10 “Words of Wisdom” from Shark Tank Season 10

Season 10 Words of Wisdom

1. “Adversity isn’t going to pull me down, it’s only going to rise me up”-Entrepreneur Ariel from Nuchas

2.”Large beverage companies are (in effect) subcontracting their product                                development to entrepreneurs.”-Guest Shark Rohan Oza

3.”Patent litigation is not a good way to add value to a company.”-Mr. Wonderful

4.”What good are patents if you don’t have sales?”-Barbara Corcoran

5. “50% of a watermelon is better than 90% of a grape.”-Mark Cuban

6.”I’m living the dream!”-Entrepreneur Danh from Butter Cloth

7.”You’re missing discipline!”-Robert Herjavec to an entrepreneur who is spending too  much money relative to their actual sales.

8.”Perfection is the enemy of profitability.”-Mark Cuban

9. “It’s easy to start a business, it’s hard to make a business successful”-Ariel from Nuchas

10. “The only thing that kills more people than the plague is (too much) inventory”-Mr. Wonderful

 

 

The 12 Best Presentations on Shark Tank-Season 9

Number 12

First into the tank were brothers Brian and Michael from Comfy.  Their presentation was amusing and entertaining. Their reversible blanket/ hooded sweatshirt competes with the popular Snuggy (22 million of them were sold in its first year).  Despite having no website and no sales, Brian and Michael got a deal from Shark Barbara for $50K  for 30% equity. I have a funny feeling this may turn out to be a big hit for Brian, Michael, and Barbara. It’s a big potential market. I gave this my Best Deal of the episode award.

Number 11

Robbie from BenjiLock has developed a prototype of an electronic lock that can work with the traditional key or thru fingerprint recognition. Even though Robbie had zero sales, he had just had his patent granted and that created value for the Sharks.

Robbie had put $87K of his own money into the business and he was feeling the stress. He broke down several times while pitching his product. Four of the Sharks made offers and Robbie took his time making a decision.

He then shocked the world (or at least me and the Sharks) when he took the offer made by Mr. Wonderful for $200K for 15% equity. Mr. W. had differentiated his offer by saying he would use a licensing strategy and get big companies to license Robbie’s technology.

Robbie confounded the Sharks, but I think he was hoping Mr. Wonderful could help produce an immediate financial return vs. growing the company slowly over time. If you’re in financial trouble, this is not a surprising decision. Since Robbie had lost his job, invested $87K of his own money, and had three young kids, he might have been feeling the heat.

PS….Mr. Wonderful lived up to his name when six weeks after the episode aired, he delivered a license deal with Hampton Products and handed a check to Robbie for $100,000!

Number 10

Tom from Grypmat is a private jet mechanic who has developed silicon trays for tools. He’s had sales of $400K in 10 months. The trays cost $29 to $69 and have a margins of $50%. Although he has targeted the aircraft industry as his primary market, the Sharks thought there were many other markets he could penetrate. All five Sharks were interested. Shark Robert asked Tom how he would like to see an offer if two or three Sharks came in together. I loved Tom’s response…..”It depends on which Sharks”.

In the end, Tom chose Mark, Lori, and Sir Richard and asked if they would invest $360K for 30% equity. They quickly said YES! Well done, Tom!

Number 9

Mariella and Anita from Lace Your Face made sheet masks to improve skin quality. Based on their backgrounds they had credibility and they had sold over $1.3 million of their product. They showed steady growth with annual sales of $150K, $450K, and $750K…..something investors love to see.

Bethenny was interested and made an offer of $350K for 30% equity. Mariella and Anita countered with $350K for 15%. Shark Lori swooped in and aced Bethany by shouting “I’ll take that deal” before Bethenny could respond. Lori’s offer was accepted and Bethenny had been kicked to the curb.

Number 8

Alfonso from OA Foods had two product lines. The first product, Palmini, was a pasta substitute made of hearts of palm. He had only been selling this product for 3 months  (sales of $50K). The second was Quinoa which had been sold for a longer period of time and had annual sales of $400K.

Shark Lori and Mark Cuban were super excited by Alfonso and his products and teamed up to make an offer of $300K for 30% equity. Alfonso got them down to 25% and accepted the offer. After it was over, Alfonso admitted he was thrilled to have these two as partners and would have taken their original offer of 30% equity. Well played!

Number 7

Alan from BrilliantPad did a very good job convincing the Sharks that his company was investable even with very light sales numbers. His product automatically rolls up dog “pee/poop pads” in such a way that their is very little odor.

He had only sold $100K of his product in 30 days on Indigogo. How did he convince Shark Lori to invest/loan him half a million dollars? First, Alan was the inventor of the self-cleaning litterbox, so he has a track record in the industry. Second, people will pay almost anything for pet related products. Third, this product would be ideal for infomercials…..one of Lori’s specialties.

The deal calls for Alan to pay Lori $5/unit sold until she recoups her $500K. She will retain a 2.5% equity stake in the company. This won the Best Deal of the Episode Award.

Number 6

Logan from RokBlok (by Pink Donut) has created an amazing tiny portable Vinyl record player with bluetooth connectivity. Vinyl records are gaining in popularity, but very few people have the old phonographs to play them. Logan has solved this problem. He sold $350K of his product on Kickstarter, taught himself electrical engineering on YouTube, lived at the factory in China that manufactures his product for two months, and worked for Apple for 5 years. Impressive!

Shark Robert Herjavec was so impressed he bought the entire company for $500K and agreed to pay Logan a six figure salary for two years plus a 5% royalty. Robert said he thought RokBlok would be a “slow burner” that would sell for many years to come. I would describe this as a high risk/high reward deal for Robert, but a no-brainer for Logan.

Number 5

The Best Deal of the episode award went to Makenzie from “delighted by”.  She has developed a dessert hummus which the Sharks all agreed was delicious. She had sales of $1 million and had raised $400K  from family and friends and Makenzie had put $20K of her own money into the business.

Shark Barbara gave some good advice to Makenzie. She had just hired an employee that turned out to be “not perfect”. Barbara told her that when hiring and delegating, “80% is good enough”. You can’t expect perfection and that’s okay.

Mark Cuban ended up investing $600K for 25% equity. He recognized that this deal was a little out of the ordinary, but he said, “The deals that have made me the most money are always the craziest”.

Number 4

Brighton and Aaron from Enso Rings had $5 million in sales in the last year…..all online. These two marketing geniuses ended up with a deal from Shark Robert Herjavec for $500K for 15% equity in their silicon ring company.

