks, this is MuteMe,

the world's first
illuminated mute button.

You press MuteMe when
you need to be muted,

the lights change color
so it's never disputed.

Tap it again when
it's your turn to speak.

The light stops you from
letting the wrong words leak.

It's a perfect tool when
you're multitasking

or when you have a
coworker like Mr. Wonderful

who keeps on ranting.

It helps others around
you know if you're busy.

No more wondering, "Hey,
he's not on a call, is he?"

Stainless steel is super neat.

Custom engraving,
it can't be b*at.

It's the hottest
product of the year.

[ Laughs ] No more
conference-call slipups or fears.

Whether you're
working or learning,

our button makes things easy.

Don't worry, we know
this rhyme's pretty cheesy.

Sharks, we hope you found
our pitch just a little bit funny.

But unmute yourselves, it's
time to make some money.

There you go. - I like that.
- Cuban: There you go. Good job.

So run through, really
quick, all the scenarios.

Just give me like four or five

where you think
someone would use this.

So, 2020, one of the top
lines that was used was,

"You're on
mute.""You're on mute."

And how many times
have you heard a dog bark,

doorbell ring,
different scenarios

while someone's talking

and they don't realize
they're on mute?

Everyone's trying
to get their attention,

and they just don't have
that indication that they are.

Why not just do a
browser extension, though,

and just make it really,
really big on the screen

where everybody's looking?

Because it takes up
screen real estate.

You don't want to take up
additional space on your screen.

There's like eight different
conferencing platforms, right?

When you're interfacing
with all those different

conferencing
platforms, it's not easy.

So our button, you plug it in,

you press the button,
it mutes and unmutes.

How much are you
selling them for?

We're selling
them for $39 retail.

And what do they cost to make?

It's $11.62 right now.

Greiner: How did
you come up with this?

And tell us about
your background.

We actually have a mutual
friend that came up with the idea.

I worked on a remote working
project with him two years ago.

And Tye is the technical
marketing manager

at the largest all-remote
company in the world.

So we decided to
go down the path

of developing
something ourselves.

We prototyped it
in about a month,

launched a Kickstarter,
and it just takes off.

Give me an idea - what "take off" means.
- Yeah, what is "take off"?

Yeah, so we did...

So, we did 145,000
on Kickstarter.

Dollars or units?

Dollars. Dollars.

And Indiegogo was $135,000,

so we did $280,000
in crowdfunding.

What about real sales?
What's happened?

We've done $61,000.

$61,000. How'd you sell them?

On our website.

You'll want to know also
we are in every Staples

in the United States.

- You are?
- The last four weeks.

But what have they sold
in these last four weeks?

So we've sold
just over 150 units.

That's it?

Where are they
putting it in the store?

Very front. If you walk into

a Staples right now,
there's a table there.

Jones: What have they
said about the feedback?

Because 150 units is low.

They haven't promoted
us in any marketing yet,

and that's to come in
the next couple of weeks.

Well, no, they
are promoting you,

because they've
basically got walk-in trade,

and it's the first
thing you see.

Footfall overall everywhere

is not where it should
be as of right now.

No, but hold on, hold on. I think
Peter's asking a great question.

I mean, to back that up, though,

did they tell you the
tests on how many doors

they're putting you in?



Every store in
the United States.

We've gone to a lot of
stores, and the one thing

that we're trying to get
them to do most often is,

you see the value
in the illumination.

- Yes.
- And that's something that

the stores run a battery
pack, and the battery pack dies.

Cuban: You've got to
come up with a way to sell it.

Do something fun
with it on TikTok.

You have got to be
great content creators.

You're a product,

and you haven't
figured out how to sell it.

I mean, you're not even close.

That's what I think you
need to be successful.

So for those reasons, I'm out.

I'm sorry to hear that, Mark.

I think this goes
to zero in retail.

In about 90 days, it'll be in
the discount bin for nine bucks.

[ Scoffs ] That's not a problem.

This should be
completely done online.

Part of the strategy is actually
a business-to-business strategy.

Because the top
is stainless steel,

it can be laser
engraved with any logo.

