(man) the sharks are back in an all-new season of "shark tank," where hopeful entrepreneurs from across the country dream of a chance to secure an investment and gain powerful partners... to start, grow, or save their businesses. we think we can take our sales to $3 million. whoa. whoa. if the sharks hear a great idea, they're ready to invest using their own money... i built a hundred-million-dollar business in record time. and they'll fight each other for a piece of the action. she's out of her mind. i don't know where he comes from, thinking that he knows all about the retail world... you can go to a mass market with $90,000? because he's not even in it. you're crazy. but first, the entrepreneurs must convince a shark to invest the full amount they're asking for, or they'll walk away with nothing. you didn't ask for enough money! that's the problem! that's it! i knew it.

it's sink... shucky ducky quack quack. be nice. or swim. you have sharks fighting for you. how is your order better than robert's? it's always better when you have me. ♪ who are the sharks? they're self-made millionaire and billionaire investors who are entrepreneurs themselves. kevin o'leary is a venture capitalist who turned a $10,000 loan into a software business worth $4.2 billion. lori greiner, the queen of qvc, holds over a hundred patents and has launched over 300 products, grossing over a half a billion dollars in retail sales. daymond john is a fashion mogul and branding expert who grew his homemade clothing line into the globally recognized fashion brand fubu. robert herjavec, the son of an immigrant factory worker, is now a technology mogul who sold his first internet companies for over $350 million. and mark cuban,

notorious billionaire entrepreneur and the outspoken owner of the dallas mavericks. first into the tank are brooke bryant and brittany hayes, who are hoping to elevate the decor of children's bedrooms. hey, y'all. we are the georgia peaches behind the next multimillion-dollar children's decor company, addison's wonderland. my name is brittany hayes. and my name is brooke bryant. we are seeking an investment of $90,000 in exchange for 20% of our company. addison's wonderland is the most unique, versatile, and exquisite line of children's bedding on the market today-- so much so that when moms see it, they will never want to buy ordinary again. when my sweet little addison was ready for her first bed, i started my search for her big-girl room.

and everything i found had such bland colors, lacked detail, and most of the selection just was so plain, it looked kind of cheap. so i got out my sketchbook and started working on my vision of the ultimate little girl's room. i got to work creating pillows, window treatments, and bedding. addison absolutely loved her room, and so did everyone who saw it. brittany and i have been friends for a really long time, and i've always believed in her amazing creativity and design. so when she asked me to partner with her, i didn't think twice. we are ready to make addison's wonderland into a brand name that everyone will want to have for their child. so which of you wants to team up with these motivated, hardworking southern gals and become the next designer home decor empire? ladies, no shark is as fashion-forward as i am. (laughter) so is this sold through retailers, or are you selling this all direct online? right now we are selling it direct online. and you offer it as a whole piece? on our web site, we have what's called "build your collection," where you can go through,

and it easily kind of navigates you through. if you wanna buy the addison collection, you know, you click the duvet, pillows... oh, i see. and it'll kind of show you. or you can go to each individual-- like, the pillow section, and order pillows. and what would this cost? a whole bedding set runs about $1,400 for a twin set. that$1,400? are you hand-sewing this yourself at home? we have a small custom workroom that does all of our work locally, but that's one of the reasons we're here, is to get better manufacturing options. yeah. 'cause that's very expensive for a child's... that's another reason. bed. we would like to get the price point down to a more reasonable rate. how long have you been selling this again? exactly a year. how's it been going? good. we've sold $130,000 so far. wow. and what's your cost on that $130,000? our gross margin right now is about 55%. and, brittany, what's the average order size? the average order size has been between $800 and $1,200. whoa. (lori) whoa.

how are people finding your web site? we are just--right now mainly on social media. i posted some sneak peeks, and it just took off. i mean, we got hundreds of comments. and people were like, "what date and what time is this coming out?" mm-hmm. that just seems like so much money to me. it does to me, too. so this is a very, very high-end... yes. exclusive product line? yes. we would like to get it down to a little bit less of a high-end. if--if that's the market you're catering to, and it seems to be accepting that price point, why bring the price down? the feedback we've gotten is if it were about 30% lower in price, we could reach a broader market. we're kind of-- isn't the online strategy a way to keep this so that you can fulfill for everybody that wants it? i mean, maybe this isn't destined to be a huge business. maybe it's meant to be a profitable one... right. where you just charge people outrageous prices for this stuff. they won't survive that way. no, that's not true at all. that's not true at all, lori. kevin, shockingly enough, is--is right. um, you guys are identifying a niche. thousands of people come to your site.