These guys have killer margins (their typical ring costs 70 cents to make and they sell it for $11.99). They spent $2 million on marketing last year.

So what’s the problem? Shark Robert shocked the other four Sharks when he made his initial offer. They couldn’t believe anyone would invest $500K in this company. In fact,  Robert wasn’t exactly sure who their market was or why people would buy a “rubber wedding ring”, but he said that the numbers don’t lie and he compared this deal to the one he made several years ago with Tipsy Elves who make ugly Christmas sweaters. They have since expanded their product line and currently have sales of $75 million a year! Robert said they didn’t completely understand their market either in the beginning.

Number 3

Ondrea and Marquez from The Dough Bar.  This husband and wife team makes great tasting, healthy donuts with less than 200 calories each. They gave a flawless presentation which included a professional body builder breaking thru a “brick wall”. They had sold $1.2 million of these donuts online in their first two years of operation.

They use  a co-packer to make and package the donuts so they can concentrate on building a great online presence using social media. They knew their costs and knew what they had to do to increase their sales volume (increase shelf life and reduce shipping costs). I also like the way they have structured their product. They ship plain donuts with toppings packaged separately. This reduces the number of SKU’s they need to manufacture and track, and gives the customer more flexibility.

Three of the Sharks were very interested and Ondrea and Marquez ended up taking Shark Barbara’s offer of  $300K for 20% equity. I could second guess their choice of Barbara (she was up against the team of Lori and AROD who had offered $400K  for 30%), but Barbara REALLY wanted this deal and she convinced them that she could help them thrive.

Number 2

Following the first hour of the Shark Tank Premier, a new panel of Sharks was assembled and the guest Shark was Rohan Oza. He is a global pioneer in celebrity equity deals, and is known for transforming new consumer products into household names.

Hopefully he can do the same for Sharky Award winner Megan and Scott Reamer from Jackson’s Honest. Their healthy potato and tortilla chips are made with all natural ingredients and coconut oil.  The Reamers created the snack while experimenting with food to help lessen the symptoms of a rare and incurable auto-immune disease afflicting their son Jackson.

Their sales were over $10 million dollars last year and they valued their company at $25 million dollars. They had raised approximately $3 million from family and friends prior to coming into the Tank. In order to get shelf space, they had to give away almost $2 million worth of product. This caused the company to lose money, although they were coming close to breaking-even.

Guest Shark Rohan cited his involvement in Vitamin Water which had sales of $25 million when he joined the company and ended up with sales approaching $1 billion when they sold the company to Coca-Cola for $4.1 billion! Rohan and Megan & Scott ended up making a deal which called for an investment of $1.25 million for 15% equity. This should be a win-win deal even though the company valuation was dramatically beaten-down from $25 million (ask) to $8 million.

Number 1………Winner of the Sharky Award for the Best Presentation of Season 9

Best Presentation of Season 9

Julia from Everlywell came close to giving a perfect presentation. She is well educated (Harvard MBA), confident, polished, knowledgeable, and passionate. She described her home healthcare testing business and fielded the Sharks’ questions flawlessly.

Julia was forecasting sales of over $12 million next year, and was seeking a $1 million investment from the Sharks for 5% equity. She had previously raised $5 million.

The current run rate (average sales per month) was $400K and the business had a burn rate (net cash outflow per month) of $150K.

Because of the massive capital investment needed to “win” in the at-home healthcare testing industry, the Sharks all backed away….except Lori, who surmised that Julia could use a line of credit to help her absorb some losses. She offered a $1 million Line of Credit at 8% interest for a 5% equity stake. Julia quickly accepted. This was a win-win deal.

Congrats to Julia from Everlywell…Sharky Winner for Best Presentation of Season 9

 

 

The 10 Worst Presentations on Shark Tank-Season 9

Worst Presentations of Season 9

We often learn more from our mistakes than from our successes. These ten entrepreneurs made some mistakes, and I’m featuring their presentations in order for other entrepreneurs to learn and avoid the pitfalls when presenting to potential investors.

The mistakes made include developing products that don’t solve real problems, lack of marketplace acceptance,  presentation too confusing, not enough product differentiation, not knowing “the numbers”,  and poor attitude displayed by the entrepreneur.

Number 10 

Ryan from Trippie had developed a mobile app that helps you locate restaurants in airports. The fact that Ryan only had 169 active daily users in three large airports says it all. The app struck me as solving a problem that doesn’t really exist. This might have been okay as a college project, but Ryan was clearly not ready for prime time.

When Ryan started to breakdown, Shark Robert tried to help him out by saying,”Look at what you have, not what you don’t have”. The other Sharks weren’t as kind. No deal here.

Number 9  

Jordan, Jake, and Jimmy from Sunniva Super Coffee had created a “healthy coffee” and have targeted millennials as potential customers. One of the biggest hurdles they had to overcome is that all of the Sharks HATED the taste of their coffee. When Shark Robert asked why they thought he hated it, they responded, “that’s because you’re not a millennial!”

These three brothers believed in their product and may just “will it to happen” (and become wildly successful) despite not getting a deal from these five “old farts”.

Number 8

Vincent from Coco Taps was a fun loving character who makes a device that taps into coconuts so the user can drink fresh coconut water. He confused the Sharks by talking about the finished product (a tapped coconut) and how he delivers them to hotels in Las Vegas. This was 80% of his business and the Sharks thought his business was not scaleable (delivery is expensive). The tapping device is only 20% of his business. In addition to not being scaleable, the business is too confusing and too niche for the Sharks. No deal.

 

Number 7  

Daniel from recharj has a studio in Washington,DC that has 12 beds so people can take power naps during the day. He  has personally invested $300K in this idea and has annual revenue of $130K. He may break-even by the end of the year. Despite being overly optimistic and passionate, Daniel generated no interest from the Sharks.

Number 6 

Howie from DudeRobe makes robes for men. Although the robes were well designed, they look like a hoodie sweat shirt and all-purpose shorts that you could buy for less than $100. Howie’s price was $219. Not enough product differentiation to justify the price in a very competitive marketplace here. No offers.

Number 5

Twins Donte and Dominic from Hoopmaps developed a fun mobile app that allows people to locate pick-up basketball games. Despite the fact that they have 10K active users, none of them have upgraded to the premium subscription which costs $100 per year. Alas, no deal for the twins, but they did get to play 2 on 2 with Arod and Mark Cuban!

Number 4

Disha from Savy gave a very dull, uninspiring presentation about her shopping app. She’s only 20 years old and has a lot to learn about business. The Sharks all went out when she said she wasn’t going to take advantage of an engineering scholarship to the University of Michigan. Disha doesn’t know what she doesn’t know………a critical flaw for any entrepreneur.