So we've had a lot of
customers where they've...

Stop selling for a second because
I want a minute just to drop out.

I'm gone, I'm out,
I'm history. Thank you.

Sorry to hear that.

What you've done here is
you've created a great product

that's come out of the pandemic.

I've got a company in Asia.

It's like the third-
or fourth-largest

gadget company online.

We sell tens of millions' worth
of gadgets, and I'm thinking,

"Could I sell this?"

I think I could.

But, sadly, it's going to be a
race to the bottom on price.

That's where I think it's at.

You have other
competitors in this market?

So we're first to market.

There are some
competitors out there

that are trying to...

They saw our Kickstarter
and decided to ramp up.

Do you have any
I.P. at all on it?

We do. We have a
provisional patent.

So we're the only mute
button that isn't a microphone.

That's not bad.
It could be worse.

We work with - all the microphones.
- No, it's good.

So we're the only mute button that's
not a microphone and is illuminated.

We have factories in Shenzhen.
I can make this for you now.

We'd love to work with you.
We'd love to work with you.

Make that happen. Yeah, yeah.

You've got no proprietary
circuit board in here.

This is probably, at volume,

less than 70 or


Yeah, we we are currently
manufacturing it at $11.

Ouch.

We would love to work
with any one of you.

I'll give you an offer.

But the problem is, I
have to redo your business.

Every one of the Sharks
said something that's critical.

You know, you got to
make these things for $1.50.

And at the end of the day,

this has got to be
$19.99, maybe $14.99.

- I think it's $9.99.
- I mean, certain companies are targeting something like $9.99.

So, anyway, unfortunately,

I have to give you
a very Sharky offer.

$200,000 for 50%.



Ooh.5-0.

- 5-0.
- That's not an unreasonable offer

for what you guys got here.

The valuation is
crazy. It is crazy.

But I have to put
so much work in,

I probably am gonna
have to give percentages

to a bunch of people.

What do you think?

Why don't you see if you can
get an offer from somebody else?

If you don't, - that's the only offer you got.
- That's true.

Well, if you don't get an offer from
somebody else, then it's gonna go up.

Who's still in? Are
we... three of us?

No, I hate this.

[ Chuckles ]

Greiner: Tell us
what you really think.

[ Laughs ]

Listen, guys, I
see the benefit of it.

I'm so on the fence about it.

And whenever I feel that
way, I have to go with my gut.

And I'm so sorry, but I'm out.

Guys, so... [ Sighs ]

I'm really torn.

Be torn towards us.

[ Laughs ]

No, I'm really torn.

If I do this and I go
back and my guys say,

"What the [bleep] are
you doing? Because..."

[ Laughter ]

"You're just
investing in a button

that goes red and green.

We could create that tomorrow."

And I just... I feel really
quite worried about that.

Hey, you know
what, guys? I'm out.

♪♪

The thing is, there's a lot of
simple things out there that sell well.

Just because it's simple doesn't
necessarily mean that it's a bad idea.

Seriously, guys,
I'm really sorry,

but I'm going to
have to say I'm out.

[ Sighs ]

Alright. We appreciate it.

Good luck, guys.

- Alright, take care, guys.
- Appreciate it.

- That's a tough one.
- Yeah.

They messed up.

I think they look at something

and they think it's simple.

They don't necessarily,

you know, think that
this is gonna grow,

but I know it's gonna grow.

It's gonna be something
that's gonna end up

on a lot of students' desks.

They're gonna be
sorry in a couple years,

and that's okay.

It's gonna be the Ring
doorbell all over again.

The Ring doorbell
all over again.

[ Laughs ] The only
good thing about this

is if it actually worked
for real on people.

[ Laughter ]

♪♪

Narrator: Next in the t*nk

is a food business that's
as convenient as it is healthy.

♪♪

♪♪

[ British accent
] Hello, Sharks.

This is Christopher Jane.

[ British accent ] And
this is Jennifer Jane.

We're based in Austin, Texas,

and together we are the
sibling founders of Proper Good.

We're here today
seeking $400,000

in exchange for 10%

of our wonderful
natural foods company.

