Glen and Tracey Burress from Rockford, Illinois came into the Shark Tank with a solution to your laundry nightmares. The Cocktails. The Chicago native, Glen was a doctor, and Tracey worked as a pharmaceutical representative after getting her Bachelor of Arts degree. They came through the swinging doors of the tank with the spunk and drive to pitch their idea to the Sharks. The investment they initially asked for was $50K for 20% equity in their company. They were doing $20K in revenue, with 60% being retail sales and 40% online orders.
What Are SockTABs?
SockTABs are small plastic discs with flaps on the other side that attach to your sock pairs to keep them together at laundry time. They come in different colors and decorations. The flaps would remind you of a plastic version of the clasps on manila envelopes. They are a dual purpose accessory for your socks because it can be worn like a cufflink to decorate your socks and keep the “solemates” together in the wash without damaging socks at all. The soft plastic wing tucks nicely without fraying the material.
To keep your laundered socks together, you push the socktab through one side of the sock, and you connect the other sock by pushing the tab through the other side. The tab lays flat against the fabric and holds them together. You can keep the tab on while you wear your socks as well. “You can keep tabs on your solemate” is one of the benefits of these products. They do not rub up against your skin, and you can hardly tell they are attached while you wear them. Tab in or tab out, this is what makes them a great accessory for your socks.
Swimming with the Sharks
They start off with a touching story of Sal and Sally Tubesock being in so much love until laundry day. Sal is the only one that made it out of the wash. Socktabs was the answer to all the lost socks. The “sock monster” could no longer keep a sock hostage with this brand new idea from the Burress’s called SockTABs. It was a very cute presentation, and all of the Sharks got a nice laugh from the sock puppet story. Tracey and Glen’s performance with their decorated socks brought a nice fun feel to the presentation, and one thing that you could not take away is Tracey’s drive to get her voice heard. This product saves money and saves time because you aren’t always looking for that matching sock or having to buy your favorite socks over and over again because they lost their mate by the sock monster known as our washers and dryers.
Tracey’s personality reached out to each of the Sharks, but for some of them, it seemed to be too feisty. Robert and Lori were the first few to bow out of the deal. Daymond follows suit soon after, concerned that this product could counteract the sale of socks. Even with $20K revenue in the first six months of their business, they fail to convince Mark Cuban or Mr. Wonderful into locking in an investment for their socktabs. All the Sharks were out. The couple thought they had struck out. Then something wonderful happened.
Daymond John stood up while fastening a button of his suit jacket, and he said, “Tracey…” as Glen and Tracey turn around together after heading out of the tank. At that moment in time, their hearts were sure to flutter with adrenaline. Daymond offers their $50K investment for 30% equity in SockTABs, and the Burress’s accepted the offer. With John’s affiliation already with Bombas Athletic Socks, these socktabs would marry well with that company. A few hugs seal the deal with a handshake at the end. They walk out of The Tank with their dream investor to start making their dreams come true.
After Surviving The Tank
Since their Season 6 episode, Tracey and Glen Burress have been working with Daymond to get more exposure to their business and maximize their profit margin. Their business is booming since they were on the Shark Tank. They have appeared on shows like The Home Shopping Network and The View. The exposure that the Shark Tank gave them boosted up their business, and they are still in the driving seat selling these funky little sock-sessories.
SockTABS Now in 2018 – After Shark Tank Updates
Tracey Burress is such an amazing role model for the business woman. After being on Shark Tank, she was nominated and won the InnovateHER challenge in 2015. The challenge was organized by Women’s Business Development Center to motivate women in the workforce to be innovative. This program is backed by the Small Business Association and is currently looking for more women like Tracey to win the 2016 challenge. The criteria for entering the challenge is being age 18 or older, be a U.S. citizen, and meet the requirement of the challenge rules. The prize for first place is $40K. Second place is $20K, and third place is $10K. This is a terrific opportunity for women to strive in the economy and be recognized for it.
After surviving an aneurysm and making SockTABs a successful business, it is no wonder that Mrs. Burress won this challenge.
The Burress’s went from being dead in the water to swimming to new depths in the retail world. Keeping up-to-date with these efficient, little life-savers has been a great experience. Don’t forget to head over to check out the love story between Sal and Sally Tubesock on SockTABs website.
Talk about playing the sympathy card, wow. A fashion accessory? This is something I would never buy. I don’t understand why these folks have sucha hard time holding onto a pair of socks. It’s really not that big of a responsibility lol.
This is Janica. Sorry for your experience.