you're selling to them. i don't agree with mark. i have always based my model off of making great quality product at a great, affordable price so that it can be enjoyed by the masses. the good news is, your model is not the only model. and... wait... there's lots of other ways to make money. wait, wait, wait. mark, i was talking. excuse me. i think that for you to make a good profit, you're going to need to hit the masses. that's really the way to go. you can't-- mark, there's a recession going on. most people-- they're struggling to just... $1,400 for a mortgage payment. well, i think-- we haven't done any-- and they're saying they wanna get their price down. she's out of her mind. you're asking for $90,000. i don't know where he comes from thinking that he knows all about the retail world... you can go into a mass market with $90,000? because he's not even in it. you're crazy. well, i think we would like to go a little bit more wholesale. like, we have a lot of boutiques want to put it in their storefront. any specialty chains? bellini is one of them. i remember buying, uh, a crib for my daughter in bellini's. i think i'm just paying it off now, and she's almost 18.

(laughs) another reason we'd like to get our cost down is so that we can offer a wholesale rate. but that's a completely different business than what you're in now. you've got end users willing to pay crazy prices for colorful sheets and pillows. now you want to start servicing a distribution business that wants at least a 50% margin. yeah, you may be trying to grow too big too fast. you have a good business here. yeah. i mean, that's what we're trying to avoid. and that's why we're here, to need your advice. 'cause we feel like... are you sure you're ready to bring in a... a third voice? yes. definitely. just a little background on me... okay. so you know i'm not just, like, a sew-at-home mom-- when i was in college, my husband and i got married at 20, and he decided he wanted to start a granite company. so i went in with him, we worked our... booties off, and by the time we were 23, we graduated from college, and the company was selling $2 1/4 million. i know business. i really do. (daymond) all right. we may be sweet southern girls, but... yeah, we can work hard. we're hard workers... yes. and we're motivated and passionate. what happened to that business, brittany? it's still in business. i-i... you know, i think-- i think you're on the right track.

your first year in, you've done $130,000 in sales, and you're profitable. you know, in some ways, you have the perfect business. not sure i agree with the strategy of going away from that. not a market i understand. i'm out. i will say i-i love your creativity, and i think that you will go far. but i'm more interested in products that, uh, can be affordable by most of the population, as opposed to just a few. so for that reason, i'm out. i really don't think you need us. i think this is a business that you could run out of your home, you can make a couple hundred thousand, maybe even a million, and you can grow the business like that. i wouldn't be of any assistance to you. i'm out. here's what mr. wonderful says-- there's nothing unique or proprietary about it.

you're wonderful southern girls. i get all that. but frankly, if i wasn't so wonderful, and i wanted to knock this off, i could do it for a lot less. this is the brutal reality of business. so i'm out. mark? (chuckles) (chuckles) as someone who's going through, right now, redoing the rooms for a 6-year-old and a 9-year-old daughter, i'm getting brutalized with all this stuff, right? and so my wife would love it. and i recognize that it's relatively expensive, but there's a market there as well. but a lot of investors, when they look at an investment, they look at r.o.i.-- return on investment. i look at r.o.t., you know? return on my time. what are you gonna do, mark? you know your daughters would love this. yes, they would love it. (laughs) you're gonna kill me. um...

i love the way these ladies are pulling your heartstrings. (women laugh) just think--you could design your daughter's room, on your own. go online... yes. you could do this. i'm thinking. you're fine. take your time. evaluating. i mean, i like what you guys are doing. if you were half a million in sales or a million in sales, then, you know, then we could say, "okay, this is gonna result in me making "x" amount of dollars. it's just gotta be worth my time. and i think you guys don't need me. i think we do, though. we--we do. our sales have doubled in the last six months. i think you guys are gonna do wonderful things. i think you don't have to rush it. i'm-a say i'm out. no. shocking, but true. yeah, i didn't see that coming. thank y'all so much for your time... thank you so much. thank you, guys. and encouragement. good luck with everything. you guys will do very, very well. and if you need help with your daughter's room... yes, call us. i would be more than happy. trust me, i'm taking notes, and i'm gonna give it to my wife. thank you so much. thank you. all right. thank y'all.

thank y'all. good luck. (robert) who can afford $1,400? (kevin) apparently, many people. at least $130,000 worth of people so far. look, there's nothing wrong with what they're doing, but that's never gonna get big. it's crazy. they'll be fine. having the five sharks say that we didn't need them was a little bit of a disappointment. we definitely wanted a deal. but it was actually a great boost of confidence, 'cause we know that we can do it without them. ♪