So, what is Proper Good?

Proper Good makes the tastiest

and most convenient


And who are these meals for?

For busy people who care
about what they put in their bodies.

So whether you're
plant-based, ketogenic,

gluten-free, or dairy-free,

we have got the
meals for your lifestyle.

Well, that sounds divine!

So how do people
get these meals?

Ah, well, that
couldn't be easier.

We ship direct to you from
the Proper Good website

in a wonderful, lovely
little box with 12 meals

with no extra packaging,
no insulation, and no dry ice.

Oh, wait a minute.

Are you telling me there's
no refrigeration needed?

Quite right.

All Proper Good
meals are shelf-stable

for up to eight months,
meaning no fridge needed,

so you can enjoy them at
home, at work, or on the go

whenever you need a


It's like having a
wonderful little chef

in your pocket.

By Jove, that does sound good.

Quite good.

- Proper Good.
- Proper Good.

So, Sharks, who's ready to
make a Proper Good investment?

That was absolutely first-class.

[ Laughs ] Are
you really English?

- We are, indeed, yes.
- Yes, we are.

So we grew up on "Dragons'
Den" and watching you.

So when we heard that you
were here, we were delighted.

- Yes.
- Fantastic.

So today I'm your
favorite Shark?

Indeed.

Oh, thank you. How do you
feel about that, Mr. Wonderful?

Alright, I'm out.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, early mistakes.

[ Laughter ]

Greiner: What do we have?

Yes, so all of the
Sharks to my right,

you all have our Red
Pepper and Meatball soup,

which is our best seller.

That's why it's in the
crown jewels there.

And also Chicken Noodle,

which is an elevated
version of the classic.

And then, Mark, you have
two of our vegan options,

which is the Southwest
Chili with plant-based meat,

and then also a Quinoa
Brown Rice Blend.

It's really nice.

It's good. - I'm eating the meatball.
- Thank you.

- Excellent. It's very good.
- Wonderful.

Very tasty. Good. Thank you.

How much does that box
cost, and what do you sell it for?

Average product price is
around $7, including free delivery.

- That's for one. One meal.
- For one.

So with a subscription, though,
all of our meals are $5.99,

including free shipping.

So that makes the
box $72 for the 12.

If you sell it for $72, what
does it cost you to make?

Cost for us to make
it? Around $30.

And for any given package,
the range for your cost?

Our cost is $2 to $2.50.
We're at about 65% gross.

But I could eat it right
out of the pouch, right,

without even
heating it if I wanted?

- Correct.
- You can eat it cold if you want.

Yeah, and we found a
few different industries,

such as nurses and
truckers in particular,

that love that nature of it,

the fact that it's
already cooked

and you can eat it hot - or cold.
- Yeah.

And what have your
sales been so far?

We launched in 2020, April.

Year one we did,
of calendar year,

$556,000 in sales.

Greiner: That's great.

Year to date this year,

we're obviously
about 50% through,

we've done just over a million.

- Whoa.
- Greiner: Wow.

This is all direct to consumer, - almost 100%.
- John: Wow.

- Good for you.
- Greiner: What is generating these sales?

What are you doing
to get customers?

Through COVID,
we saw a lot of people

go to shop online, right?

- Right.
- They started to adopt e-commerce behavior.

And really, we are
truly the only company

offering premium
shelf-stable meals.

John: Chris and Jen, you know,

I love what you're doing, I
love the packaging, everything.

I don't generally eat
soups, but it's something

that I wouldn't be able to
really be passionate about.

So I wish you luck, and
I loved the presentation.

I'm out.

Okay, thank you - for the time.
- Thank you, Daymond.

I think you're onto something.

I think your sales
are indicative of that

because that's really
fast growth in a pandemic.

But you're a little bit too
early for me right now.

I'd like to see it
have more flavors

and a little more
tried and true.

And solely for those
reasons, I'm out.

Understood. - Thank you for the feedback.
- Thank you, Lori.

Can I just ask a
question about your profit?

What was your
profit on just that

just over a million?

