absolutely thrilled, especially with the two that we got. it's just perfect. yeah. really was. >> welcome to the shark tank, where entrepreneurs seeking an investment will face these sharks. if they hear a great idea, they'll invest their own money or fight each other for a deal. this is "shark tank." ♪ are jeffrey simon and marc newburger, with a business help make sure that nothing ever slips through the cracks. howdy, sharks, i'm marc newburger... and i'm jeffrey simon, and our company is... (together) drop stop! we're here today seeking a $300,000 investment in exchange for a 15% stake in our company. now, sharks, let me ask you a question--

have you ever dropped anything down that gap between the seat and center console in your car? you know what i'm talking about-- that black hole, that dark abyss, the pit of doom. what we like to call the car-muda triangle. (laughs) that place that eats up your cell phone, your keys, loose change, parking and credit cards, and all sorts of food items, like the french fry. tell me. how many of you have a 2-year-old petrified french fry sittin' down in that gap? who hasn't struggled, gotten on their hands and knees, butt up in the air, trying to retrieve what just fell down there? well today, your crack problems are over... car seat crack, that is. introducing drop stop-- the first-of-its-kind, original patented safety device designed to once and for all block that pesky, yet ever-so-dangerous gap between your car seat and center console. drop stop reduces driver distraction by keeping your eyes on the road, not in your gap. drop stop is universal to fit any car or truck.

the built-in slot is designed to fit easily around the seat belt catch like so... which anchors it to the seat... (robert laughs) so it can never fall through to the floor. and wherever your seat goes, drop stop follows. the stretchy, durable material is designed to last the life of your vehicle and beyond, and drop stop's squishy center allows it to expand or contract to fit any size gap. you won't even know it's there... till it stops the drop. so, sharks, we can make a lot of money together. but we can also save a lot of lives together. so we're asking y'all just this once to lay down your dorsal fins and join us to make dropping and driving... (together) a thing of the past. (laughs) how much money is there in solving the car-muda triangle problem? we have actually sold over 260,000 units. you've sold 260,000 units? yes. yes. 130,000 sets, or 260,000 units.

how many dollars did that equate to? uh, we have had gross sales, since we opened our doors in 2009, of $1.3 million. this year, how much will you do? this year, we have made $300,000 in gross sales, and we have net $50,000. for the fourth quarter, which is one of our biggest times of the year, we have commitments and things are in the works to actually gross $500,000. and from that, we will be making $260,000 net income. what is your mode of selling? where are you selling this? we sell on our web site, we sell through the catalogs, and, marc, where's the other big one we've been working on? well, we've actually had 42 shows on qvc. and i'm speaking to the queen herself right here. and we-- 42 times it's been on qvc? yes. we just had two shows last week, in fact, we had one scheduled for today... today. that we had to skip, unfortunately, because-- this is much cooler than qvc. we love qvc. we love qvc. that's right. everybody loves qvc. (laughs) can we see 'em, guys? yeah. absolutely. marc, please give it to them. with the packaging. yeah, with the packaging.

are people that big slobs that they're dropping stuff in their car all the time? have you never dropped anything down that gap before? even just could be your phone, your keys. i mean, everybody says, "why didn't i think of this idea?" or, "god, this happened to me." really? this is a very serious problem that happens. the united states department of transportation said there are over 500,000 accidents and over 5,000 fatalities that happen from driver distraction alone. and, marc, why don't you share how we actually came up with the idea, and i think that'll help... okay. you know. about four and a half years ago, we both live in los angeles, i was driving on sunset boulevard, and my phone was just sitting on the center console. and when it rang, it shimmied off and fell down the gap, and i went to go reach for it really quick, and i tugged the wheel to the right. i looked up, all four tires went up onto the sidewalk, i literally saw a guy superman-leap 3 feet out of the way-- i would have killed him-- and i missed hitting a telephone pole by an inch. wow. and i just started screaming, "why doesn't somebody come up with a way to block this stupid crack?!" there has to be a better way! (laughs) i agree! what's it cost to make these, and what do you sell 'em for? our cost to us is $4. for one or two?