Number 3

Jason, Wale, and Wendall from ShowerPill are former football players from Cal who have created a wet wipe-like product that can be used instead of  showering after practice. They were very likeable and passionate about their product, but they committed the cardinal sin for entrepreneurs on Shark Tank.

They didn’t have a good handle on the numbers. They got confused explaining their sales forecasts, gross margins, net margins, and profitability.  The Sharks asked very straight forward questions and they couldn’t answer with any certainty or confidence. No deal here.

Number 2

Andrew from Father Figure had created shirts specifically for new Dads. The idea was to fully equip and protect Dads who feed and burp their babies. What ever happened to putting a towel on your shoulder? No deal here.

Number 1

Peter and Chris from Birddogs made gym shorts that don’t require underpants to be worn under them. On paper these two had a lot to offer……a nice looking product line, Harvard education, forecasted sales of $6 million, profitability, etc.

All of these positives were more than offset by their silliness, arrogance, unsupported claims, lack of investment in inventory, and their elitist attitude.

Their act drew comments from the Sharks which included words like “B.S.” and “that makes no sense”. Here’s a sample of their presentation style……

Best Presentations on Shark Tank Season 9-Youth Division

4th Place-Solemender

17 year-old Ehan and his dad Vinay from Solemender gave a great presentation but didn’t get a deal for their foot-soothing, massage therapy machine, but they did get some great advice from the Sharks. Ehan said he wouldn’t go to college if the business showed  promise in the next year. The Sharks encouraged him to go to college and “learn, learn, learn”. He can run his business from his dorm room or hire someone to help him, but he needs the education to help him succeed in the long run.

 

3rd Place-SnapClips

Martin from SnapClips is a 19-year-old who has created a patented product that replaces free weight collars in the gym. His demonstration clearly showed why his product is better than traditional collars. His cost to make a pair is $8.50 and he sells them for $29.99….great margins.

The Sharks envisioned a much wider application of his product around the house and in industry. AROD, Lori, and Mark Cuban offered $150K for 30% and Martin accepted.

2nd Place-SmartGurlz

Sharmi from SmartGurlz has created a “toy” that helps young girls learn how to code. She uses small dolls on a Segway as the vehicle to show the power of computer programming. There is a touch screen language that generates Java Script code that allows the dolls on Segways to go forward, backward, in circles, etc. Sharmi has sold $250K in 6 months.  She sold Daymond on her product and he invested $200K for 25% equity. It’s a very clever product that will have to compete in a very tough industry.

And the Winner of the Sharky Award for The Best Presentation of Shark Tank Season 9-Youth Division is ………………..

Best Presentation Season 9-Youth Division

David from DetraPel. This 19 year-old has developed a liquid non-toxic repellent spray that keeps materials clean (clothing, carpets, etc.) using nanoparticle technology. Having received a D in Chemistry in college, I am not exactly qualified to explain the science behind this product so I looked it up……………

According to Science Daily, a nanoparticle is a microscopic particle with at least one dimension less than 100 nm. Nanoparticle research is currently an area of intense scientific research, due to a wide variety of potential applications in biomedical, optical, and electronic fields.

…….and David is just 19! He invented a similar product while in High School!

His parents immigrated from Moscow and Kiev. Many of the recent Shark Tank entrepreneurs are first or second generation immigrants. Also, Sharks Robert and Rohan are in this demographic category.

David gave a great demo of his product and how it prevents and removes stains. He has sold almost $350K  at retail and on his website at $12.99 per bottle. Each unit costs $1.14 to make. Great margins.

Mark and Lori went in together and will invest $200K for 25% equity. Mark has a team already working with nanoparticles and Lori has the marketing expertise to make this a Homerun! My only suggestion is to change the name of the product….DetraPel is too hard to remember. A more consumer friendly name would be a good idea.

 

The Five Best Presentations on Shark Tank-Season 9 that didn’t get a deal

There are several reasons why these five entrepreneurs didn’t get a deal despite giving great presentations. Company valuation was too high, product or service too difficult to scale, and product cost too high are three concerns that are the most common reasons that entrepreneurs giving great presentations don’t get deals from the Sharks. It often results in “low ball” offers that fall short of the entrepreneurs’ expectations.

Kelechi from Zuvaa works with African clothing designers and offers colorful African women’s clothes thru online sales. This former Carnegie Mellon student had turned a $500 investment into a multi million dollar business. She currently sells about $220K of clothes per month and nets about $50K, so her annual revenue is about $600K. Her company valuation was way to high for the Sharks and she got one low ball offer (from Mr. W) which she declined.

Kelechi from Zuuva

Justin and Bart from Robin could be the next Doorbot (renamed Ring and recently sold to Amazon for $1 Billion!). They didn’t get a deal, but their company has tremendous potential. They currently describe themselves as the “Uber of lawn care” and have sales of $3 million per year. Their next move is to offer a subscription service for grass cutting robots and provide the edging and clean up service customers expect. There are currently a million grass cutting robots in Europe so this isn’t a pie-in-the-sky scheme. Mark Cuban pointed out that this will be an expensive business to get into and scale. He’s right, this is a high risk, high reward opportunity that the Sharks missed.

Michael and Dakota from GeoOrbital have developed a conversion kit that converts any bicycle to an electric bike. They also have created a “mini-bike” which is electric which the Sharks agreed has more business potential in the long run. The current retrofit conversion wheel is very cool and is easy to install, but costs $950. The Sharks all thought this cost was too high and passed on this opportunity.

Mike and Dakota from GeoOrbital

Jeff from Qeepsake created a text messaging baby journal which will have the capability to generate a hard copy baby photo album. So far they’ve generated $255K in sales in 4 months.  Jeff received  an offer from Mr. Wonderful and Chris Sacca but turned them both down. I think this guy is a real talent and this may be a missed opportunity for the Sharks.

Jeff from Qeepsake

The entrepreneur and the company with the most potential upside was Randall from Dreampad. He had invented a pillow that plays music (10 different songs using vibration) generated by an app and paired with a smartphone. This makes it easier to fall asleep and stay asleep. The Sharks all liked the product.

Randall is forecasting sales of $1.2 million this year. He sells the pillow for $159 each. If this helps stop or reduce tinnitus (ringing of the ears), he could sell millions…… starting with me.

Randall came into the tank asking for $800K for 10% equity. That translates to a company valuation of $8 million which was quite a bit on the high side and turned the Sharks off. A more reasonable valuation might have been 2X to 3X this years forecasted sales or $2.4 to $3.6 million. Randall eventually lowered his valuation to a little over $5 million, but it was too late. No deal.