Sure, no, so we are very
much losing money right now

on a customer-acquisition
standpoint.

Let's just break it down
from that million, year to date,

is around $550,000
in gross margin,

There's around
$300,000 in net margin.

But overall, yeah,
company to date

has raised about $2 million.

Oh. - Oh.
- So we are losing money today

to acquire customers, - build products.
- Okay.

Okay, so your cost of
acquisition, then, is huge.

So it's about $32

if you take your total
year-one marketing

over total year-one customers.

But that puts us profitable on
a second order with customers.

And how much are
you burning per month?

$80,000.

Guys, I like the
product, I like the idea,

I think it's going to work.

I much prefer, however,
to invest in a company

that can give me two numbers.

Customer-acquisition
cost and lifetime value.

Because if you had
already arrived at a place

where you said to me,
"Look, Kevin, lifetime value

is 250 bucks,
acquisition is $18,"

- it's a no-brainer.
- Sure.

All we have to do is fight about - what percentage I get.
- Correct.

That's it. You're not there yet.

For me, not ready. It's
not pasteurized enough yet.

The model isn't
nailed down. I'm out.

Okay.

I really like it.

I think you've produced a
really good quality product.

Thank you.

However, I've been
in this market before

with Barenaked Foods,

and one of the big
things that we got right

was that specific
cost of acquisition

- at the starting point.
- Yep.

And what actually
ends up happening

in businesses like this

is that you have a
high level of entry.

And whilst you
think you can change

to the subscription
model, you will demonstrate

that your customer
acquisition will go down. Sure.

When you start to bring
out your new ranges,

your cost of acquisition
goes through the roof again

and you go in a never-ending
cycle of actually massive burn,

and you need more
and more investment.

And that's why what happens
is, to businesses like this,

the founders, sadly, end
up with tiny equity at the end.

They end up shorting,
ultimately, the investor

at the front end, and you
end up diluting and diluting,

and it's a race to the bottom.

And that's the only reason why
I'm gonna say, sadly, I'm out.

Okay, understood. Thank you.

You guys, I know how to
make this thing huge, right?

I'm afraid you guys
might hold me back.

Because when you have
a product that's functional

and it's the message itself,

then you just got
to let it sell, right?

Would you be willing to
change your marketing

and to change your packaging?

Yes, we... well, "data over ego"

is our kind of - little mantra.
- Perfect. Okay.

- Perfect.
- So, yes, definitely.

I'll make you an offer.

It's gonna be Sharky, but
this is what it's gonna take.

And I have the team to do
it and the results to prove it.

So I'll offer you the
$400,000, but I want 25%.

- Okay.
- John: Mm!

Well, - thank you for the offer.
- Thank you.

- Mm!
- Because you should be able to go from a million

to $25 million

within three to
four years easily,

if not faster, and you should
be able to cut your CAC

- to next to nothing.
- Yep.

But, you know, focusing
on fitness and travel

and all these different things
and just using earned media.

Would it be okay to hear if there's
any other offers on the table?

They're all out.

I think they're all out.

Oh, just one? I thought
I forgot he was out.

Okay, um... Yeah. [ Laughter ]

We're all on Mark.

Do you want to
take a minute to talk,

or what do you want to do here?

Would you consider 20%?

♪♪

I would do 20%.

Alright, - let's make it happen.
- Deal.

Let's do it.[ Applause ]

John: Alright. Good.

Greiner: Congrats, guys.

- O'Leary: Excellent.
- Thank you.

That's proper good.

Cuban: We're gonna
make a lot of money.

- Thank you so much.
- Thank you so much.

- Well done.
- Pleasure. Thank you so much.

- Lovely. Bye-bye.
- Thank you. Bye-bye.

- Thanks, guys.
- Alright, hands up.

[ Both laugh ]

Nice! Awesome.

Ooh, it was touch-and-go
for a moment.

It was. [ Laughs ]

Of course we're a
little bit sad not to get

the fellow Englishman
in the Shark t*nk,

but we are delighted
to be with Mark Cuban

and really excited to grow this.

It really is good.

- I'd say it's quite good.
- Oh, it's Proper Good.