for a set of two. for two. $2 apiece. $2 apiece. and for retail, it sells for $19.99. so we're talking about a markup of $5, which we know is a very attractive number to investors. and you have to sell it to retailers for $10. right. hold on. i'm not there yet, but i will get to that. (lori laughs) obviously, retailers want a 50% markup. so we sell it for $10. we're making a gross profit of $6. retail is the next big game, which is why we're really here. do you have intellectual property? we have a patent. (lori) a utility patent. a utility patent. on? on the actual product, drop stop. on putting stuff between a seat and a center console? an elongated member with--with a slot that goes around the seat belt catch. (laughing) we--we own that area, baby. and--and there have been... you are a sick puppy. (laughs) i can't believe people are dropping that much stuff. like, it nevhappens to me. robert, just go out there and look in my car. (laughs) (laughs) thank you. i'm not a believer in the product. i'm not the right investor. i'm out. thank you, anyway. respectfully, we understand that. thank you. you know, i-i like the story. i think you guys are making money.

i mean, where i'm from, that--that space is really, really special. because when somebody pulls you over, you can get three to five on rikers island if you don't have that space to drop something down there. (laughter) thankfully, that hasn't happened yet. i'm not saying that i ever did anything like that. um, the--the sales are showing that it's a need, but it's not something that i believe in. i'm out. thank you. guys, i think it's a phenomenal product. i'm gonna take the one you gave me, and i'm gonna use it, you know? because i'm--i'm a slob. (laughs) but being a slob, and being a customer for the product is different than being the right person to help you sell it. you know, you've already got qvc, and lori's the right person for that. so if i could add value, i would, but, guys, i have to say i'm out. okay. that's a bummer. bummer. for me, this isn't just a product. it's a dream. it is a calling. if you can just save someone's life once,

it's worth it. i see the value, guys. i really, really do. um, but it takes a commitment to do it right. i would be nothing more than a checkbook to you guys, and you guys are asking for more than that. absolutely, and thank you for being honest. yeah. i like being a checkbook. (both laugh) i like to hear that. yeah. you know, i think the problem with this deal is it's not really a company. it's a product. right now what it does is, it uses capital. the bigger it grows, it just sucks cash. the bigger you get, the more distribution you get, the more money you're gonna need. now for the investor, mr. checkbook here-- mr. wonderful checkbook, you can call me that-- i look at it and say to myself, "okay, i'll give you $300,000." you know, and right now that money is hanging onto my leg, it's saying, "daddy, where am i going?" i say, "nowhere yet. i'm thinking about it. you may go to summer camp now." it says, "no, daddy, no! i wanna make sure i come home." (laughs) and so i'm thinking to myself, before i send these little soldiers off, i gotta figure out a way

that they come home with more friends. the idea is send the dollars out, they capture some, they come back to daddy. that's how it works. so i give you the $300,000, i don't want any equity in your company. but what i want is, every time you sell one of these foam weenies, i get $2 back. i mean, that would end up leaving us with a dollar left for ourselves after it's said and done, if we're making $3 on each individual drop stop. yeah, it's okay. you're growing market share. well, you know, they say money can't buy happiness. and i agree. but... i can easily make you millionaires. ♪

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jeffrey and mark have an offer from kevin o'leary of $300,000 for a $2 royalty on each unit sold. but lori also seems interested. they say money can't buy happiness. and i agree. but... i can easily make you millionaires. i can get you into retailers, across the country and internationally. and so i'm going to make you an offer. i'm going to offer you the $300,000. but i'm going to ask for 20%, because i understand what it's going to take

for me to do all of this. but i think you guys are a hero, and i think the product's a real hero. thank you. thank you. and i'd love for you to say "yes" right now. can you imagine how much equity you're giving up? boy, that hurts. 20%? a lot. i'm thinking i'll make it more interesting for you. i'll do it with my offer because i am mr. wonderful, let's remember that. you are. instead of keeping the $2 royalty on after i recoup my capital, it drops to $1. here--we need a moment, right now, of money meditation. close your eyes. take a deep breath. visualize yourself sailing on a boat with me around martha's vineyard next year. me handing you a check for millions of dollars. now open your eyes... and take the offer. you're giving up equity, which is very expensive when one day, somebody wants to buy this company. correct. lori, the savage, took 20% for herself.