I couldn’t help but think this would be a great product for the “My Pillow” guy. He’s been selling his pillows using infomercials and TV advertising very successfully for years. Randall should give him a call! This would be a great specialty/premium product for the “My Pillow” guy.

Randall from Dreampad

                     

 

 

5 Intriguing Entrepreneurs of Shark Tank Season 9

Once in awhile there’s a Shark Tank contestant who really intrigues me. In Season 9 there were five such entrepreneurs.

These entrepreneurs have fascinating and/or compelling qualities and I want to know more about them. I’d like to hear more about their entrepreneurial journey and what motivated them to start their business. Some of them got investments from the Sharks, and some didn’t.  I’d like to have an adult beverage with each of these folks and learn more about them.

Here are five intriguing entrepreneurs appearing on Shark Tank Season 9….

I loved Shane from Qball. He had a fun but useful product that was easy to understand with upside sales potential.

Simply put, the product was a microphone in a blue ball that can be used to facilitate learning and communication. You simply speak into the ball (mic) and then toss it to the next person who would like to speak. Shane had targeted schools as his primary market, but the Sharks thought there was a much bigger potential market in Corporate sales and I agree. As a former CEO, I could have used one to liven up my presentations to customers and employees!

Three Sharks went in on a deal that called for $300K for 30% equity. Shane almost blew it when he tried to get Mark, Lori, and Rohan to lower the equity to 25%. With three Sharks involved this wasn’t going to happen. Thankfully, Shane came to his senses and he took their offer.

Shane from QBall

Chris Gronkowski from IceShaker has developed an insulated stainless steel shake bottle. He brought out his brothers to help promote his product……one of his brothers happened to be the best tight end in the NFL…..Rob Gronkowski. From that point on it was all fun and games.

The Sharks all suggested he change the name of his product to “Gronk Shaker”. As Mark Cuban said, when you’re an entrepreneur you have to take seize on every advantage you can in order to differentiate yourself from the competition. Mark and A-Rod ended up getting a deal for $150K for 15% equity. With backing from movers and shakers (pun intended) in the NFL, MLB, and NBA,  Chris and company should do very well.

The Gronkowski Brothers

Olivier from DNA Simple seeks DNA samples for various Research Studies and pays donors $50 when their saliva sample is paired with a Research Study at a university, lab, hospital, etc.  He’s at the very early stages of building his donor/study database, but he’s was very impressive and the Sharks were intrigued. He ended up with a deal from Mark calling for a $200K investment for 15% equity.

Olivier from DNA Simple

Joe and Miranda from Joe’s Fish Fry gave a great presentation. They were confident and knowledgeable. They had overcome many obstacles including the loss of their business in Katrina. That didn’t stop them, however. They took their show on the road and perfected their packaged fish fry by talking to customers at various locations around the country.

As Mark Cuban put it,”If an entrepreneur is relentless, anything is possible”.

Joe and Miranda have stores like Kroger and Publix selling their product. With a sales forecast of $270K for the current year and $450K for next year, they demonstrated a track record and knowledge of the numbers. They got a deal from Shark Daymond for $150K for 25% equity. This deal should be a win-win.

Joe and Miranda from Joe’s Fish Fry

Alessandro from Avocaderia came to the U.S. from Italy and had recently opened a restaurant in Brooklyn that featured affordable Mediterranean food that emphasized avocados. His plan was to open 20 restaurants in the NYC area and then expand to Texas and California. Eventually, he would sell franchises. Alessandro was a very likeable guy who seemed to have a good handle on his business and business plan.

He ended up getting a deal with Shark Barbara (who had invested in the mega-successful Tom+Chee restaurants). and Mark Cuban, who each put in $200K for a 10% share.

Alessandro from Avocaderia

The 5 Best Episodes of Shark Tank- Season 9

Shark Tank episode 4-aired October 15, 2017

Posted on October 16, 2017by Shark Tank Ratings

Very entertaining episode filled with lots of laughs and lessons-learned for all entrepreneurs. Alex Rodriguez (aka A-Rod) was the guest Shark and provided some insight into his investing style and his business background.

The Best Deal of the episode award went to Makenzie from “delighted by”.  She has developed a dessert hummus which the Sharks all agreed was delicious. She had sales of $1 million and had raised $400K  from family and friends and Makenzie had put $20K of her own money into the business.

Shark Barbara gave some good advice to Makenzie. She had just hired an employee that turned out to be “not perfect”. Barbara told her that when hiring and delegating, “80% is good enough”. You can’t expect perfection and that’s okay.

Mark Cuban ended up investing $600K for 25% equity. He recognized that this deal was a little out of the ordinary, but he said, “The deals that have made me the most money are always the craziest”.

Best of the Rest……….Chris Gronkowski from IceShaker has developed an insulated stainless steel shake bottle. He brought out his brothers to help promote his product……one of his brothers happened to be the best tight end in the NFL…..Rob Gronkowski. From that point on it was all fun and games.

The Sharks all suggested he change the name of his product to “Gronk Shaker”. As Mark Cuban said, when you’re an entrepreneur you have to take seize on every advantage you can in order to differentiate yourself from the competition. Mark and A-Rod ended up getting a deal for $150K for 15% equity. With backing from movers and shakers (pun intended) in the NFL, MLB, and NBA,  Chris and company should do very well.

17 year-old Ehan and his dad Vinyay from Solemender gave a great presentation but didn’t get a deal for their foot-soothing, massage therapy machine, but they did get some great advise from the Sharks. Ehan said he wouldn’t go to college if the business showed  promise in the next year. The Sharks encouraged him to go to college and “learn, learn, learn”. He can run his business from his dorm room or hire someone to help him, but he needs the education to help him succeed in the long run.

Robbie from BenjiLock has developed a prototype of an electronic lock that can work with the traditional key or thru fingerprint recognition. Even though Robbie had zero sales, he had just had his patent granted and that created value for the Sharks.

Robbie had put $87K of his own money into the business and he was feeling the stress. He broke down several times while pitching his product. Four of the Sharks made offers and Robbie took his time making a decision.

He then shocked the world (or at least me and the Sharks) when he took the offer made by Mr. Wonderful for $200K for 15% equity. Mr. W. had differentiated his offer by saying he would use a licensing strategy and get big companies to license Robbie’s technology.