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chase for business. next into the tank is steve maloney, with a game-changing innovation for duck hunters. (duck call quacking) (laughs) ♪ hi. i'm steve maloney, president of muddy water camo. and today, we are seeking $150,000 for a 5% equity in our business. sharks, we have created a new process of making camouflage

that's going to revolutionize the hunting industry. the whole purpose of camouflage is to help the person wearing it blend into the environment. now bubba over here is wearing a sample of where camo started. does that look like the real outdoors to you? no. of course not. as an obsessed duck hunter, i kept asking, "where's the camo that looks like the places where i hunt?" after 30 years of searching for camo that actually looked like a real marsh, i finally decided i'm just gonna have to make it myself. (duck call quacking) (laughter) that's when he called me. hee-haw! (lori laughs) i'm stephen kirkpatrick. i've been a professional wildlife photographer for over 30 years now. my profession demands that i stay hidden. so i've been searching for more realistic camo myself.

so together, we set out to create one. and now, five years later, it's finally here. introducing muddy water camo. here's me in muddy water. where? (lori) yeah. i'm-a have to help you out here a little bit. here i am... and here's stephen. (lori) wow. (mark) where'd you go, waldo? (stephen) muddy water is photographic camo. it is created outdoors, where hunting happens, as opposed to indoors, on some kind of computer screen. the entire pattern is 100% in focus, and therefore 100% realistic, just as nature appears to a bird's eye. we have found the way to make camo real. hey, and forget the salt water. we're gonna put the sharks in muddy water. (laughter, duck call quacks) (laughter)

so, boys, are you basically photographing a terrain, and then taking that image and putting it onto cloth? is that what's really going on here? basically, that's the way we do it. it's about a 54-step process, believe it or not. would anybody like a hat? (lori) yes. (robert) oh, of course. sure, if it's free. thank you. sure. here's a hat, daymond. thank you. sure. thank you. thank you. let's go back to why you're doing this. let's assume a fact here. okay. ducks are birds. right. they got bird brains. (laughs) they fly over hunters every day. they get blasted out of the sky. that happens every day. now are you saying to me as an investor, "i can blast more ducks." right. "20% more ducks die because of this technology"? it's gonna hide you better. are you selling the technology to camo companies, or are you actually selling your own garments with your camo on it? we are selling both. okay. what are your sales, steven, so far?

so far this year, they're $150,000. your sales, total? our--our sales total this year. now, it--this is a seasonal business, and we have not made it to our first season yet. so i tell you, you've done a very good job of camouflaging your valuation. well... (lori laughs) in fact, you've done such a good job of camouflaging it, kevin didn't pick up on it. they're not worth $3 million? oh, you did catch that. i hadn't got to that yet. how did you get to the $3 million? we have to look at the size of the market. (kevin) yep. try to figure out how--how much of it-- never heard that before. how much of it we can capture. okay. we had to produce our products and get to the market. how much money have you put in so far to produce the product and get to where you are? uh, there's $600,000 invested in the product. whoa. and where'd you get that? your money? we have already raised money with other investors. oh... and what value did they put on the company? they put $2 1/2 million on the business before we sold anything. come on. (stephen) we didn't have clothing. all we had was a piece of material. now these people are hunters, now, they've been hunting their whole life, and they look at what we have... really? yes. this is unbelievable.

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what value did they put on the company? they put $2 1/2 million on the business... really? before we sold anything. this is unbelievable. you have the same brain as a duck if you think i'm gonna give you a $3 million valuation on this. $3 million's a joke. be nice. you sold what percentage of the company? 16%. okay, so you sold 16% of the company. so when you sat down and you talked to 'em and you said, "suckers..." i mean, "investors..." (steve laughs) no, seriously, you said, "guys, "here's how big we think we can be within 'x' number of years." what did you tell them? we think we could take our sales within the first three years

to $3 million. where are you selling right now? we have 58 different retail stores around the country right now that are selling our products. are you in any of the big boys-- dick's, gander mountain... bass pro? bass pro shops? we are not, and one of the reasons is we knew we were brand-new, and if we'd have knocked on dick's or cabela's or whatever's door, they wouldn't have known who we are, and they're gonna license proven products. if you compare what we have to what's on the market, it is an absolute no-brainer. i get that it's different. okay. right? i get that it's, you know, more innovative. sure. but that doesn't necessarily mean people are going to buy it. you have to be telling me that you're gonna get bubba and what bubba typically wears and put them out of business, and own 100% of the market. we don't have to own 100% of the market to get to a value of $3 million. not even close. you've gotta change the game. waterfowl hunters spend $400 million on gear

