See Rescue Streamer Before Shark Tank
Before appearing on the Shark Tank with his invention the See Rescue Streamer, Dr. Rob got his Ph.D. in geochemistry. He decided to dedicate his life to some of the more dangerous things possible, such as big wave surfing, rough water fishing, and even retrieving submarine lava samples from the Galapagos Islands. He saw a need for a new type of rescue device and saw it through to getting made. Unfortunately, around the same time, his wife got sick with multiple sclerosis. In order to devote his time to this family emergency, he licensed his product out. The licensing group got it into retail stores and military applications. Once the licensing deal ended, and Dr. Rob got this product back, he decided to go to the Shark Tank to see if he could get some help in marketing it himself.
See Rescue Streamer on Shark Tank
Dr. Ron Yonover marched out onto the stage. He introduced himself and announced that he was from Honolulu Hawaii. He requested $200,000 from the Sharks in exchange for 20% equity stake in his company, See Rescue. Dr. Rob started out with a bold claim – he was always at the edge of dying. He was a Ph.D. scientist who worked with volcanoes, and he liked extreme sports such as surfing on big waves and fishing in rough waters. Next, he showed the Sharks a picture of a person out in the middle of the sea. You could barely see them among the waves. The doctor emphasized that that kind of emergency was more common than you might think. Three people are lost at sea per day, and seven hikers were lost per day. That’s why he got the idea for the See Rescue Streamer.
Dr. Rob said that the See Rescue was a streamer which is a device that would make you a visible target if you were in need of rescue. He claimed it would work both on land and water. Dr. Rob requested that Kevin help demo the product, and Kevin willingly obliged. Daymond asked if Kevin could get lost. Robert giggled. Dr. Rob handed Kevin a part of the streamer and instructed him to walk down the hallway. The other Sharks encouraged him to walk even further. The entrepreneur had him stop as he further explained the product. He said that the white streamers on the long red piece of fabric were filled with air and prevented the See Rescue Streamer from twisting or curling up.
Dr. Rob said that the device curved up like a helix. It had reflected bits and lights on it that could be seen at any time of the day or night. He also said that it was made in the United States of America. The Sharks want to know how heavy the product was. Dr. Rob let them know that it was 13 lbs. 8 oz. Daymond pointed out that it was very difficult to see the person on the screen that depicted the ocean. Dr. Rob said that that was the point. He announced that the longer that the person was out there and not detected, the more likely it was that they would die.
Next, Rob showed them the after picture with the See Rescue streamer in place. It was clearly visible from the relative height of the helicopter. Lori asked if the one shown in the picture was fully extended, and Rob let her know that it was. Dr. Rob put up more examples of his rescue streamer. There’s a picture of it on a mountain and in the middle of the forest. He said that it was the only thing that wouldn’t dissipate or tear over time. Everything else, like a sea dye or a flare, would last only seconds or minutes. The See Rescue had already saved four lives, he needs their help to save even more.
The Sharks were all very receptive to this idea. Dr. Rob said that one of the guys that his product saved thanked him, and that was better than any money that he made from it so far. Robert pointed out that there are two different sizes. Dr. Rob responded that he had military and fighter pilot versions. Lori asked him if he is selling them to the military at the moment, and Rob said that he was. It was military tested and approved. He claimed that it was tried all over the world, and they had done $15 million in sales so far. The Sharks all seems incredibly surprised.
Mark questioned him as to why he was asking for so little if the product had already made $15 million. Dr. Rob explained that he is licensed the product, and the money he made was over a 15 year period. During that time, his wife got sick with multiple sclerosis. He ended up leading the licensing business while assisting his wife. Once that licensing deal ended, he took back the rights to the product. Robert asked him over what period of time the $15 million had been earned. Dr. Rob told him that the $15 million had been earned over a period of 15 years. That was still impressive as that was an earning of $1 million per year.
Robert asked him to see the product. Dr. Rob said that he would hand out samples to all of the Sharks. He explained that the products were made out of water-soluble plastic. Lori asked him if the product that he is bringing on the shark tank was new, or if it was the one that he’d been selling all along. Dr. Rob said that he sold both the original item, as well as the new ones that he had made for specific dangerous tasks, such as surfing or hiking. Lori said that that made sense to her because people do get lost.