Robbie confounded the Sharks, but I think he was hoping Mr. Wonderful could help produce an immediate financial return vs. growing the company slowly over time. If you’re in financial trouble, this is not a surprising decision. Since Robbie had lost his job, invested $87K of his own money, and had three young kids, he might have been feeling the heat.

                    OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE…………….A-  

Shark Tank episode 10-aired November 12, 2017

Posted on November 13, 2017by Shark Tank Ratings

This episode had it all! Everyday people solving everyday problems, an immigrant Phd with a DNA testing service, a Harvard MBA who is disrupting the lawn care industry using robots, and an educational toy to encourage young girls to become coders.  There was a lot to think about and a lot to learn.

The Update segment was also fascinating. Jamie from Ring (previously named Doorbot) never got a deal from the Sharks when he appeared on the show in 2014. He was one of seven entrepreneurs who got my season ending Sharky Award to entrepreneurs who deserved to get an investment that didn’t (see “The Best and Worst of Shark Tank” blog). Guest Shark Richard Branson must have read my blog because he recently invested in Ring. The latest company valuation is $1 billion!!!! That’s billion with a B……and to think the Sharks didn’t like his $7 million valuation in 2014!!!!

Tom from Grypmat is a private jet mechanic who has developed silicon trays for tools. He’s had sales of $400K in 10 months. The trays cost $29 to $69 and have a margins of $50%. Although he has targeted the aircraft industry as his primary market, the Sharks thought there were many other markets he could penetrate. All five Sharks were interested. Shark Robert asked Tom how he would like to see an offer if two or three Sharks came in together. I loved Tom’s response…..”It depends on which Sharks”.

In the end, Tom chose Mark, Lori, and Sir Richard and asked if they would invest $360K for 30% equity. They quickly said YES! Well done, Tom!

Next up was Olivier from DNA Simple. Olivier seeks DNA samples for various Research Studies and pays donors $50 when their saliva sample is paired with a Research Study at a university, lab, hospital, etc.  He’s at the very early stages of building his donor/study database, but he’s was very impressive and the Sharks were intrigued. He ended up with a deal from Mark calling for a $200K investment for 15% equity.

Justin and Bart from Robin could be the next Doorbot. They didn’t get a deal, but their company has tremendous potential. They currently describe themselves as the “Uber of lawn care” and have sales of $3 million per year. Their next move is to offer a subscription service for grass cutting robots and provide the edging and clean up service customers expect. There are currently a million grass cutting robots in Europe so this isn’t a pie-in-the-sky scheme. Mark Cuban pointed out that this will be an expensive business to get into and scale. He’s right, this is a high risk, high reward opportunity that the Sharks missed.

Sharmi from SmartGurlz has created a “toy” that helps young girls learn how to code. She uses small dolls on a Segway as the vehicle to show the power of computer programming. There is a touch screen language that generates Java Script code that allows the dolls on Segways to go forward, backward, in circles, etc. Sharmi has sold $250K in 6 months.  She sold Daymond on her product and he invested $200K for 25% equity. It’s a very clever product that will have to compete in a very tough industry.

                                 OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE………..A   

 

Shark Tank episode 12-aired November 26, 2017 (Part 1)

Posted on November 27, 2017by Shark Tank Ratings

A very strong group of entrepreneurs was featured on this episode. I am awarding the first Sharky Award for entrepreneurial excellence of Season 9 to Julia from EverlyWell.

Julia came close to giving a perfect presentation. She was well educated (Harvard MBA), confident, polished, knowledgeable, and passionate. She described her home healthcare testing business and fielded the Sharks’ questions flawlessly.

Julia was forecasting sales of over $12 million next year, and was seeking a $1 million investment from the Sharks for 5% equity. She had previously raised $5 million.

The current run rate (average sales per month) was $400K and the business had a burn rate (net cash outflow per month) of $150K.

Because of the massive capital investment needed to “win” in the at-home healthcare testing industry, the Sharks all backed away….except Lori, who surmised that Julia could use a line of credit to help her absorb some losses. She offered a $1 million Line of Credit at 8% interest for a 5% equity stake. Julia quickly accepted. This was a win-win deal.

Best of the Rest………Brendan from Hater has developed a dating app that matches people based on things they hate. It is only partially a tongue-in-cheek joke. According to Brendan, studies have shown that people who hate the same things tend to grow closer than people that like the same things. I don’t know the source of this study, but who cares? This is mostly a fun app.

Even though Brendan has 500K users, only 8-10K are active daily users. and he has zero sales. Despite those discouraging facts, he got a deal from Mark Cuban for $200K for 7.5% equity plus 2.5% advisory shares. The potential upside: “Hater” could become a consumer products or gaming brand, not just a mobile phone app.

Ashley and Kat from Mush are former Goldman Sachs employees. Their objective is to change the world with their all natural oatmeal with no sugar added. Guest Shark Rohan has had lots of experience growing food and beverage companies to dramatically increase their valuation. The end game is to sell the company and cash out for many millions of dollars. This is not an end game Ashley and Kat want. They would rather grow slowly and steadily and “change the world”.

So they ended up not accepting Rohan’s offer and accepting Mark Cuban’s offer of $300K for 10% equity. I think they made a mistake…..I think Rohan could have helped them accomplish both objectives……increased valuation and changing the world.

My two suggestions for Ashley and Kat……change the name from “Mush” to something more appealing, and don’t use a “four letter word” in the last sentence of your presentation (ABC had to bleep it).

Vincent from Coco Taps was a fun loving character who makes a device that taps into coconuts so the user can drink fresh coconut water. He confused the Sharks by talking about the finished product (a tapped coconut) and how he delivers them to hotels in Las Vegas. This was 80% of his business and the Sharks thought his business was not scaleable (delivery is expensive). The tapping device is only 20% of his business. In addition to not being scaleable, the business is too confusing and too niche for the Sharks. No deal.

                            OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE……………………………A

 

Shark Tank episode 20-aired January 27, 2018

Posted on January 29, 2018by Shark Tank Ratings

Some great one-liners from the Sharks in this episode. Great advice for all entrepreneurs! Here are three of my favorites:

” I like entrepreneurs with PHD’s………Poor, Hungry, Driven”~ AROD (Alex Rodriguez)

” Think like a millionaire, hustle like you’re broke”~ Shark Lori

“Execution trumps talent all day long”~ Shark Robert

Each of the businesses featured was bootstrapped, and the Sharks love businesses that come to the tank without outside investment. It shows resourcefulness, determination, and creativity to get a business off the ground. This is not always the case when starting a business with other people’s money.