a year, okay? so i can get $3 million without putting anybody out of business. look, i'm not a duck hunter. i don't have to know your business to be a good investor. but, man... a $3 million valuation? for a pattern that looks a little different in my eye? definitely not the right investor. i'm out. thank you. you will sell this. this is a great idea. but you came in asking for too much. i'm out. you are out of your minds. (stephen and steve laugh) $3 million dollars is, you know, that price... (mark) but $2.5 million isn't. (quacks) exactly. that's where that price is. shucky ducky quack quack. i'm out. i think the biggest risk, actually, is not the quality or the success or the opportunity. it's that you've got 16 investors. i'm gonna be a pimple on a duck's butt at 5%. (stephen and steve laugh)

it's just not worth it. big pimple. i'm out. you know, i'm not interested in your retail strategy. i'm interested in your licensing strategy. i am the king of licensing strategies. if you want to become the standard, as mark said earlier, change the game... you're exactly right. you've gotta grow very quickly, and you've gotta get the top three guys to license this from you, and that's where i am gonna come in really handy. i'll give you $150,000 for 20%. very fair. (laughs) very reasonable. and let's go kill some ducks. we're not gonna take a valuation that's lower than what we already have. do you have a counteroffer? uh, you probably don't even wanna hear it. i'm out. thank you, guys. thanks, guys. congratulations. thank you, guys. thank you. appreciate it.

appreciate it. appreciate it. thank you. (lori) bye. good luck. all right. hey, sharks, you're bird-brains for not investing in this company. (quacking) ♪ in season 3, pat mccarthy turned down an offer from daymond john for his fragrance company, liquid money. i can't do 80%. then i'm out. let's see what he's up to now. ♪ walking away from daymond was one of the most difficult decisions i've had to make. good evening. but the advice that i got was absolutely priceless. shortly after i appeared on "shark tank," the venetian called, and they gave us the largest order we've ever received. (pop, cheering) yeah! (laughs) before "shark tank," we had roughly $200,000 in sales. here's to money. to money! after "shark tank," sales ballooned to almost a million dollars

in nine months. (hisses) i never envisioned making this much money. we've hired six full-time people. our plant is running at full capacity. we are making a ton of money. being on "shark tank" has opened up doors that i never would have been able to open. the dream has now become reality. ♪ ♪ other wireless carriers make families share data. some way to say happy holidays. switch to t-mobile now and get 4 lines with up to 6gb each,

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next into the tank are megan jackson carreker and aimee miller,

with a favorable staple in women's fashion. ♪ hi, sharks. i'm megan jackson carreker. and i'm aimee miller. we're texas girls. our company's hip chixs, and we're seeking $150,000 for 35% equity in our company. hip chixs is a fun and sexy premium denim line, and we think that this is the best butt that money can buy. megan and i were sorority sisters and best friends at baylor university. aw. we're completely obsessed with denim. i mean, you wouldn't catch me on a day not wearing jeans. i even own 75 pairs. whoa. but who could blame her? jeans are the ultimate american fashion staple. and we couldn't find a perfect pair to fit every occasion. you know, day and night... dressy, casual... that was comfortable, breathable, sexy and slimming. so we set out to create the perfect pair. hip chixs is highlighting the sexiness of a woman's natural body with our angled pocket and our curved yoke-- are gonna help your backside look more trim.

and no more muffin top. (megan and amy laugh) aah... you don't want that. i guess mark's out. oh! i am muffin-top-free, i'll tell you. we also have a specialized waistband in the back which is gonna keep it from riding down when you bend over, so not to reveal the dreaded whale tail. (robert) don't! (laughter) i've never heard that before. you call that a whale toe? a whale tail. whale tail. whale tail. whale tail. we see hip chixs becoming the next hottest, sought-after premium denim lines that every woman will want in her closet. we're at our tipping point. hip chixs needs your help to really scale us to that national level. and like we love to say in texas... (together) y'all want some of this. (daymond laughs) (laughs) are you wearing them? yes. yes. because i just want to see why your jeans stop whale tail and muffin top. why is this different? just because it stretches? no, because usually, waistbands are, like, more of a circular, and ours is kind of an angle, so we have a little bit more length back here, so that when you do bend down, it's not gonna show everything.

and then muffin top-- what if--what if you have a couple rolls? it's a really forgiving fabric. it's really slimming. do you have any sales? we do. we have $12,000 worth of sales. oh. megan, there's gotta be a story. why only $12,000? why are you here? well, we--we originally created a test. we did two years of research. basically, we wanted to meet the need in the market. so we met with boutiques and said, "what's selling, and what are you lacking?" and we designed for that, and we created a premium product, meaning... in 1 year, $12,000. yes. yes. in 1 year, $12,000. off of 300 pairs. so once kevin gives you the $150,000, tell me what the next 12 months are gonna look like. what we wanna do with the money is drive sales. so we've got to build a sales force. we have to develop more product. we only created two styles, so we need more styles. i don't wanna discount the $12,000. but if you got the investment, what would the sales be and how would you get them? so over the next 12 months, we're hoping to be around $850,000 revenue. and how are you gonna do that? through boutiques. so, i mean,

