by Michelle Spigner

On tonight’s episode of Shark Tank, Dan Mackey jumps into the tank first with a healthy alternative to one of American’s favorite beverages. He is seeking $50,000 for 10% equity in his product Chill Soda a truly healthy soda that is all organic and has no high fructose corn syrup. Dan saw that schools that banned sodas on their campus replaced them with equally unhealthy alternatives and thought to create a soda that was actually healthy. Its not just healthy it actually tastes like regular soda.

 

Kevin O. asks him a tricky question: what doesn’t he have in his company that other successful beverage companies have? Distribution. But wait, Dan already a deal in process to put Chill Soda in 40 stores across the country. He has also made a profit of $175,000 since his business began. The sharks are still very interested.

 

But then Dan admits that he is working with a beverage management company because he doesn’t know much about the industry.  The sharks wish he had left that out and their belief in him plummets. At that, Daymond, Kevin H., Robert and Kevin O. are out.  Barbara is still interested, but Robert and Kevin O. beg her not to give him any money because he just doesn’t have the expertise. Barbara doesn’t listen and will give him the $50,000 but for 20%. Dan takes the deal.

 

Dr. R. Geoffrey Broderick is a veterinarian with 40 years of experience and pitches his line of pet probiotics, Cornucopia Natural Pet Products to the sharks. He is asking for $300,000 for 15% stake in the company. Dr. Broderick claims that his probiotics extend pets’ lives by 50%. The probiotic is made up of herbs from all over the world where people and their pets had outlived their expectancy by several years.

 

The sharks are blown away but Robert slows them down. He thinks that everything he is saying is a little extreme. Dr. Broderick claims that he has seen all of the disease in his practice disappear once his patients started eating the probiotic. But Robert still doesn’t believe what he is selling. He thinks that Dr. Broderick is either a scam artist or he ignorantly believes in his miracle product.

 

But Kevin O. thinks that it may be true and his product could work.
Robert believes that if it is so great, he should be in hospitals getting funding and not selling pet food. The sharks go out one by one because the claims that he has made can’t be proved and thus can’t be marketed to sell the product.

 

Up next are Jim Dimascio and Ray Latypov who are asking for a whopping $1.5 million dollars for just 10% equity in their company Virtusphere. The product is a huge plastic bubble, a virtual reality locomotive center that will change how people train with virtual reality simulators and how people experience video games. So you climb inside this giant bubble that is located on a platform that allows the bubble to move 360 degrees. The player wears a virtual reality headset and is able to walk around in the game in the full 360 degrees.

 

Kevin O. tries it and loves it. The product’s main purpose is to train U.S. Army ground soldiers. It is available to be sold for home use but at $50,000 dollars a pop it is very unrealistic. Instead, Jim and Ray imagine it would be a great product to sell to arcades.

 

Robert absolutely loves the Virtusphere, but thinks that it is so far from a consumer product that the only available market is the military. The problem is Jim and Ray haven’t made any profit off of it and it would be a long time for the sharks to get their 1.5 million back. For those reasons, Daymond, Kevin H., Kevin O. and Barbara are out. Robert hates to let the idea go, but thinks that it is too early to tell how it is going to take off and he is out.

 

Last up is Gayla Bentley, a clothing designer who creates high-end clothes for who she calls the “modern woman” the woman that is a size 12 and above. She believes this market is completely untapped and she is the one to break into it. She is asking for $250,000 for 20% equity in her company Gayla Bentley Fashion and Design Group.

 

At this point she is just online at Neiman Marcus and her sales for the last year come in just under $100,000. Gayla thinks she is a pioneer and would like to open a retail store with the investment.

 

Robert, Kevin H. and Kevin O. don’t believe that she has the right strategy in place to really make money and think the odds are against them. Barbara is still very interested and challenges Gayla to pull one of the sharks back in. Barbara will put in half of the money if Gayla can get clothing king, Daymond, in on the deal as well.

 

Daymond really believes in Gayla’s company and what she is pitching. He would like to go partners with her, but to put up  $250,000 he would need to have 50%. Daymond offers Barbara the opportunity to come in on the deal as a woman with knowledge of women’s fashions. Barbara agrees. Gayla is hesitant to accept the offer and wants to have more control. Daymond reminds her that his is being lenient and would normally demand 51% in this type of deal. Gayla takes the deal.

 

Gayla Bentley:

 

 

 

 

Dan Mackey:

 

 

 

 

Shark Tank airs Tuesdays at 8pm ET on ABC.

 

(Image courtesy of ABC)

 

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