The Sharky Award for this episode, which is  given for entrepreneurial excellence,  goes to Ondrea and Marquez from The Dough Bar.  This husband and wife team makes great tasting, healthy donuts with less than 200 calories each. They gave a flawless presentation which included a professional body builder breaking thru a “brick wall”. They had sold $1.2 million of these donuts online in their first two years of operation.

They use  a co-packer to make and package the donuts so they can concentrate on building a great online presence using social media. They knew their costs and knew what they had to do to increase their sales volume (increase shelf life and reduce shipping costs). I also like the way they have structured their product. They ship plain donuts with toppings packaged separately. This reduces the number of SKU’s they need to manufacture and track, and gives the customer more flexibility.

Three of the Sharks were very interested and Ondrea and Marquez ended up taking Shark Barbara’s offer of  $300K for 20% equity. I could second guess their choice of Barbara (she was up against the team of Lori and AROD who had offered $400K  for 30%), but Barbara REALLY wanted this deal and she convinced them that she could help them thrive.

Jason, Wale, and Wendall from ShowerPill are former football players from Cal who have created a wet wipe-like product that can be used instead of  showering after practice. They were very likeable and passionate about their product, but they committed the cardinal sin for entrepreneurs on Shark Tank.

They didn’t have a good handle on the numbers. They got confused explaining their sales forecasts, gross margins, net margins, and profitability.  The Sharks asked very straight forward questions and they couldn’t answer with any certainty or confidence. No deal here.

Dan and Nick from Changed have an admirable mission…..to help people pay down their student debt from college. They do this by rounding-up credit card purchases to the nearest dollar and then paying down that person’s debt when the “round-ups” reach $100. It costs $1 per month to use their service. The Sharks loved Dan and Nick but thought the business was not easily scaled, and may run into competition from banks.

Despite the concerns and the  limited sales history, Mark Cuban invested $250K for 25% equity. Could there be some political value to Mark down the road? Reducing student debt may be an important issue in the 2020 election.

Mark from SnapClips is a 19-year-old who will be nominated for my Season-End Best Presentation-Youth Division. He has created a patented product that replaces free weight collars in the gym. His demonstration clearly showed why his product is better than traditional collars. His cost to make a pair is $8.50 and he sells them for $29.99….great margins.

The Sharks envisioned a much wider application of his product around the house and in industry. AROD, Lori, and Mark Cuban offered $150K for 30% and Mark accepted.

                 OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE………………A-

 

Shark Tank episode 22-aired February 11, 2018

Posted on February 12, 2018by Shark Tank Ratings

The four businesses featured in this episode had two things in common…..very bright entrepreneurs and each of their products appeals primarily to millennials. And so I’m probably not a great person to evaluate their products, but I do have some thoughts on their presentations and business models.

Joe from Gunnar Optiks said after his pitch that he was nervous, but you never would have known it. He appeared cool and calm throughout, and did an excellent job presenting the benefits of his eyewear for people who stare at computer screens for  extended periods of time. Joe had a career at Oakley before starting the company, so he had great knowledge of the industry.

Joe had a couple of things working against him, however. His sales had been flat at approximately $7 million for each of the past three years. Investors are looking for growth and not steady sales. Second, Joe had raised $9 million prior to his appearance on Shark Tank and owned just 20% of the company. His debt level was a little over $1 million.

So the Sharks sized this up as a cash sucking company that hasn’t been able to grow and quickly bowed out……except for Shark Lori. She had previous experience with a similar company and helped them sell $30 million of their product. Lori saw potential to do the same thing with Joe and ended up investing $750K for 5% equity. Never bet against Lori!

Alessandro from Avocaderia came to the U.S. from Italy and had recently opened a restaurant in Brooklyn that featured affordable Mediterranean food that emphasized avocados. His plan was to open 20 restaurants in the NYC area and then expand to Texas and California. Eventually, he would sell franchises. Alessandro was a very likeable guy who seemed to have a good handle on his business and business plan.

He ended up getting a deal with Shark Barbara (who had invested in the mega-successful Tom+Chee restaurants). and Mark Cuban, who each put in $200K for a 10% share.

The weirdest, high-risk deal of the night followed when Mark Cuban invested $500K for 4% (plus a board seat) in a company called Solsource started by Dr. Catlin Powers.  She  is a scientist who invented a solar-powered grill that she developed and was delivered by Yak to the people of  Himalaya (who had no money) while she was on a trip to Himalaya . Wait, What?

I said it was weird. Four of the Sharks said it just didn’t add up. It became a little clearer when the Sharks discussed using her solar-powered technology to generate power for other applications. Mark asked her if she could help put Elon Musk (Tesla) out of business. Dr. Catlin said yes, and that’s all Mark needed to hear. He quickly made the deal. This will either be the biggest, best deal in Shark Tank history or will go up in flames (pardon the pun) in short order.

Jordan, Jake, and Jimmy from Sunniva Super Coffee had created a “healthy coffee” and have targeted millennials as potential customers. One of the biggest hurdles they had to overcome is that all of the Sharks HATED the taste of their coffee. When Shark Robert asked why they thought he hated it, they responded, “that’s because you’re not a millennial!”

These three brothers believed in their product and may just “will it to happen” (and become wildly successful) despite not getting a deal from these five “old farts”.

                       OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE………………………….A

 

 

The 5 Worst Episodes of Shark Tank Season 9

Shark Tank episode 6-aired October 29, 2017

Posted on October 31, 2017by Shark Tank Ratings

Whenever the stock market gets hot, the number of questionable deals on Shark Tank tends to increase. This episode was a prime example of that trend……too much money chasing too few quality deals.

The lesson to be learned here is that when seeking an investment in an entrepreneurial startup, timing is everything. When capital is plentiful, deals get made. When the market is heading south, very few new investments in start-ups are made.

This was a very weak group of start-ups. Despite the line-up, three deals got made.

Matt and Melissa from Novel Effect have created an app that has added sound effects to 75 kids’ books. Novel Effect is a pre-revenue company (zero sales) that is going to rely on placing their stickers on the covers of books to generate sales. They would like to license their platform to authors and book publishers. Mark Cuban told them, “That’s not going to work”.

Inexplicably, Shark Lori made an offer of $500K for 15% of the company. Naturally it was quickly accepted. Lori said she loved the idea, but had no idea what her role would be. She said that she just wanted to to be along for the ride. The only rationale for this deal was that Lori wanted to have access to her own patent attorney. Matt just happens to be a patent attorney.

Andrew from Father Figure had created shirts specifically for new Dads. The idea was to fully equip and protect Dads who feed and burp their babies. What ever happened to putting a towel on your shoulder? No deal here.