we'd love to do more p.r., marketing. the exposure we've had so far in the last year, we haven't spent one dime on it. how did those 300 units selling compare to other jeans? so at--at this boutique, they've got over 30 brands of jeans, and we were within their top 25% sellers. how much do these jeans retail for? $187. and how much do you sell it to the store for? wow. we sell for $80. and how much do you make it for? $68. it's $68. $68, and you sell it for $80? mm-hmm. because-- you are going to hell. well, we... exactly. we add the premium charge. we wanted to flip our profit margin by ordering bigger. you're making no money. that's--that's why we're here. that's--yeah. we want to place a bigger order, so... so the cost... i have to go to hell with you? that's why you're here? no, you're gonna go on this great journey with us. it'll be so much fun. we're gonna paint the town red. this is my space, and most of the jean players are trying to bring their jean price down to $120. because the days of $180, $220... it's--it's really over. right now people can't pay their mortgages. they're--they're wearing that favorite pair of jeans

forever now. daymond, if i came to you, and i said, "let's launch a denim brand. "let's hire a designer, and i want to fund it. here's a check." you tell me what that check has to be for for me to get 1% market share in the next 5 years. to launch a denim line? $5 million. i'm in. (laughter) you didn't ask for enough money! that's the problem! that's it! i knew it. (laughs) look, you're--you're incredibly nice people. you've done a great job with your presentation. what?! i just don't think one store is enough. i'm out today. okay. well, thank you. thank you. i think that you need a lot of money, and i think it's really too high a hill to tackle. but you're a designer. design something else. do something unique and different, where you don't have a lot of competition. and then have something where you're cornering the market, and people will back you, and you can get out there quickly.

so that's my recommendation. and i'm sorry. i'm out. thank you. if i were you, i would take 100, 200 pair of jeans, and because women are obsessed with the fit, every single female star in the world thinks they can be a designer tomorrow, and they know nothing about it. you mail 200 pair of those out to each individual person, and you tell them you want to partner up with one of them, believe it or not, one of them may say, "this is such an incredible pair. yes, i'll partner up with you." and then you take that to a... a shark, and they will die to give you the money. it's just that simple. hmm. but today... i'm out. that hurt. so anybody else? if you can make a woman's tushie look significantly better than anybody else's, you're gonna be able to build a following of people who will pay a premium, who are waiting for your next product. it's gonna take longer, it's gonna be slower, the margins won't be as--as strong,

but you can get there. i'm not the right person to help you. but i'm telling you, do not quit. it's not about spending $5 million. it's just about grinding it out and doing it. so i wish you guys nothing but the best. i'm out. thank you. thank you. mark is doing you a huge disservice. no. let me speak, mark. your probability of success in this market is zero. so the more time you spend pursuing this dream, the more you'll be wasting your precious time. if you're truly entrepreneurs, go find something where the probability of success is more than zero. no chance that you will get share in the jean business. i'm out. (robert) megan, aimee, thank you. good luck. (sighs) man, you gotta learn to be... are you guys kidding? you gotta learn to be nicer to people. what?! why crush their dreams? i mean, give...

because it's--it's not a dream, it's a nightmare, lori. it's-- you're mean and nasty, kevin. it's the truth. anything else under the hood? it's the truth. thank goodness i'm here. i'm proud of what we've done. 300 pairs to develop and sell is amazing. we have--we have something. nobody goes out and buys something they've never heard of for $200 because it isn't great. it is great. ♪ again for the 15th year in a us in customrow.atisfaction (birds chi but we have a plan. (exec 2) when our customers are on hold,

let's up their satisfaction with some new hold music. ♪ (exec 2) that's glenn from the mailroom. he djs on the weekends. (exec 3) sorry, who is it? (exec 2) it's glenn, from the mailroom. he dj'ed bill's wedding. (exec 3) he what? (exec 2) he goes by dj glenn, he works way downstairs. (exec 3) what'd he say? (exec 2) glenn, from the mailroom! (vo) get rid of cable. and upgrade to directv. call 1-800-directv. morning ted! scott! ready to hit some balls? ooh! hey buddy, what's up? this is what it can be like to have shingles.

oh, man. a painful, blistering rash. if you had chickenpox, the shingles virus is already inside you. 1 in 3 people will get shingles in their lifetime. after almost 3 weeks, i just really wanted to give it a shot. you know, i'm not feeling it today. talk to your doctor or pharmacist today about a vaccine that can help prevent shingles. this bale of hay cannot be controlled. when a wildfire raged through elkhorn ranch, the sudden loss of pasture became a serious problem for a family business. faced with horses that needed feeding and a texas drought that sent hay prices soaring, the owners had to act fast. thankfully, mary miller banks with chase for business. and with greater financial clarity and a relationship built for the unexpected, she could control her cash flow, and keep the ranch running. chase for business. so you can own it.