but really, she's really good for qvc, but what's she gonna do for retail? if you don't make a decision right now, i swear i'm gonna throw the weenie at you. (both laugh) on behalf of both of us, lori, we would love to be partners with you. whoo-hoo! thank you. aah! almost fell on the weenie. that almost fell down the gap! (laughs) so excited. it's great. we're so excited. thank you so much for understanding and believing. whoo! lori! lori, you'll make a lot of money with this. i agree. this is a great product. lori, we will be sailing with you on that boat at martha's vineyard. i cannot wait. ♪ just months ago, we saw maria curcio and veronica perlongo make a deal with all five sharks for their early bed bug detection system, buggybeds.

yes or no? can we take one minute? no. no. (kevin and barbara) don't even think about it. it's a deal. let's see what they're up to now. so many amazing things have happened since "shark tank." we brought our sales from $150,000 to $1.2 million in 2 months. another 32 promises. aw, awesome. prior to "shark tank," we were in home depot in new jersey state only, about 60 stores. because of the airing of "shark tank," when people saw the product, they were running out to home depot do buy it. because of the customer demand, we are now rolling out in 600 stores across the country. every time we go into the store, we still get goosebumps and such a great feeling of pride seeing our product on the shelf. life after "shark tank" has really changed for us. i mean, we went from working in our garage to now running a full warehouse. we've been able to hire over 50 employees so far. we're signing on retailers and distributors almost on a daily basis from around the world. and we have "shark tank" to thank for that. we got burlington going on over here. since the show, we gained instant credibility. we're in burlington coat factory,

walmart, walgreens, almost 1,500 stores nationwide. we're on target to reach between 7 and $10 million in sales. and if all goes well, we're gonna be the most successful product out of the tank. ♪

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♪ next into the tank are dave johnson and gary groomes, who have a unique solution to a looming ecological problem. hi. i'm dave johnson, president and founder of traditional fisheries. and i'm gary groomes, vice president. we need $225,000 in exchange for a 25% share. we need your help to fight a war against an environmental terrorist-- the lionfish. the worst invasive marine species in history, capable of causing an economic and ecological disaster. long prized for its beauty, this exotic fish was imported from the pacific and sold in tropical fish stores. well, about 20 years ago, somebody dumped and handful of them into the atlantic ocean.

since then, they've multiplied like a supercomputer. this map will demonstrate the extent of the lionfish spread over the past 20 years. you see, the lionfish, because of its venomous spines, has no natural predator. and already, it is the second most populous fish in the western atlantic and the caribbean. and it eats just about anything. right, including valuable species, like snapper, grouper, lobster, shrimp, and crab, that thousands of fisheries and millions of people depend on for survival. and it gets worse. now they also feast on fish that are crucial to keeping coral reefs alive. our oceans are already in crisis. and the lionfish could be the straw that breaks the camel's back. but, sharks, we have a solution to this problem. mm-hmm. (together) to beat 'em, just eat 'em. oh, chef jeffrey? would you come out here, please? (laughs) oh, no. the sharks are feeding.

oh... no. no. that's right, folks. today we are serving lionfish. it's delicious, nutritious, and perfectly safe to eat, i assure you. what would you liken it to? what type of fish, the way it tastes? i would say it's similar to snapper or grouper. chicken. chicken? (laughs) so yare selling it? oh, absolutely, yeah. and what do you call it when you sell it? we call it lionfish. why? like sea bass wasn't originally called sea bass. it had some nasty name for whatever... patagonian toothfish. yeah, the patagonian toothfish. there you go. right. right. right. yeah. sea bass sure sounds a whole lot better. well, you're right, mark. in that regard, it does sound better. but on the other hand, uh, we're promoting this as an opportunity for people to help the ecology by consuming the fish. so that's why we wanted to keep the name lionfish. but, mark, if you wanna give us money, we'll call it anything you want.

