Since its premiere in August 2009, Shark Tank has launched the world to a few of the most unusual enterprise concepts. Over the years, tons of of entrepreneurs have pitched their merchandise to the present’s panel of movie star buyers — also called the Sharks — in hopes of securing funding and mentorship. From an alarm clock that wakes you up with the scent of bacon to a rest room bowl that has revolutionized folks’s bowel actions, a lot of the present’s pitches have stood out for his or her creativity and success. However, one pitch that exceeds the memorability of the relaxation is Scrub Daddy. With its revolutionary product design, it’s no shock that Scrub Daddy went on to grow to be one among Shark Tank’s largest successes.

Scrub Daddy premiered on Shark Tank Season 4, Episode 7, in 2012. Aaron Krause, the CEO and inventor of Scrub Daddy, walked into the tank and gained over the Sharks together with his convincing presentation. Krause launched the Scrub Daddy, a smiley-faced sponge that modified the approach folks cleaned their kitchens and houses. Krause demonstrated how the sponge modifications texture primarily based on water temperature — agency in chilly water for powerful scrubbing and smooth in heat water for mild cleansing. This versatility, mixed with an ergonomic design and sturdiness, was a recreation changer for Scrub Daddy. But what actually impressed the Sharks was Krause’s journey up to now, which was as compelling as his product itself!

Shark Tank

Release Date

August 9, 2009

Cast

Mark Cuban

Seasons

11

Aaron Krause’s Journey With Scrub Daddy Was Anything But Easy!

Krause started his profession working a global manufacturing firm for automotive buffing pads. His common workday included repairing automotive equipment, which meant that his fingers had been all the time soiled. That’s when he got down to invent a product that will assist him clear his fingers successfully and comfortably. The entrepreneur quickly found {that a} extremely engineered polymer foam was the resolution to all of his issues, in response to the Scrub Daddy web site. The design of the foam was spherical, grooved on one facet, and featured two holes punched out of its middle for higher grip. The entrepreneur patented the distinctive design and tried advertising and marketing it to a number of physique outlets. However, nobody initially noticed the worth in Krause’s distinctive sponge. Eventually, he was compelled to scrap the concept.

In 2008, multinational conglomerate, 3M, acquired Aaron Krause’s buffing pad firm. However, that they had no real interest in his authentic patented merchandise and Scrub Daddy was disregarded of the deal. It wasn’t till 2011 that Krause occurred to rediscover a few of his older innovations, together with the sponge. When cleansing garden furnishings, Krause observed that the sponge labored exceptionally nicely with out scratching any floor, and its texture modified with temperature. That’s when he realized the true potential of his product. This discovery led him to check the foam on dishes, the place it carried out brilliantly. Adding a smiley face design for higher utensil cleansing, Krause secured one other patent and invested $75,000 in manufacturing earlier than ending up in the Tank.

After a Rough Start, Krause Hoped That ‘Shark Tank’ Would Be His Big Break

By 2012, the entrepreneur had already began capitalizing on the genius of his product. According to CEO Magazine, he secured a weekend front-page enterprise function in the Philadelphia Inquirer and made two profitable appearances on QVC’s purchasing channel, the place Scrub Daddy bought out inside eight minutes. That’s when Krause knew that he needed to go on Shark Tank to take his enterprise to the subsequent stage. The entrepreneur walked into the tank asking for $100,000 for 10% of his enterprise. Krause walked the Sharks by means of his scaling technique and defined that he needed to make use of the funding to arrange an unbiased manufacturing facility for Scrub Daddy. Doing so would enable him to ramp up manufacturing and improve gross sales. Krause’s huge imaginative and prescient was to take his product into retail. According to Business Insider, at the time, Krause was promoting Scrub Daddy in 5 ShopRite grocery shops in New Jersey, owned by his buddy. The remainder of his gross sales had been all from wholesale. However, that simply wasn’t sufficient for him.