chase for business. (bell clangs) ♪

i'm brooks... i'm taylor... and i'm tanner. we're brothers from boise, idaho, and we're the owners of proof. (beeping) hey, dad. what's going on? hi, guys. got a load of, uh, ponderosa pine from central oregon. (taylor) 60 years ago, our grandfather started woodgrain, a wood products manufacturing company that's still in our family today and run by our dad. so we decided to incorporate a family tradition and start proof-- the next generation in our family business. (buzzing) our product's made from wood, which makes it completely unique. so we can guarantee our customer that they have a one-of-a-kind, handmade original. (brooks) we're really excited to introduce our product to america. we think that it's really gonna change the way that people look at wood. we need an investment from the sharks because proof is growing so fast. we need the capital to invest in inventory to keep up with the demand of our customers. we have a lot riding on this deal. proof is a family company that we hope to pass on to our children one day. so this means the world to us. ♪

hi, sharks. i'm brooks... i'm tanner... and i'm taylor, and we're the dame brothers from boise, idaho. our company is proof eyewear. we are seeking an investment of $150,000 for a 10% share in our innovative company. at proof, we create the most amazing one-of-a-kind handcrafted eyewear from the most sustainable woods available. as we have grown, we have added other eco-friendly frames from materials such as plant-based plastics and recycled skateboard decks. i started proof in my garage a little over a year ago. as proof started getting more and more popular and started showing up on famous people's faces and in international publications around the world, it became more than i could handle by myself, and i needed some help in a major way, so i brought these two guys in to help me out. for me, really, it was a no-brainer, because, "a," i can trust them, i knew their work ethic. heck, i used to give these guys wedgies when they were little. (laughter) and, "b," you know, they work for cheap. so that's a win-win, right? in addition to that, our family's been in the wood business for a real long time.

we like to joke that we have sawdust in our veins. we bought each shark their own personalized pair of proofs they can check out. we even engraved with your names in 'em. thank you. thank you. kevin, they've got, uh, spring hinges, so they'll even fit big heads like yours. (robert) let me see, kevin. let's see. (laughs) you look ridiculous. we got him some green lenses, too. the color of money. daymond, let me see yours. let's see. oh, yours are cool. mark, you look ridiculous. (laughs) he's ready for a night on the town. you guys are looking stylish. that's all i can say right now. please note the uniqueness of the wood grain. no two trees are exactly alike, right? making no two pairs of proofs exactly alike. this makes your pair a one-of-a-kind, handmade original. over six decades ago, our grandfather took his small wood sawmill from a one-man show to becoming a very successful business. with his example of hard work, dedication, and creativity, we're prepared to take proof from three brothers from idaho to becoming a major success in the eyewear industry. entrepreneurs like us don't grow on trees... (robert laughs) even though the majority of our products do. speaking of things that grow on trees, we need your money to make this dream come true.

sharks, who's gonna become part of the proof family? do you have any sales? yeah, we've sold a little bit. uh, in the last 12 months, we've had $433,000 worth of sales. whoa. wow, that's good. yeah, not bad. you don't seem proud of that. we're very proud of that. you know, it's, uh, it's... but you're kind of, like, "oh, gee, shucks..." we gotta be humble. we're from humble beginnings. we're from idaho. we're humble boys. but we work hard. you should be proud of that. how did you sell that? $433,000-- how did you sell that? grassroots marketing. uh, we've gone to trade shows. and, uh, it really comes down to the product really sells itself. what does it cost to manufacture the case, the glasses, the lens? what is your--your cost? the cost with the packaging and the sunglasses is $14. what do you sell it to a retailer for? around $50 wholesale, and $100 retail. what celebrities and what magazines did you get in? that's a great question. it's a good question. we've been on, uh, snoop dogg's face, beyonce, kelly rowland... shannon brown. and they endorsed them? we've gotten tweets-- we don't send the product out

and say, like, "hey, will you wear these and endorse us?" you just saw them wearing them? it just happens. we've had a budget of zero for our marketing, but we hustle a lot. wood is extremely hot right now. crazy. you're absolutely right. everybody's doing chains, they're doing watches. so you guys are the official "wood guys"? right? we're the woodies, you know? we're the wood brothers. there are other wood sunglasses. i've seen them, right? oh. plenty, yeah. what we've really strived to do is really build a brand around the product. tanner, tell me about the logo. what's the significance? how'd you come up with that? really, when we started proof, we actually wanted to give back in what we did, and so we're working on building an eye clinic in india. and so part of our sales that we have, we--we donate to this eye clinic in india. for us, the idea behind the bird logo is everybody has wings to fly. sometimes they just need a little help... oh. to catch flight. it's a great story. it's nice. $433,000 last year. what do you think your sales will be thyear? i think we're gonna do about $850,000 to $900,000 in sales. on the $433,000 that we've sold, $150,000 is profit. what we're doing, really, is putting a lot of the money back into inventory.