we'll--we'll call it the cubanfish. (laughs) it tastes good. i mean, do you guys like it? yeah. yeah, i mean, it tastes like, uh... flounder. delicious. i'm familiar with the lionfish from aquariums. 'cause it's a very beautiful fish. until you told me today that it's a danger to all the other fish, i never realized that. (mark) yeah. the fact that it has no predators. it's proliferating in the caribbean, and there's just no stopping that. and you're saying that's bad for the underwater environment? it eats snapper. it eats the herbivorous fish. how does that little guy eat a lobster? lobster larvae. lobster larvae. but doesn't every fish eat lobster larvae? it sounds like a delicacy. yeah, it does sound like a-- yeah. i would guess that every fish does, but-- so aren't we being a little negative on this guy? (mark laughs) no, we're not. trust me, kevin. but i'm amazed that this is so delicious. i'm-a go home to my fish tank and lemon and tartar up, uh... ol' skippy. (laughter) but let me ask you something. yeah, sure. if they taste that delicious, why haven't anybody else

harvested this, uh, fish out of the sea? it's very labor intensive. it's taken us a long time and it's cost us a lot of money. what's the process of catching them? they don't bite on a hook, and they live in caves of the reef. of the reefs, yeah. so you can't net them. so they're only speared. and we deal with, uh, mexican spearing cooperatives. how can you scale it if you have to spear each one of 'em? there's a surprising number of, uh, spear fishing cooperatives in the caribbean. so how does the cost of the fish per pound compare to other fish, like sea bass or trout or whatever? it would comparable to probably sea bass, grouper, uh, snapper. so there's not really a cost element here? so you've really gotta like the taste and be willing to choose it and possibly be willing to choose your dinner based off of some ecological factors? that and the taste. i mean... how does the consumer know they should eat this? well, that's been a challenge, because we essentially are introducing a new fish into the u.s. market.

but, dave, if this is such a problem, why is the government not all over this? i've never seen anything of this danger. you're telling me that the reefs are gonna die. robert, i honestly think the problem is a lack of funding right now because so many programs have been cut. at least that's what we're hearing from the people that we talk to in the government. so let's go to the business side of it. how much fish have you sold in the last year? um, we've grossed $12,000. sales? yes. sales. boy, is that ever small. let me tell you where i stand. i think you have a tremendous market acceptance problem ahead of you. you did a good job of explaining the problem, but... mm-hmm. i don't care how much supply you have if there's no demand. i'm out. all right. well, thanks for your time, robert. so, on cape cod at the turn of the century, the lobster was considered the cockroach of the sea. mm. nobody would eat it.

that's why they fed it to prisoners. it took 40 years to convince boston society that that cockroach was a delicacy, and now it trades for, you know, $15 a pound sometimes in restaurants. 40 years is a long time. now, that little cockroach may take just as long to convince people to eat it. you'll both be dead before that's mainstream. i won't be, 'cause i'm a vampire. (laughter) but in the meantime, i'm out. all right. thanks for your time, kevin. appreciate it. guys, i think this is just gonna be a huge educational challenge, and, uh, $225,000 is just not gonna do it. i'm out. thank you. all right, thanks, daymond. it is a good problem to solve. it is a high leverage problem, meaning that if you can solve it, you can make a lot, a lot, a lot of money. but your catch-22 is it's gonna take a lot of money. you really haven't asked for enough to solve a problem.

you haven't said, "look, "this is how we're gonna market it just to one community to--to find the demand." so i'm out. thanks. thank you, mark. i'm for anything that helps the ecology, and i hope that some kind of solution happens in a more global way with more help than just the two of you. but i can't see people running to eat lionfish. and for that reason, i'm out. well, thank you all for your time. good luck, guys. very much so. good luck. congratulations, too. it was very interesting. bye-bye. it's a beautiful fish. i want to go see that fish. i know. they're great in aquariums. they're so cool. look at the--look at the tips on those spines. it's beautiful. it's also quite unattractive when it's fried up. it's primordial. i love the fish. i think it's beautiful. i didn't realize it was such a big problem. he's not looking so good now. we didn't get a deal, but we're gonna move forward and we're gonna fight this damn fish.

there's more lionfish in the sea today than there were yesterday. and that's gonna continue to happen until somebody does something about it. ♪