♪♪

Narrator: Next up is
an apparel company

focused on helping our oceans.

♪♪

Hello, Sharks. My name
is Michael Lamagna.

I'm Lauren Lamagna.

And we're salty siblings
from New England.

We're here seeking a
$375,000 investment

for 15% of our business,

the Long Wharf Supply Co.

It's no secret that
ocean plastics are one of

the biggest environmental
challenges of our generation.

Additionally, millions of
pounds of oyster shells

are discarded every year
and end up in landfills,

eventually turning
toxic over time

while contributing
to global waste.

And that's why we're
turning waste into wool.

We created the first
fisherman's sweaters made

from a soft blend of
recycled oyster shells,

recycled water bottles,
and natural lambswool.

Each sweater sold
reseeds up to 30 oysters.

To date, we've reseeded
over 70,000 oysters,

which naturally filter 3.5
million gallons of seawater

in our local
waterways every day.

- Wow.
- By creating high-quality and timeless garments

that promote the use
of recycled materials

and that directly support
reseeding coastal oyster reefs,

we hope to reduce
waste and clean up

our inshore waterways
for the next generation.

So, Sharks, now that we've
got a hook in the water,

who's ready to take the bait?

John: This is - a really nice sweater.
- Thank you.

Greiner: - It is really nice.
- John: Really good quality.

Super soft. I mean,
it really feels nice.

It's got, like, that
a good weight,

but also like something
you'd want to put on.

What's the percentage of
the lambswool to the recycled?

It's 10% lambswool and


Really? 50%?

The other 40% is 20% nylon

and 20% plant-based viscose.

John: So for those
who don't know,

one oyster filters how
much water a day?

I'm glad you asked.

People are floored to learn

that 50 gallons of
seawater per day

are filtered by each oyster.

I filmed a little
experiment for you

so you can see it
with your own eyes.

We filled two tanks
with mucky seawater,

placed 60 oysters in the tanks.

If you'll notice
by the end here,

the t*nk on the
right gets pretty clear.

- People are blown away.
- What was that period of time?

- For two hours.
- That was two hours alone?

Cuban: Only takes you two
hours to clean that much?

For that time-lapse,
yes. For that, yeah.

Wow, that's pretty interesting.

So, what's your backstory?

Yeah, absolutely.

After graduating, I moved
back to Boston initially to work for

one of the most successful
e-commerce companies, Wayfair.

- Mm-hmm.
- And I interned in New York City,

working for an entrepreneur

who had cofounded
fashion label Tory Burch,

was hired as an associate.

It was my dream job.

Unfortunately, I got
caught up in layoffs,

and I just did what I
knew how to do best...

Go back and jump
on lobster boats.

And during those
years, I looked around

and I was floored
at how much plastic

and waste we'd
pull out of the ocean.

So I started thinking about
launching my own business.

So Long Wharf originally
started at the end of 2016

with a handful of waxed
canvas and leather goods.

We actually launched the
sweater collection last year,



So, what do these
things sell for?

What are your margins?

So we have just under an


- Greiner: Wow.
- They cost us $23.50 to $33.50 to make.

And we sell them
for $128 to $158.

Have you figured out your
customer acquisition cost yet?

We have. Right now we can
acquire customers for $41.

- That's expensive.
- O'Leary: $41?

Give me the last
three years in sales.

Yeah, so I just want to talk
about our pandemic pivot

because it was a
big part of our story.

It's never good when
someone asks you,

"How much are you selling?"
and we get another story.

And you change subject, yeah.

In the last 12 months,
we've sold $495,000.

Greiner: And is it just the two
of you running the company?

Like, tell me how is
this operation being run.

It's the two of us.

I mean, it's bootstrapped,
nose to the grindstone,

pounding down doors.

You're doing everything, though?

Mike likes to tell
stories, doesn't he?

- Mike's a storyteller, right?
- Lauren: I'll jump in.

He's Italian, I'm Italian.

If we're not talking, we
don't know what to do.

But it's very much an
all-hands-on-deck kind of effort.

And are you 50/50 partners?