Jennifer and Gifford from Drainwig sell a little chain-like device that is designed to prevent drain clogs in bathtubs, showers, and sinks. They previously made a 5 year deal with an infomercial company that called for them getting a tiny royalty. The gross sales during that time were $14.2 million of which only $800K was paid to Jennifer and Gifford. After paying back an early investor and paying Uncle Sam, they were left with very little. They had made a VERY BAD deal.

Mr. Wonderful to the rescue! In a first ever “reverse licensing” deal, he will attempt to get them out of their bad deal. Even with his deal-making and legal prowess, I don’t think this will be easy to do. Mr. Wonderful also agreed to invest $300K for 15% of the company.

Former NFL player Nate and Tom from Brazin developed a patent pending portable foam roller and were forecasting $2.4 million in sales this year. Despite serving a small niche market (gyms and crossfit), Lori and guest Shark Sarah Blakely, inventor of Spanx, did a deal calling for $225K for 20% equity. Given their combined talents, this could work.

OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE…………….C-

 

Shark Tank episode 11-aired November 12, 2017

Posted on November 14, 2017by Shark Tank Ratings

Three small deals in this episode. No one stood out as a can’t-miss success.

Steve and James from Reely Hooked Fish Dip certainly had a good time presenting their product to the Sharks. They had a little “fishing dance” that made the Sharks laugh hysterically. Their product was different from other fish dips because it was made primarily from King Mackerel and contained no preservatives.

Mark Cuban laughed the loudest and said he was interested in making an offer. Steve and James continued talking (and selling) and had to be told that once someone says they want to make an offer, it’s time to stop talking.  They ended up getting a deal that called for an investment of $75K for 25% equity. The three did the “King Mackerel dance” together.

Joshua from The Cut Buddy is originally from St. Lucia and recently came to the U.S. with his family. He’s developed a unique hair cutting tool that sells for $14.95. Joshua had sales of $700K last year. He has used social media to grow his business.

What I like about Joshua was he is a man who knows himself and knows his limitations. He stated that he is an inventor, not a knowledgeable businessman. He came to the tank seeking the Sharks business acumen and guidance. He ended up getting a good deal with Daymond…….$300K for 20% equity.

Callie and Kelly from Slumberkins started 18 months ago with $200 and have forecasted sales of $500K for their kids’ plush toys this year!

Callie and Kelly want to expand as quickly as possible and want to get their plush toys into retail channels in addition to selling online. Profit Margins are much lower in retail than they are online, however, and the Sharks questioned the wisdom of this strategy. They felt Callie and Kelly could continue to grow profitably in online channels rather than enter the cut-throat world of plush toys/retail.

Callie and Kelly said they didn’t care about profits, they just wanted to get their plush toys into as many hands as possible. This was their mission, but it didn’t make good business sense to the Sharks. No deal here.

Alexander from Pronto Concepts has invented a product that chills a bottle of white wine in 30 seconds. This is a great product (I might buy one), but I think the price is a bit high at $139 and may have to be reduced to be successful. Alexander got a deal from Mark Cuban of $100K for 25% equity, contingent on Alexander raising an additional $100K from another source.

                              OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE……………………..C

Shark Tank episode 21-aired January 27, 2018

Posted on January 30, 2018by Shark Tank Ratings

Three small bootstrapped companies and one Venture Capital-backed company were featured in this episode. Tree sap soda, campfire in a tin, vitamin enhanced dog treats, and healthy food for everyone were the eclectic products that were featured in this episode.

First up was Chad and Nikita from Sap! Their tree sap beverages are made from Vermont trees and sell for $1.99 per can.  I don’t care for the name of their product…..there is a large software company that is named SAP, and Sap! may get called for trademark infringement. I would prefer a name like Vermont Natural Beverages….much more descriptive and appetizing!

The Sharks were not excited about this opportunity….too much of a niche market. No deal.

Brent and Bryan from Radiate have created a “campfire in a tin” that burns for six hours and costs $25. It has the added benefit of repelling mosquitos. They got a deal from Shark Robert for $100K for 25% equity.

Julie and Ryan from Petrol Fuel for Dogs started their company over 10 years ago and was then put on the shelf for a decade before re-launching it. The Sharks were spooked by the long delay before re-starting the business. This is a red flag for investors……it can reflect poorly on the entrepreneur and have investors question the demand for the product. No deal here.

Sam and  David from Everytable have raised over $5 million from “Wall Street Sources” before entering the tank. They have used the money to build a number of restaurants in the LA area. They have a very unique pricing strategy for their healthy food restaurants……restaurants in poorer areas have prices that are significantly lower than prices in more upscale areas. The idea is to make healthy food accessible to everyone, regardless of their economic condition.

The Sharks “got it” and liked the mission. On the other hand, they thought Sam and David lacked passion and the Sharks were not in love with their Wall Street/hedge fund background. Guest Shark Rohan ended up making a deal for $1 million for 10% equity, putting the company valuation at $10 million…….pretty rich for a company with $2.6 million in revenue this year.

                             OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE…………..C

Shark Tank episode 19-aired January 21, 2018

Posted on January 23, 2018by Shark Tank Ratings

This episode came to a shocking conclusion when Nicki from The Pop entered the Tank. She had invented a unique pacifier for infants. The pacifier nipple always falls face up so it doesn’t have to be washed/sanitized before going back to the infant. Nicki had sold 25K units on Kickstarter. Shocker #1 was the valuation she placed on her company……$5 million!

Shocker #2 was actually getting two offers from the Sharks albeit at half the proposed valuation. It was obvious which one Vicki would take. Offer “A” included Sharks Sara (Spanx) and Lori. They would be a great team. Both passionate Mom’s with tons of experience selling to women. Offer “B” was from the money man, Mr. Wonderful.

Shocker #3, you guessed it, Nicki selected Mr. Wonderful’s deal! She would have had to pay a 10% equity premium to get Sara and Lori on our team. She figured she could get away giving away 10% equity to Mr. W. instead of 20% to the ladies. No entrepreneur wants to part with equity of their company, but sometimes it’s better to part with a little more equity to get partners that are committed to helping you grow….especially early in the company’s life cycle. I think Nicki picked the wrong offer.

Best of the Rest……………….The other three presentations were uneventful by comparison. Sal, Alex, and David from Bouquet Bar got a deal from Mark Cuban for $150K for 20% of their flower arrangement and customized gift company.