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[ clock titime. ] you only have so much. that's why we wanna make sure you won't have to wait on hold. and you won't have to guess when we'll turn up. because after all... we should fit into your life. [ laughing ] not the other way around. [ clock ticking ] my name is lani lazzari, i'm 18 years old, i'm from pittsburgh, pennsylvania,

and i'm the c.e.o. and president of simple sugars. hi, everyone. hey, lani. i was born to be an entrepreneur. i wanted to go over these sales numbers with you. when i was in third grade, i started selling hair scrunchies out of my backpack to my friends at school, and that was just the beginning. a few years later when i was 11, i started simple sugars. simple sugars products provide a high-end skin care experience, while also being completely all natural and safe for even the most sensitive skin. tie the bow on, trim it up, and give it to me, and i'll pack 'em into the box. ever since the beginning, i've always been the one really running this business. i have gone to all my own meetings, negotiated all my own deals, even from the time when i was 11. i know. oh, kate! (laughter) my family is so important to me, especially my mom. sports is not your thing. (laughs) yeah, i know. she drove me to every meeting until i could get my driver's license, and she's been behind me supporting me all the way. i need an investment from the sharks because simple sugars has grown as much as it can with how we've been able to fund it. we've been bootstrapping this business on credit cards, and now we really need to put a little bit of money

behind it to be able to capitalize on its growth. i've risked a lot to make my dream come true. i've had to give up my good grades in high school, my friends, a lot of my childhood experiences. so getting a deal from the sharks would really make it all worth it. ♪ hi. my name is lani lazzari. i'm from pittsburgh, pennsylvania, and my company is simple sugars. i'm seeking $100,000 in exchange for 10% equity in my company. i started simple sugars almost seven years ago when i was 11 years old. since infancy, i've suffered from horrible eczema. i couldn't find a single product that i could safely use on my sensitive skin, let alone one that actually smelled good. so, as a determined 11-year-old, i started doing research and got to work

creating the product i was looking for. my homemade creation not only took away my eczema, but it also cleared up my aunt's psoriasis. soon i was getting requests from my friends and family to buy my products. i couldn't pass up the opportunity to become a businesswoman, despite the fact that i wasn't even a teenager yet. simple sugars products are all-natural sugar scrubs. they gently exfoliate, providing deep moisture and complete skin nourishment in one easy step. the result is super smooth, great-looking skin without using a laundry list of products. up until this point, i've been growing simple sugars while simultaneously being a high school student. now that i've graduated, i'm ready to do whatever it takes to blow the lid off this thing. but i need a little help. that's where you guys come in. lori, i would love it if you would come up and try out the products. now, i have three of our bestselling body scrubs to choose from. would you like to try strawberry, coconut, or lemonade? uh, strawberry. okay. here, take a smell. ooh, that smells great. s--

gonna give you a little bit of water. she might melt. (laughter) i'm gonna give you a little bit of scrub. okay. so now you want to scrub until it feels like the sugar crystals start to melt. they have a very small crystal size, which means that sugar is a very gentle exfoliant, so it's safe for sensitive skin. they're completely all-natural. they have no artificial colorings, preservatives, scents, anything in them. all of the oils are chosen because they're safe for sensitive skin, and also because they absorb quickly, so you're left feeling smooth and not greasy. so... wanna dry 'em off? and how do they feel? it feels very, very soft. yeah. so that's the oils in it? the-- that's the oils in it. the sugar removes the barrier of dead skin cells that naturally sits on top of your skin... smells great. which allows the oils to penetrate into your skin and provide that moisture. where have you been selling this? 60% of our sales are on the simple sugars web site. okay. but we also do wholesale as well. and we are in our largest local high-end grocery chain.

