The Opportunity That Smelled (Episode 2.1 )
by Shark Tank TV Show on Wednesday, March 30th, 2011 | No Comments
Second Guest: Matty Sallin, Wake N’ Bacon (San Francisco)
Matty has an alarm clock that warms up pre-cooked bacon on schedule, since he figured out that many people like to wake up to the smell of bacon. He came up with the idea as part of a graduate school
project, and his focus group were fellow students.
project, and his focus group were fellow students.He asked for $40,000 for a 20% stake, for a pre-money valuation of $160,000.
He reports that he has been inundated with orders, saying it “went viral”, and that he has been inundated with “hundreds and hundreds of people who are begging for one”. He is raising capital to produce the prototype, (which is strange), and from there he will pitch to retail partners, manufacturing partners, and investors.
He was pretty proud of his conceptual drawings, especially the cork screw pig-tail-like cord. He said, rather boldly, that “I have thought of everything!”. Well, not exactly.
He had no production estimates. Kevin thought this was inexcusable. He said he had “…a pig box that was going to catch on fire and he would be sued into the stone-age!” He was out.
Barbara thought people really wanted to smell bacon in the kitchen, not next to the bed, and she was out. Robert was out with explanation, as was Daymond, although he “really liked bacon”.Mark asked about the minimum production run, which would be 10,000 units, costing about $130,000. So he really needed $170,000. Mark liked the concept, but was out.
Kevin finally offered $200 for the “pig box”, which he would place in a museum of bad ideas, thereby providing a service to the world. (We thought this was hilarious!)
Our Analysis:
- Presentation: Matty was charming and humorous, but we could see that he was a bit nervous, especially when Kevin asked about the product catching on fire and burning up a sleeping couple! He was also a bit sheepish when Mark suggested that he should have asked for $170,000 (with which we disagree), but regained his composure and changed the offer.
- Business Strengths: This could indeed be a novelty product.
- Business Weaknesses:. There is a lot of risk of having heating elements this close to sleeping people, and his idea is obviously not attractive to the Jewish and vegetarian markets! He thinks that because the Easy Bake Oven found a way to market, he can too. The bacon has to be pre-cooked, which makes it pretty darn inconvenient.
- The Deal: Matty asked for $40,000 for 20%. There were no counteroffers and there was no deal.
- Sharks: Kevin was his usual cynical self. There was no serious sharking going on for this idea.
Next Step Suggestions
- Find another dream!
Lessons:
- Your college buddies might not be the best focus group. Matty should have realized this was a novelty product from the start, and be better prepared with projections.
Follow-up:
- We looked up Wke N’ Bacon online, and the idea is still out there. We are surprised.
(If you are interested in raising capital for your business, visit us at www.AngelNetwork.com)