i mean, i'm not taking a salary, and these two guys are working-- i mean, they could make more money working at mcdonald's, really. is this your only job? i have a full-time job. i work in our family's business, in the wood business full-time. you know, i've sold millions of dollars of glasses. i don't know if you--if you're aware of that or not. we're big fans, yeah. and i'm partners with a large company that makes sunglasses. and i'm afraid it's going to be a conflict for me with that partnership. and as much as i love you guys, i'm gonna have to be out. okay. okay. thanks, lori. what are you here looking for to get to that next jump-off point? what we're really looking for is money for inventory. we actually have a small problem-- i don't know if it's a problem. it's an opportunity-- where one of our biggest retailers has come to us, and they wanna expand with us. we've gotta get our inventory on point. who's the retailer, and what's the order? pacific sunwear. pacific sunwear. yeah, exactly. is the-- we initially started, um, in five stores. and within two weeks, they got back to us, and said, "hey, we're gonna do ten." and then they just recently got to us last week and said, "hey, we need to open--open 50 stores for the holiday season." and that equates to an order of over $200,000.

wow. wow. yeah, but, guys, when you're turning your sales at a relatively slow rate, you can slow down your customers, which you've been able to do. but once it starts to sell, and there's other people knocking on the door, and they're saying, "guys, if you can't hit this order "for 150 pairs for a thousand stores, i gotta take it somewhere else"... you got a problem. what are you gonna do? maybe the answer to that is structuring a deal with one of you where you say, "okay, you have--you have access to more capital if needed." so what you're saying is, "come on, guys. give us more." and free sunglasses for life. free sunglasses for life. and sunglasses for life? yeah, but they're not saying that, mark. you're saying that. i love the sunglasses, but i'm out. thanks, mark. if you went to general retail, like a costco, does that kill the brand today? i-i would say so. i mean, at the beginning, we didn't wanna grow super fast. (daymond) the good news is that in a down economy, where apparel and everything is horrible... yeah. oh, for sure. you guys are actually getting interest from pacsun, right? right. so that's great. you're cool.

thank you. i've had a lot of cool companies. heatherette was my most famous company that i've owned that was really, really cool. but the problem is--was all the cool brands are broke. most people would say, "i don't wanna ever be in walmart." i'm dying to be in walmart. um, so we wouldn't have the same vision. i wish you luck. i'm out. thanks, daymond. thanks, daymond. wow. the cool, hip... cool is not hip. i thought you'd be all over this. cool and a profit are two different things. i'm already cool and hip. that's true. (laughter) well, here's something i'll throw out at you-- i'll give you the $150,000 for 25%. i want $2.50 per order... hell, no! until i get my capital back. and then it drops to a dollar. mr. wonderful is also the undertaker. i don't want to fund inventory with equity. i want my equity because i'm getting involved in a business i'm gonna be with for a few years. that way, i get a constant, you know, return of my capital. i'm a quarter-partner with you guys, and i've funded the business. all right, so there's an offer-- you get the $150,000 today,

that's gonna fill one order. when you wake up tomorrow, what's the plan then? you gotta be very careful about taking anything off the top of your gross, and then paying it out to somebody at this point. what is this, "advice tank?" (laughter) or are you gonna make 'em an offer? so i'll give you the $150,000 for 25%. no royalty, because that's ridiculous at this point in your company. ♪

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does your makeup remover every kiss-proof,ff? cry-proof, stay-proof look? neutrogena® makeup remover does. it erases 99% of your most stubborn makeup with one towelette. need any more proof than that? neutrogena. three sharks are out. kevin and robert have each offered the dame brothers $150,000 for 25% of their company. however, kevin also wants a royalty on each pair of glasses sold.

