Freaker USA Before Shark Tank
After receiving public funding from Kickstarted, Zach was able to patent his product. Now Freaker USA is able to create knitted covers for anything from a regular 12 ounce to a larger 2 liter bottle. Zach prides himself on making all of his products here in the USA, but he wants to be able to expand his business. The overall goal he has is to “Freak the world” and that is primarily why he went to the Shark Tank to look for an investor with a global outreach and plenty of business experience. But will one of the Sharks actually bite into his creatively different idea?
Freaker USA On Shark Tank
Crain enters the Shark Tank seeking a $200k investment in exchange for a 10% stake in Freaker USA. The Sharks are clearly taken aback by his unique presence and lax way of presenting his pitch. Crain nonchalantly walks over to his display table and takes a model Freaker. He then stretches it over a regular beer glass, then puts a different one on an average water bottle. The point is that each Freaker is made from a special fabric that has a lot of elasticity. This gives it the capability to cover just about any sort of beverage bottle.
Once the video is over, Crain hands out a few samples for the Sharks to feel and examine for themselves. The first to speak up is Kevin O’Leary. By asking for a $200k investment for a 10% stake, he is estimating the business at $2 million. O’Leary wants to know what kind of sales he has seen in the last year to see if this is a fair evaluation of the brand. Freaker USA has only been up and running for 13 months and so far has made $320k in sales. His product is available in nearly 200 stores and he has both a Japanese and Canadian distributor.
These numbers have definitely impressed the Sharks, but Daymond John doesn’t understand why it’s doing so well. He has seen other products that are similar to this one, but Crain insists that’s impossible because he has a patent on this ‘one size fits all’ bottle cover. It also only costs him $1.00 to make a Freaker, then they sell at about $8.00-$10.00 in retail locations.
Despite all of this though, O’Leary doesn’t agree with Crain’s valuation of the business. He does enjoy the concept and the eccentric branding though, so he decides to make an offer. He is willing to make the $200k investment, but only if he gets 50% of the company. That gets a quick no from Crain, which then causes O’Leary to decide not to make an investment at all.
That leaves two sharks left in the tank. However, Crain isn’t saying much to persuade either of them to give him an investment. John says that this simply isn’t a product that he feels passionate about. It isn’t something that he could really get behind, which would make him a bad person to become partners with. John Cuban on the other hand can admit that the Freaker USA margins are pretty great. They would also have the chance to do some great marketing with the Mavericks. The only issue he sees is that he wouldn’t be able to get along personally with Crain. That is why he doesn’t make him an offer.
So with all Sharks now out of the tank, Crain must unfortunately walk away from the Shark Tank with no new investors into his business.
Freaker USAÂ Now in 2018- The After Shark Tank Update
Despite not being able to make a deal with the Sharks, That didn’t dishearten Zach. He had unshakable faith
in Freaker USA, so he refused to let the brand fizzle out. And it was a good thing he didn’t because Freaker USA products can now be found in unique style boutiques. In addition to that, Zach also started to work on a college line for Freaker USA products.
Perhaps one of the best side effects from making his appearance on Shark Tank was that the owner of Liberty Bottleworks promptly contacted Zach after seeing that he used one of their bottles during his pitch on the show. Liberty Bottleworks is a company that is known for their 100% recycled aluminum cans and they thought it would be a great idea to work together with Freaker USA. Tim Andis, the owner of
This deal happened in March of 2013, but eventually the contract came to an end because of a scandal coming from Liberty’s end. According to some Freaker fans, Liberty began to sell their own knockoff version of the Freaker bottle covers. Of course Zach couldn’t condone this behavior and was forced to terminate the contract.
Since then, Freaker USA has introduced a new product to their line. They are now selling knitted socks with original artwork. Freaker Feet has become quite a hit among fans of the brand and has only launched the business further towards success. You can find more information and view products here at their website, http://www.freakerusa.com