Kevin O’Leary stated that Dr. Rob should want to dominate commercial retail sales. Dr. Rob countered by saying that he wanted to do everything, including the military. It was the first time he had been able to control his product. Kevin understood – Dr. Rob wanted a fresh start in the Shark Tank. He wanted to know if he saw the products being used in the military as well as being purchased by regular consumers that were into extreme sports. Dr. Rob agreed, stating that he wanted it to be like a rebirth for his brand.
Robert explained that he had been really into boating, and something going wrong was always on his mind. He said that he had a little GPS device that was on his body. Dr. Rob stopped him there, seeing the misconception that all you needed was GPS. He said that it was too easy for electronic to fail, and the See Rescue Streamer had nothing on it that could malfunction when you need it the most. Kevin asked him what sales looked like, and Dr. Rob told him that sales for this year have been $200,000. Kevin wondered if sales had dropped because most people rely on the GPS now. Dr. Rob insisted that the sales have backed off because he didn’t have the funding, or the licensing group to help them. Kevin made a face.
Robert wanted to know if he was currently selling the product in retail stores such as adventure stories or hiking stories. Dr. Rob said that he was, but the bigger opportunity was in people buying it for loved ones. He claims that macho guys never thought that they needed anything like that, while friends and family would buy it for them because they were worried. The Sharks asked him what he would do with the money, and Dr. Rob told them he was looking to include the big military contracts again. He also wanted to go for what he called the mandate. He said he wanted to see this product on every lifejacket. He stated that life jackets already have flotation, but they should be required to have visibility as well.
Daymond asked the entrepreneur how much the consumer would be required to pay for the product. Dr. Rob said that it was $78 for the little one and $118 for the bigger one. Daymond told him that he liked the idea of the product in the terms of how many lives he had saved, and how much money he had made. Unfortunately, he said that the real play was continuing with the government, and Daymond didn’t feel like he could help him out with this. He went out.
Lori told him that it was a really great idea, but it would require a complicated process to start from scratch and get into the mass retail market. It would involve a heavy capital need, as well as a lot of effort. She just did not see it as a mass consumer product. She decided to go out. It was surprising to me that the Sharks were acting like this considering that the product had generated so much money initially.
Robert also told him that it was a great product. Dr. Rob had him convinced with the military application, and he saw the benefits of the consumer application. The only problem was that Robert detected too many challenges in getting it into the consumer market. He decided to go out, stating that it wasn’t for him. Dr. Rob thanked him, looking dejected now that three Sharks had gone out already. Mark Cuban spoke, asking Dr. Rob to let him explain something. Mark said that he also thought the product was great, but an investor had to think about other things. They had to look at whether or not they would get their money back, and if the product was sellable.
Dr. Rob said that if he was able to get the mandate, that would make the See Rescue extremely profitable. Mark even told him that that was a very binary thing. They would either get it or they wouldn’t. If they did, and might take them to another 10 or 15 million in sales. Mark said that Dr. Rob already had that ability to sell it himself. Mark Cuban wouldn’t be able to come in and convince the military of anything. Dr. Rob said that if he had the money, he could build a team that would help. Mark told him that he wasn’t asking for enough money to get that done. He liked the business idea but didn’t see it as investable. Mark went out.
Kevin was the last Shark remaining. He told Dr. Rob that he looked at the investments in terms of the value that he would be able to bring to the business. He thought that Dr. Rob had hit the nail on the head when he called it a rebirth. He would be trying to develop the business side of the product from scratch. It would need infrastructure, marketing, digital, and media. Kevin said that he usually participated in the upswing, but that wasn’t the case here. It required too much work. Kevin went out, stating that it wasn’t for him. He was the last Shark remaining, so Dr. Rob walked dejectedly offstage without a deal.
See Rescue Streamer in 2018 – After Shark Tank Update
Since appearing on the Shark Tank, the See Rescue Streamer is now being sold on Amazon. It has great reviews and a 4.5-star rating. The product has also been featured on the Discovery Channel, as well as Psychology Today and the Honolulu magazine. Dr. Rob has been giving talks at universities and even the International Military Aviation Briefing in relation to his product. According to the business’ Facebook page, in October 2017, Dr. Rob released a book called Caregivers Survival Guide: Caring for Yourself While Caring for a Loved One. It was based on his own personal experiences of trying to run a business while also taking care of his sick wife. Even though he didn’t get a deal, Dr. Rob has shown his resilience and is attempting to make See Rescue a household name.