Pat and Mike from The Wingman have invented a light-weight, attractive inflatable vest that will encourage people on boats to wear the vests instead of those large, clunky, orange life vests that no one likes to wear. They will be selling these vests for $249. They had created a nice product but came to the Tank too early. They got one “blood-sucking” offer from Mr. W. and declined.

Kelechi from Zuvaa works with African clothing designers and offers colorful African women’s clothes thru online sales. This former Carnegie Mellon student had turned a $500 investment into a multi million dollar business. She currently sells about $220K of clothes per month and nets about $50K, so her annual revenue is about $600K. Her company valuation was way to high for the Sharks and she got one low ball offer (from Mr. W) which she declined.

                            OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE…………………………….C

 

Shark Tank episode 24-aired February 25, 2018

Posted on February 27, 2018by Shark Tank Ratings

This was one of the weaker episodes. For the Season 9 finale, I would have expected better. Instead, the Sharks stabbed each other in the back, were annoying and obnoxious, and basically hijacked the show. I think the absence of Mr. Wonderful led to an episode in disarray.

Uki from Bermies was first up. He made and sold men’s swim suits. He had sales in excess of $300K and had 25,000 instagram followers. Uki had boundless energy,  but lacked a strategic plan. Guest Shark Bethenny Frankel asked him, “So what’s the plan”. Unfortunately Uki didn’t have one (or couldn’t articulate one). He may succeed based on his energy and passion, but he received no offers from the Sharks.

Mariella and Anita from Lace Your Face made sheet masks to improve skin quality. Based on their backgrounds they had credibility and they had sold over $1.3 million of their product. They showed steady growth with annual sales of $150K, $450K, and $750K…..something investors love to see.

Bethenny was interested and made an offer of $350K for 30% equity. Mariella and Anita countered with $350K for 15%. Shark Lori swooped in and aced Bethany by shouting “I’ll take that deal” before Bethenny could respond. Lori’s offer was accepted and Bethenny had been kicked to the curb.

Alfonso from OA Foods had two product lines. The first product, Palmini, was a pasta substitute made of hearts of palm. He had only been selling this product for 3 months  (sales of $50K). The second was Quinoa which had been sold for a longer period of time and had annual sales of $400K.

Shark Lori and Mark Cuban were super excited by Alfonso and his products and teamed up to make an offer of $300K for 30% equity. Alfonso got them down to 25% and accepted the offer. After it was over, Alfonso admitted he was thrilled to have these two as partners and would have taken their original offer of 30% equity. Well played!

Brooks from Thrive+ recently graduated from Princeton. His product reduces the negative after-effects of drinking alcoholic beverages. It is essentially a “multi-vitamin for drinkers”.  Mark Cuban is always very suspicious of supplements, and this was no exception. Mark “hijacked” the presentation (Shark Robert’s words) and spent a lot of time asking very detailed questions about the science behind Thrive+. Once the discussion turned to nano particles, the other Sharks became board and lost interest. No deal here.

Sparks flew among the Sharks after the presentation concluded. First Bethenny and Mark went at it. Bethhenny said that Mark kept interrupting her whenever she had a question for Brooks. Then Shark Robert voiced his displeasure with Mark and how he asked too many questions on the science behind Thrive+.  Robert wanted more discussion on the business and less on the science.

It was a disappointing ending to a mostly uninspiring Season 9.

                        OVERALL RATING OF THIS EPISODE…………….C-

 

 

Sharky Award-Season 9 Shark of the Year

At the beginning of Season 9, the Las Vegas odds of Mr. Wonderful (aka Kevin O’Leary) being named Shark of the Year were 50 to 1.

If you wagered $2, congratulations….you just won $100!

How did this happen? Isn’t he the most hated, nastiest, most curmudgeonly Shark?

He used to be, but he has evolved over the years. Yes, he still cuts loose with his signature sayings including……”‘You’re dead to me”/ “I forbid you to do that”/ “You’ll be crushed like the cockroach you are”/ and several other encouraging musings.

But Mr W. provides structure, organization, discipline, honesty, and rational thought to the show. Frankly, he has become the glue that holds the show together. It has become obvious that he is one of the three Sharks that MUST appear on EVERY episode; Mark Cuban and Lori Greiner being the others.

Kevin has also developed a softer side and has become a bit more empathetic. I swear I saw him cry a few times recently while listening to various entrepreneurs describe their struggles in overcoming adversity.

Mr. Wonderful is not being given this Sharky Award just for his savvy investments on Shark Tank. Although he has invested less than any regularly appearing Shark (ex-$8.5 million vs. Mark Cuban’s $19.9 million according to Sharkalytics.com), he has been very successful at exiting his portfolio companies with huge gains. A couple of examples…Groovebooks was sold for $14.5 million and Plated sold for $300 million.

He is primarily a financial investor and considers company valuation and free cash flow more than the other Sharks. He has only invested in 8% of the pitches he has heard vs. Mark Cuban’s 20%. He likes to invest in companies with a path to profitability that come into the tank with a reasonable valuation.

He also likes companies that can immediately partner with, or be acquired by larger companies he knows. He has a knack for creating strategic alliances quickly.  I know he’s busy with his ETF (Exchange-traded Fund) product lines and his many appearances on CNBC, but he’s too darn valuable to the Shark Tank franchise not to be  on every single episode.

After imparting his wisdom for nine seasons, Mr. Wonderful has earned the Sharky for Shark of the Year-Season 9.

                                                   SEASON 9  SHARKY AWARD

                     SHARK of the YEAR………….Mr. Wonderful (aka Kevin O’Leary)

Shark Tank Season 9…..Top 10 One-Liners

The Sharks give great advice to entrepreneurs regardless of their intention to invest in their companies. Here are 10 of my favorite on-air “nuggets” from Season 9 ………

      1.   “Look back to learn. Look forward to succeed”~Lori Greiner

    2. “The deals that have made me the most money are always the              craziest”~Barbara  Corcoran

      3. “When hiring, 80% of perfection is good enough”~Barbara Corcoran

      4. “Perfection is the enemy of profitability”~Mark Cuban

      5. “I like to tell people to forget the excuses and make the most out of your life”~Robert Herjavec    

     6. “If an entrepreneur is relentless, anything is possible”~Mark Cuban

     7. “I like entrepreneurs with PHD’s…….Poor, Hungry, Driven”~Alex Rodriguez

     8. ” Think like a millionaire, hustle like you’re broke”~Lori Greiner

     9. “Execution tops talent all day long”~Robert Herjavec

   10. (My favorite mixed metaphor was used by an entrepreneur/contestant about growing her company)……..    “We’re pushing the pedal to the metal to not have all our eggs in one basket”