The first entrepreneur into the Shark Tank this week was presenting her business Tranquilo and seeking $100k in exchange for 10% of the business. She has developed a vibrating mat that calms crying babies by mimicking the feeling of being in the womb. It has several intensity settings, as well as a heartbeat mode. It also has a waterproof interior and washable cover.
As for her numbers, she has seen $65k in sales in the last 7.5 months. Those were all on Amazon, her website, and some boutiques. They sell for $85 and cost $20 to make. She also put in $198k of her own money into the business with some coming from an inheritance and the rest she got from selling her house.
After seeing the videos demonstrating the products effects, I was shocked! I wasn’t alone either! The Sharks were visibly impressed with how well that little vibrating mat worked. She obviously has a winning product here and on top of all that she has a utility patent on how she arranges the motors in the blanket. They did not mention it in the episode, but I assume that is important because the placement of the motors is part of what creates the effect and causes the soothing feeling for the baby.
I also have to mention how gutsy this entrepreneur was! I was kind of on the edge of my seat toward the end because I thought she was going to totally blow it! First though, let’s recap the offers that the Sharks made.
Daymond came in first with with an offer of $100k in exchange for 20% with a contingency of getting a licensing deal for the product. This cuts the entrepreneur’s original valuation in half. Kevin then comes in with a shocking offer of $250k in exchange for 25% with a contingency that she has to quit her nursing job and do this full time. This offer maintained he original valuation of $1Mill, but doubled the investment and equity compensation. Then Robert finally came in with an offer toward the end, but we will get to that one in just a minute.
Why I think this entrepreneur was so gutsy is because she went in the COMPLETE OPPOSITE DIRECTION from anyone else that has ever been in the Tank before! She walked in with a $1Mill valuation and then when a Shark gives her an offer with that exact valuation, she comes back at him by RAISING the valuation! Now to be fair, she said it was more about the amount of equity, rather than the valuation. She countered Kevin by saying that if it could be $200k for 15% then she would say “Yes” in a heartbeat.
At this point I am about to pull my hair out! They are calling her out on raising the valuation from $1Mill to $1.3Mill and I’m thinking, “Why didn’t you just say $150k for 15%!!? WHY!?” I thought the Sharks were about to start dropping out one by one, but then Robert stepped in. He simply confirmed with her what she had said before about saying “Yes” in a heartbeat, and then offered her the $200k for 15%. True to her word, she said “Yes” about a heartbeat later!
Anyway, I was extremely impressed with this product and how well the entrepreneur conducted herself. She knew her numbers, had a firm grasp on her vision for the business, and even took a MASSIVE risk in the Tank that ended up paying off! It’s pretty insanely rare for a business to walk out with a HIGHER valuation than what they walked in with! So good luck to Tranquilo! With Robert’s help, I’m sure you will be soothing the crying baby masses in no time!