what are your sales, lani? our sales year-to-date are $55,000. what do you think you'll do this calendar year? this calendar year, we're projecting very conservatively $100,000. what do you think you'll make on it? our profit margins are 75% to 80%. but you're not paying yourself anything yet? sometimes i take a small salary-- um, $400 a month--when we have the cash flow for it. couple gummi bears, yeah. yeah. (laughs) (robert) lani, i'm more interested than the money right now-- how did you come up with the formulas? like, uh, like the chemistry behind it? i was more aware of skin care products than the average 11-year-old, 'cause i was always at the dermatologist's office with all of these problems. so i started doing research, and, to be honest, i just got obsessed with it. so i just started, through trial and error, making products and trying them on myself. you don't have any mainstream distribution. you're a niche player online. you have $100,000 in sales. but it's not worth a million dollars. now, tell me why-- i don't care what age you are.

if you bring out here a million-dollar valuation, you gotta defend it. yes. so defend it. i am willing to negotiate on that, but there are a few things i'd like you to consider first. in 2010, i was a sophomore in high school. my sales were $13,000. at that point, i decided that i wanted to actually focus on growing this business. so i basically took the whole year off to work full-time on growing the business. as a result of my efforts that year, my sales grew to $38,000, a 192% increase, and i did all of that by myself with no funding and no help as a high school student. now, in the past three months since i've graduated and been able to work full-time, i have grown simple sugars' retail presence from 6 stores to 20. i've made it the top-selling specialty brand in our local high-end grocery chain, and i'm in the process of negotiating a deal worth $150,000 to $400,000 over the next two years with a high-end online skin care retailer. you said that it cured your own eczema and psoriasis.

it's really hard to be able to make a claim like that. we don't make any claims about what the product will do for you. what we do talk a lot about is the benefits of each individual ingredient, which is something you can say. but we can't make any claims about it curing eczema or psoriasis. i can only speak from my experience. what does your dermatologist say when you go back to him or her and present this to them, and is he recommending-- or her--recommending it to his other patients? oh, yes, definitely. she uses the products. she loves them. 'cause i have three kids, and my wife literally would come and make your bed every day... yes. i would, too, for that matter, if it kept my--my son in particular from itching all over. (laughs) yes. well, it's a huge problem. there are 30 million people in the united states that have eczema, and 52% of the population describes themselves as having sensitive skin. we heavily market it as a product for sensitive skin. that's something that can say. and you're allowed to say that? right. oh, yes. we're perfectly allowed to say that. it is one of the hardest things you could do with your life, starting a business, being an entrepreneur. oh, yes. what inspired you to start your own business?

when i was much younger, my mom went on maternity leave with my youngest brother. and while she was away on maternity leave, she got passed over for a promised promotion. at that point, i was very discouraged, especially as a woman, about one day going into the corporate world. so from that point on, i decided that i wanted to be an entrepreneur so i could be responsible for my own success. i was the same way. i didn't want to be under control of somebody else. i wanted to lead my own destiny. yes. and i am super impressed that you are doing what you're doing. i-i do want to know what--what are you gonna do with the money? $50,000 is going to go towards hiring 2 part-time salespeople to support our initial accounts. because right now i'm focusing too much of my time on supporting the accounts we already have, and not enough time on seeking out larger accounts. and where are you currently making the goods and-- is this all out of your house? no, not anymore. we have a facility in pittsburgh. everything is made there, and that's also where we have our offices. i have three employees who do all the manufacturing of the products.

uh, i really am questioning, do you really need us, or--or me? because you're doing great. you can grow yourself, and i would not complement your business, and i think it would be, um, counterproductive for us to partner up in that sense. so, with that said, i'm out. i appreciate that. thank you. lani, i love you. i think you are amazing. amazing. the quality's great. it smells great. i'm so impressed by you. thank you. but... ♪

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lani, i love you. i think you are amazing. amazing. thank you. and the quality's great, it smells great. but for me, i think there's too much competition with scrubs out there,

so i'm not going to offer you any money... okay. for this. i'm out. (kevin) okay, lani. here's what i know is a reality. the cosmetics industry, of which you're a part of, is the most competitive on earth. why? because the only products that have higher margins are illegal. (chuckles) yes. (lori chuckles) it's virtually impossible to get share from the large companies that own this space. there's absolutely nothing proprietary of what you're doing at all. it's so simple to do that even an 11-year-old can do it, and apparently has. yes. but what really strikes me is, you think it's worth a million dollars. yes. not a chance in hell, no matter how wonderful your story is. (chuckles) i'm not interested. i'm out. lani, i think if the measure of success in a business was drive and passion, your business would be successful. yes. i-i think my challenge with it is