In Krause’s personal phrases, “This needs to be in every supermarket, drugstore, Walgreens, CVS.” But proper off the bat, Kevin O’Leary and Robert Herjavec had been skeptical of the entrepreneur’s imaginative and prescient. They believed that Scrub Daddy wouldn’t carry out nicely in retail. And whereas Krause tried to counter their reservations, they only didn’t need to hear. Similarly, Mark Cuban appeared to suppose that the product’s QVC gross sales couldn’t be used to measure its success. But Krause made it very clear that the Sharks “didn’t know who they were dealing with,” as a result of he had tons of product concepts up his sleeve to take Scrub Daddy to the subsequent stage. However, that simply wasn’t sufficient to persuade Cuban. But that’s when Shark Lori Greiner got here in to save lots of the day.

Lori Greiner Saw the Vision for Scrub Daddy

Lori Greiner is called the “Queen of QVC,” after launching a number of merchandise on QVC, a lot of which have grow to be bestsellers. In the Shark’s personal phrases, she has achieved over “5 million in sales” on QVC, which is why she believed she was the excellent associate for Krause. However, earlier than she may leap in, Mr. Wonderful supplied Krause $100,000 for a 50% stake in Scrub Daddy. And that’s when the bidding warfare started. This led to one among the most memorable moments of the present, when Krause confidently turned down O’Leary’s provide. The entrepreneur acknowledged the worth and potential of Scrub Daddy. So, he responded to O’Leary’s provide with a decisive and assured “You’re out!” This daring transfer solely proved that Krause was an entrepreneur who knew the way to stand agency on his valuation and imaginative and prescient.

Daymond John was the second shark to make a proposal of $50,000 for a 15%, asking Greiner if she needed to associate with him for the remaining $50,000. But the Queen of QVC needed to go in on the product solo. The turning level of the episode got here when Greiner stepped in along with her provide of $100,000 for 30% fairness. However, the bidding warfare amongst the Sharks intensified as the pitch progressed. The three Sharks fought amongst themselves, attempting to persuade Krause to choose them. However, when Greiner revised her provide to $200,000 for 25%, it was over. Krause ultimately satisfied her to go down to twenty% for the similar funding, and Greiner agreed.

Krause’s choice to associate with Greiner as an alternative of the different sharks was pivotal. Greiner’s experience and her means to leverage QVC’s platform had been precisely what Scrub Daddy wanted to achieve its full potential. In Greiner’s phrases, “connections are everything.” As an inventor herself, with over 120 patents to her identify, Greiner understood the challenges and alternatives Scrub Daddy had in product improvement. Right off the bat, Greiner’s affect helped promote 42,000 sponges in underneath seven minutes on QVC. This strategic partnership offered the visibility and experience Krause wanted to rework Scrub Daddy from a promising product right into a multimillion-dollar enterprise.

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Scrub Daddy Remains One of ‘Shark Tank’s Most Successful Products to Date

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Post Shark Tank, Greiner facilitated Scrub Daddy’s placement in main retail shops like Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Target, increasing its attain to a broader viewers. The publicity of nationwide tv and Greiner’s connections helped the firm scale like by no means earlier than. Soon after securing the funding, Krause bought a bigger manufacturing facility and relocated his group relocated to Scrub Daddy’s present headquarters in Folcroft, Pennsylvania. In May 2014, ABC aired a particular titled Swimming with Sharks, the place Scrub Daddy was formally named to be “Shark Tank’s most successful product to date,” although it has since been surpassed.

Greiner additionally helped Scrub Daddy develop its product vary and performed an important position in remodeling Krause’s smiley-faced sponges into family names. In an interview with Business Insider, Krause revealed how dedicated Greiner has been to his firm, including “She’s not human! I’ll send her an email at 2 in the morning and she’ll reply.” Nearly 12 years after Krause’s look on Shark Tank, and the firm has a presence in 17 nations, sustaining its success higher than most profitable pitches on the enterprise present. The product’s one-of-a-kind design, mixed with Greiner’s market experience, has ensured that Scrub Daddy stays a dominant participant in the market and that’s what makes it the most iconic Shark Tank pitch throughout the present’s 15 seasons.

All seasons of Shark Tank can be found to stream on Hulu in the U.S.

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