well, guys, you got two offers on the table. gotta make a decision, guys. yeah. and you have sharks fighting for you. let me reiterate the offers-- let me--so it's $150,000 for 25% from me. i'll give you $150,000 for 25%. robert's deal-- that's it. mine-- i get $2.50 per order until my capital is returned, then it drops to a dollar. how is your order better than robert's? it's always better when you have me. difference between mr. o'leary and i-- i don't shuffle money around on wall street and take a few bucks. i built a $100 million business in record time. mr. wonderful knows the life cycle of cash. we don't know what's gonna happen to this thing. in my structure, i get my capital back in about 14 months. i'm happy with that. after that, i drop out... look, guys, i'm not--i'm not really worried about getting my capital back today. well, i always worry about my capital. i think a real investor worries about growing the company. i know if you grow the company, and we have a successful company, we'll all get our money back. to--to put in an investment at this point, and your primary reason and worry is, "how do i get my few pennies back along the way?"

i mean, that's ridiculous. it's--that's ridiculous, too. you know, let me tell you something... (laughs) you guys should be taking some off the table every month, because you don't know what's gonna happen. that's ridiculous! why would you-- he doesn't understand the cycle of cash. look, i-i know how to scale a business. i know how to grow it quickly. the more successful you are, the more capital you're gonna need. that's the challenge of inventory-based growth. anyways, i've made you an offer. what do you think about it? we appreciate the offers, and... let us--let us make a phone call. all right. and, uh... (taylor) we'll be back. we'll regroup here a second. thanks. (whistling) i really like them. they're gonna be too cool for school. this is a ride-the-wave business. hey, pops. how we doing? hey, brooks, how are ya? good i'm here with tanner and taylor, and, uh, we've got two offers on the table that we wanted to get-- get your opinion on. ah, great. congratulations. thanks. i think they're on to something. i think this is a hot wave. you ride it for a while, and you hope you figure it out. i would never do this deal without my capital being returned, ever. boy, what are they gonna do? the advantage of taking on a partner

is the additional working capital is good... mm-hmm. and the expertise is good. obviously, the downside is you dilute your ownership. appreciate it, pops. love ya. we love you. bye-bye. see ya. all right, let's go. well, we talked to the old man. you know, he gave us some good advice. would either of you guys be willing to-- to up--up the amount? 'cause, i mean, you're basically valuating our company at $600,000. we got $433,000 of sales today. i think our company's worth more than $600,000. now you're getting smart. (robert) hallelujah. our grandpa started with nothing. i mean, the guy used to be a truck driver. he would mold wood, and then take it to california on the weekend, and then flip back around and mold wood all week, and then take it back down. so he's just a hustler. he's about building the business. our dad is the c.e.o. of the company today, and our--our family is about building business and supporting people. i mean, our family business, we have... (voice breaking) 17... 1,700 people that... (laughs) 1,700 people that we support.

and so, you know, we started out with three people, and we have seven people in our business, and we wanna... man, i don't know. we're about making, uh, making this thing go. and we wanna build it with a good partner that supports us and wants to see this thing be successful. make a counteroffer. that's why it's called a "shark tank." uh, robert, would you be willing to, uh, go to $200,000 for 20% equity in the company? i think that's a fair valuation of our-- of our company at this point. so you want him to up his cash and reduce his ask? correct. and we'd also like to kind of understand if you'd be willing to help us going forward getting financing if--if necessary. well, uh, you've asked for two concessions from me-- more cash, less equity. of course i'm gonna help you find the funding. of course i'm gonna help you with advice. i'm gonna stick to the $150,000 and 25%. okay. what do you guys think?

♪ i think--i think we're gonna have to pass on the offer. ooh. (kevin) oh. all right. you know, i was about to get up and say, "this is great. we're gonna build something." i wish we were doing that. i wish we were doing that. 'cause we see that you have a lot of passion for what you do, and--and really appreciate the offer, and, honestly, flattered and honored to--to be with you guys. are you sure? (chuckles) we are. we are sure. guys, you let greed cloud your vision. enjoy the shades. we appreciate it. thank you. thanks. (lori) good luck. well, guys... (exhales and groans) could have helped those guys. no deal for either of us. that's a tragedy. you know what i say now? robert, they saved you from years of problems with the cool-guy syndrome. i really wanted to work with those guys. i think we could have built something great. we believe in building brands. it's not about-- always about the money. it's not always about doing the deal

and having that partner with-- you know, that's--that's flashy. it's about staying true to who you are and doing a deal that makes sense. (man) the sharks are back. they're looking for the best products and businesses america has to offer, and tonight guest shark lori greiner joins the tank. i treat all of my products as though they were my babies. hopeful entrepreneurs come to the shark tank seeking an investment to start, grow, or save their businesses. how many have you sold? 50. (kevin and daymond) whoa! (chuckles) dang. if the sharks hear a great idea, they're ready to invest using their own money... i like cash flow. and fight each other for a piece of the action. you have to ignore them. tv ladies are a dime a dozen. you just sit back and watch me make me money. i've been doing retail for 25 years and branding. i've forgotten more than she has learned. oh, come on. that was nasty.