it is a very, very difficult task that you're trying to take on. for me to give you the $100,000, i would have to negotiate such a value from you, that it's... unequitable to you... yes. and it becomes unequitable to me. yes. and you don't want to do that... no. and i don't want to do that to you. no, and-- so on this investment, i'm out. four sharks are out. mark is lani's last chance for an investment. i'm not an expert in this market, obviously. yes. all i know is the suffering my kids go through. yes. so i want you to explain to me for my 3-year-old son-- he's got it all right here where his eczema is. mm-hmm. what should he do? what product should he be using? eczema is a scaly, dry skin condition. so gentle exfoliation is really important to helping alleviate it. so the scrubs, with the blend of the sugar and the oils that are in there-- that's especially what's good to use on eczema. so... okay. who do you see as your primary competition, and name the company name.

fresh. and why do you think they're your primary competition? because they have a very comparable product quality-wise, and most of the time, we get customers who come to us from using a fresh scrub and switch to our company, because we are more affordable than them. i don't think we ever heard the cost for your product. they're $15.95 for the large size, which is this size. and how much does a comparable fresh product cost? $74. and the cost to make the scrub? $3.61. and how low do you think you can get that cost? uh, i can cut it at least in half by doubling the sales. mark, has she convinced you? she's darn good. okay, here's what i'm willing to do. i'm willing to invest $100,000... okay. for 33% of the company. okay. and the reason why 33% from where you are is, there's gonna be considerable, um, requirements of my time.

and i value my time. i'd like to counter. okay. would you accept $100,000 for 25% equity? no, i would not. okay. so you won't go any lower than 33%? no. mark... i would love to accept your offer. that's what i like to hear. i'm very excited to work together. so am i. congratulations. thank you so much. thank you. thanks, sweetie. and please take some home to your kids as well, so they can try it out. trust me, i'm already grabbin' everybody's. great. thank you so much. thanks. congratulations, lani. thank you. (lori) congratulations. (mark) nice job. thank you. you're amazing. she was one of the best pitchers we've had here at any age. she was 18. if that's our future, we are in good hands. we're in really good shape. in the future, i hope that i will be an inspiration to other young entrepreneurs and encourage them to follow their dreams and that if you're passionate and you're committed, you can do it.

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who's hoping to resurrect an old idea. hello, sharks. my name is jeffrey miller. and my product is called coolwraps. i'm seeking $100,000 in exchange for 40% equity in my company. let me ask you a question-- when was the last time you had fun gift wrapping? well, if you're anything like me, and i'm gift wrap-challenged, the answer is "never"... until now. allow me to introduce you to coolwraps. coolwraps is a shrink wrap gift bag that is so easy to use. we say it's as easy as 1-2-3... stuff it, seal it, shrink it. allow me to demonstrate. simply place a gift into a bag. remove the protective film from the adhesive strip. fold it over and close it like you would an envelope. and now with a hair dryer, you shrink it to fit. (whirring) simply run the hair dryer around the present,

and you will instantly see it start to shrink. have you noticed there's no tape, no scissors, no hassle, and absolutely no mess? it's amazing. and in no time, you will have a wonderfully wrapped gift. (dryer turns off) jeffrey, are those the ones you did before? yes. i did all of these last night. and unlike regular gift wrapping, i had fun doing it. i mean, coolwraps... (laughs) coolwraps is a great product, and it's proven, and it's great. um... it is an amazing product. i love it. i'm passionate about it. i mean, it's perfect for everyone. as i said, young and old, male and female. and if you have dexterity issues, it's perfect. this is a game-changer now. this is an amazing product. jeff, can you tell us about the business? this product was out on the market about ten years ago.