No. Right now I own


Michael. You do?

I do. - Lauren: He does.
- And what about Lauren?

I still have a full-time job

and I'm working on Long Wharf

mornings, nights, and
weekends right now.

Well, why doesn't Lauren
have a percentage?

Yeah, why doesn't
Lauren have a percentage?

There's a couple negotiations
we can do in this room today.

Hey, who's the Shark?[ Laughs ]

Hang on, Mike. Just
give me one second here.

$375,000, 15%.

$2.5 million valuation.

$495,000 in sales.

I get the oyster story.
That's really great.

[ Chuckles ] But it's a
sweater business, okay?

Your worth is sort
of one-time sales.

$375,000...

I'd need to have like 75% of it.

We appreciate the offer,

I haven't said [Laughs]...but
that deal's a little too steep for us.

[ Laughter ]

Greiner: [ Laughing ]
He didn't give an offer.

O'Leary: Mike, let me tell
you... the valuation's insane.

The company's not
even worth $375,000 yet.

You asked for too much money.

I'm out.

We appreciate it, Mr. Wonderful.
Thank you for your time.

You know, I mean, I'm
really attracted to this

because my daughter
is five years old.

You know, they asked
all the kids in school,

"What do you want to
be?" and two of the kids say,

"I want to be a venture
capitalist when I get older."

My daughter said, "I
want to pick up trash."

Interesting.

Nothing against the
hardworking men and women

that clean up our cities.

And I asked her, "Why do
you want to pick up trash?"

And then she looked
at me at five years old

with those big,
beautiful eyes and said,

"Because I want to clean
up the world, Daddy."

Right? Cuban: Ohh. Greiner: Aww.

And so this is
something I want to do.

It's something that our
kids need to understand.

But the number is so much
to wrap our heads around,

and I would be making
an uneducated decision

and paying the
most I could for it.

So we're trying to... So
I have to pass. I'm out.

With that $375,000...

Oh, we appreciate
your time, Daymond.

Um, I think it's
really interesting.

You do think that there's a
gap in the market, don't you?

We do. I mean, we see ourselves

becoming the face of
the circular economy.

We believe that... That wasn't
an opportunity for a speech.

It was just a statement.

Cuban: [ Laughs
] No, I'm just...

What I'm looking at now is,

is there actually a
market in that gap?

Because I think
what your mission

and what you're trying
to stand for is really great.

How do you make
this into a business?

Isn't there something
bigger that you could be doing

that would be helping the
oceans in an even bigger way

You don't like this
business at all?

- [ Laughs ] No.
- Lauren: We'd like to get there,

and I think we're on
the track to do that.

Cuban: Let me ask the
question a different way.

Can you sell something that
everybody can afford to buy

so everybody can participate,

a T-shirt that
everybody can say,

"Hey, I'm supporting
conservation

and reclamation of oysters
and making the oceans better"?

There's got to
be a path to scale.

Yes, and there is.

So, right now what we've
been talking to you guys about

is our lambswool blend.

But something that
we're working on

is a cotton and
recycled-material blend.

It's much more versatile
than our wool blend,

which is made to keep you warm.

Just tell me, can you
sell a T-shirt for $29.95,

make 60-plus percent margins,

accomplish the same thing,
and sell five million of them?

We think we can sell five
million of these sweaters.

I'm out.

We do appreciate your time.

Greiner: You know
what's a bummer?

Mark's idea's a really great
one because people care.

His daughter cares.
We all care, right?

And we want to be able to do
things and get behind things,

but, to Mark's point,

in an affordable,
inexpensive way, a T-shirt.

And when he said, "How about
doing that? Can you tell me doing that?"

And if you had
said to him, "Yes,"

I would have said,
"Mark, I want to join you."

But you didn't.

Cuban: - [ Laughing ] Look at Michael.
- Greiner: But you didn't.

It was the moment
to jump in and say,

"Yeah, you know what? It's a
good idea. We'll figure it out."

We'll make anything - out of oyster shells.
- And you guys, unfortunately,

Now you're talking,
but... because you didn't,

I'm so sorry, but I'm out.

- Well, we appreciate it, Lori.
- Thank you for your time, Lori.

Look, I think you've
come with a great product,

a really, really good idea.

There's two things
I don't like about it.

One is clearly the valuation.

And the second
thing, interestingly,

is you haven't given
any share to your sister,

who I think is just
about as passionate

in this business as you are.

So can you answer why
that hasn't happened?

Honestly, Peter, we haven't
even thought about it yet.

Lauren's put in the time.

Greiner: Did you
think about, Lauren?

Cuban: You might want
to ask Lauren that, yeah.

Lauren, would you take
it if he offered you equity?

Yeah, absolutely.

Michael, are you going
to offer her some equity?

Yes.

How much is she gonna get?

I'd like to see
Michael's commitment.

How much would you give her now?

Hmm.

Lauren, what do you want?

I'll take 10%.

That's it?

Done.

Alright! We got a deal finally.

Great, you've just done
a deal in the Shark t*nk.

- Congratulations.
- We'll take it.

You might do another one 'cause
I'm gonna make you an offer.

Awesome. Let's hear it.

I am able to help you sell this

on a global basis
in multiple markets.

I've got a business...
I'm a major shareholder.

It's called Localised.

We take even American brands,

and we put them
into global markets.

I'm going to offer
you all of the money...

That's $375,000...

But I want 45% - of the business.
- John: Ooh!

- O'Leary: Yowza!
- Greiner: Wow.

Wow!

Narrator: Four Sharks are out.

Peter is interested
in Lauren and Mike's

recycled-oyster sweater
company, Long Wharf,

but he wants a much bigger bite

than the 15% they
came in offering.

I'm going to offer
you all of the money...

That's $375,000...

But I want 45% - of the business.
- John: Ooh!

- O'Leary: Yowza!
- Greiner: Wow.

John: Wow!

The British are coming!

Yeah. No...[ Laughter ]

That they are. Um...

I think that's a
hell of an offer

because you don't
have anything yet.

You got oysters, you
got some water bottles,

you got nothing in sales.

Cuban: And you
got a new partner.

You do that deal, you
lost 55% in one minute.

[ Sighs ] Um...

What are you thinking?

Your dream for having
this business successful

becomes reality the
minute you say yes.

[ Whispering ] What
do you want to do?

♪♪

[ Whispers indistinctly ] Yeah.

Peter, we we'd love to
have you join the family.

Great.

We appreciate the offer, but...

Is that a deal?

Would you consider 25%?

- No.
- O'Leary: [ Laughs ]

To Kevin's point, this
business today is worth

maybe $300,000 to $500,000.

That's the reality.

And my business, we're the
only company in the world...

This is a big
statement, but it's true...

The only company in the world
that could take a global brand

and open them up in a
localized market like Japan,

Korea, and Asia
in 30 days or less.

That makes a very,
very unique difference,

and that's what I
bring to the party.

There... There's no
coming off of 45%?

No, because I just feel that
there's gonna be a lot of work here.

I'm not gonna budge on
that. It's my final offer, so...

♪♪

[ Whispering indistinctly ]

Mm-hmm.

♪♪

Well, Lauren's made
the decision on this one.

Peter, we really
appreciate your offer,

but it's more than we're
willing to give up right now.

Whoa! Cuban: Good for you guys.

- Understandable.
- O'Leary: Are you kidding?

Cuban: No, that's smart as hell.

We really appreciate
everyone's advice and time today.

John: Good luck.

Well, listen, Peter just got
you 10% of the company.

- That's true.
- Cuban: Right?

We're walking away as winners.

You've done a deal! Well done.

Absolutely. Thanks, guys.

Thanks, everyone. - We appreciate your time.
- Greiner: Good luck, guys.

Congrats, guys. Good luck.

- John: Good work.
- O'Leary: Wow.

♪♪

So... [ Laughs ]

- Look at you!
- Got one deal done. [ Laughs ]

Mike: 45% was way too high.

I did give up 10%
today to a great partner

who's been there
since the beginning,

but we're still
keeping it in the family.


♪♪

♪♪