then what happened? we were a partnership, and we got it out into the market, we got on qvc twice, and we sold out. we got tested in cvs, and we sold out. we went to the banks. we needed money to roll it out, and we couldn't get it. we had purchase orders in hand. and they just wanted us to collateralize our homes. they didn't care about the orders. well, how much were you asking for from the bank? we needed, in order to fulfill the larger quantities that we were getting orders for, we needed $300,000 to $500,000. jeff, when the bank manager was willing to lend you that money--pretend i'm him-- i say, "jeff, i'm very excited "about your gift wrap bag, shrink wrap, whatever. "i hope you're as excited as i am, "because i'm gonna lend you the money, "and i'm gonna put as a collateral your home. "but you have no problem with that, because you believe in the product." i did. but the partnership-- in total, we had already put in over $150,000 into it. why didn't the other partners also believe and be willing to put up thehomes?

well, we didn't want-- this is the test of a real entrepreneur. i--absolutely. do you take the chance? do you bet it all? i'm there with you. obviously, you weren't there with him, because you said no. why did you say no? i didn't say no. the consensus was no. i wanted to bring in venture capital. what percentage of the company did you own? i was a 20% shareholder. and so fast forward to today. yes. how much of it do you own? i own 100% of this. but, jeffrey, what happened to the other partners? well, we couldn't fulfill the orders, they gave up, and i acquired everything. what's happened? why for ten years did you do nothing with it? i've not been able to get in front of the right people. i have been to trade shows, i have tried to get the word out there. did you stand there with a blow dryer, sealing, getting people excited? um, no. i went around and tried to hand out my cards and get--give some... oh, my gosh. so nobody saw the product in action? no. nobody knew what you were really selling?

no. so you didn't have a booth? you were just going around trolling? correct. i didn't--i didn't have the money. jeffrey, you gotta-- you gotta demonstrate this. i know. is there anything else like this out on the market? there is not. i have a patent on it. not at all? nothing. it's a utility patent? it's a utility patent. you cannot make anything like this. and how much does it cost you to make one bag? um... on average... on average. price is between 11 to 18 cents a bag. and then what did you sell them for when you sold them on qvc? what was your offer? qvc was a 20-pack, and they had a special price of--i think it was $16.88. have you called anybody to try and license this? no. i-i don't know how to go about it, and that's why i need your help. so you want us to bet on a 10-year-old product 'cause you think we'll bring it back into the market, and bingo--it'll come back. actually, i think-- i am so happy that it's happening now, because manufacturing processes have improved. we can bring cost down. jeff, it--it's great that you love it, but my gosh--ten years? you--you've gotta go and sell some. and obviously, you're not the sales guy.

i don't see the market. i'm sorry. i'm out. i'm not sure about this product at all. i think it has potential, and i like that you have a patent. i also think it's a good tv product, but i think it needs a lot of revamping. so what if i were to give you $150,000 and just buy you out? whoa. you make $150,000. the risk is mine. because i'm really not sure. i don't like that for ten years it sat. but i'm willing to take the gamble. you can continue to do other things. you don't have a 10-year dinosaur. and it becomes my problem or my success. i'll tell you what-- i'll give you $250,000 for the whole company... and a 3% royalty, but it's yes or no right now. whoa. aggressive.

look at these sharks circling. yes or no? mark, i accept your offer. done. (kevin) whoa! i like the way you think. wow. congratulations. you're a rich man. thank you very much. how does it feel to have 250 grand? that's amazing. yes, it is. that's how we do business, right? uhh. done. lori, can i wrap any presents for you? yes! (laughs) mark, i think that was the fastest deal we've ever done. (laughs) next?

lemonis: tonight on "the profit"... tad: are you guys hungry? woman: yes. lemonis: ...a veteran caterer has been feeding chicagoland for almost 20 years. tad: i got hamburgers. i got turkey burgers, hot dogs, and brats. lemonis: but all of a sudden, he's starving for business. tad: it's been rough, these last four months. lemonis: you're down almost 30%. tad: yeah. lemonis: a steep drop in sales has sent his anxiety through the roof, causing him to lash out. tad: mike, you got to work faster, man. jennifer: there's so much criticism and no praise. lemonis: and as their paychecks get smaller and their patience grows thinner, his employees are on the verge of a revolt. vincent: there could be a little bit of a mutiny going on within honest foods. lemonis: if i can't help breathe new life into the company... roni: can i use your oven? tad: use the bottom one, all right?