Peanut Butter Pump 2024 Update – What Happened After Shark Tank

The Peanut Butter Pump Before Shark Tank

The Peanut Butter Pump was founded in 2019 by Andy Scherer. He invented the ingenious product and started an IndieGoGo campaign. The campaign went well, and Andy decided to go on Shark Tank to raise more funds. The Sharks weren’t hooked, and one by one, they were out. Andy was determined to produce and start selling the Peanut Butter Pump; however, the company faced manufacturing problems. Even now in 2024, three years after the Shark Tank episode aired, Andy struggled to deliver the Peanut Butter Pump to his backers.

Peanut Butter is a staple in every American kitchen. However, getting the butter out of the jar could prove to be a messy task. Andy Scherer came up with a simple solution: The Peanut Butter Pump. The Peanut Butter Pump is a simple tool that allows the user to easily dispense and spread peanut butter without creating any mess. The product fits most peanut butter jars such as Jif, Kroger, and Skippy. The pump is also designed to ensure the sides of the jar are peanut-butter-free using a special built-in mechanism. Overall, The Peanut Butter Pump is a handy tool for any peanut butter enthusiast.

Andy Scherer invented the Peanut Butter Pump in February 2017, a few months after he had lost his job at a financial office. Andy got to work and created the first prototype of the product. In 2019, Andy started an IndieGoGo campaign to fund the Peanut Butter Pump. The original campaign goal was $20,000; Andy broke that goal with a whopping $164,689! The campaign had 4,377 backers and received overwhelming support from enthusiastic customers.

However, despite raising roughly eight times his original goal, Andy was unable to produce and ship the product on time. The IndieGoGo campaign’s original estimated shipping date was September 2019, but Andy experienced difficulties with the manufacturer, so shipping was delayed. Fortunately, IndieGoGo backers were supportive and waited patiently for the product. Meanwhile, Andy had filled out a patent for the Peanut Butter Pump to prevent future knock-offs from making their way into the market.

Andy decided to go on Shark Tank to obtain more funding for the product to get the Peanut Butter Pump to the market as soon as possible.

The Peanut Butter Pump on Shark Tank

Andy Scherer was on season 11 of Shark Tank seeking $200,000 for a 15% stake in his company, the Peanut Butter Pump. Andy demonstrated his product to the Sharks. They were amused by the concept and found the pitch entertaining. Kevin O’Leary even boasted about his interest in peanut butter and his knowledge of the peanut butter community. He was concerned that the product wasn’t refrigerator-friendly. Andy stated that peanut butter shouldn’t be placed in refrigerators, but Kevin disagreed.

Andy told the Sharks his product was still a prototype and the only sales he had were pre-orders from his campaign backers. He cited the amount he raised during the campaign. He claimed that the average backer paid $27, which was above average for crowd-funded campaigns. The Sharks didn’t like that the Peanut Butter Pump was still a prototype, but they liked the interest consumers showed for his product.

Andy stated that the IndieGoGo campaign’s estimated shipping date had already passed and that he was struggling with manufacturing the product. He confessed that he had spent some of the money from the campaign on developing the product; that only made the Sharks more concerned. “I’ll go ahead and do this even if I have to sell my house,” Andy claimed, demonstrating his dedication to the product.

Daymond John didn’t see the point of the Peanut Butter Pump, so he was out.

Andy defended his product by claiming it was intended for “high-volume users” like families with children, peanut butter lovers, and even restaurants and bars; the product had a large target demographic.

Lori Greiner, like Daymond, didn’t believe people needed the Peanut Butter Pump to get peanut butter out of a jar, so she was out.

Robert Herjavec agreed with Lori and Daymond; he didn’t believe people needed the product, so he was out.

Kevin O’Leary liked the idea, but he didn’t think the valuation was worth it; he didn’t think the business was even worth $200,000, so he was out.

Mark Cuban appreciated the hustle, but he didn’t believe the business was investable for him, so he was out.

With all the Sharks out of the tank, Andy had to leave the Shark Tank empty-handed. He was disappointed that he didn’t get an offer but believed that he could still make the business work without the help of a Shark.

The Peanut Butter Pump Now in 2024 – The After Shark Tank Update

Unfortunately, even now in 2024, three years after the Shark Tank episode aired, the Peanut Butter Pump is still a prototype, and backers have yet to receive their product. The IndieGoGo campaign has gained more backers as Shark Tank viewers contributed to the project. The expected shipping date, September 2019, kept getting postponed and pushed back as new issues would arise during the product’s development. Andy even commented, stating that the Peanut Butter Pump manufacturing process is going “Two steps forward, one step back.”

The Peanut Butter Pump received coverage in various blogs and social media outlets as people couldn’t wait to get their hands on the product. In January 2020, Andy changed his original manufacturing company; the new company provided promising turn-around dates. Backers were anxious to get their hands on the Peanut Butter Pump but knew it would take a while until production started.

The Covid-19 outbreak did not help the Peanut Butter Pump’s ordeal at all. The company’s manufacturer was in China, so Covid-19 almost completely halted the product’s development; lockdown and restrictions in the country prevented most businesses from operating. Andy updated his backers on his IndieGoGo campaign; most showed their support and understanding.

In June 2020, the factory received the Peanut Butter Pump’s molds, and prototype manufacturing began. Andy was optimistic; however, new delays and problems kept coming up. In August, there was a problem producing the lid, which led to more delays. Andy remained optimistic and eventually solved the problem. The new expected shipping date was December 2020.

December passed, and Andy updated his IndieGoGo backers; there was a new manufacturing problem, and the pistons didn’t work as intended. The problem persisted, with samples going back and forth between Andy and the manufacturing company. The factory eventually solved the problem in November 2021.

A new issue sprang up in 2024 as more parts appeared to malfunction. The manufacturer in China was short-staffed due to the recent Covid-19 outbreaks. With parts malfunctioning and frequent shipping delays, the expected shipping date for the Peanut Butter Pump was pushed back to February 2023. The latest update Andy posted on his IndieGoGo campaign in December of 2024 claimed that he received all the parts, and they appeared to be working correctly, but he’ll still need to do more testing before ordering production to start. Could things be finally looking up for the Peanut Butter Pump?

Despite not landing a deal on Shark Tank and facing major issues and delays during product development, the Peanut Butter Pump appears to be on track to begin production in 2023. Throughout the whole ordeal, Andy had shown complete transparency to his backers, keeping them updated every month on the development of the product. 2024 has proved difficult, but the Peanut Butter Pump overcame it, and a new estimated shipping date was announced. Backers continue to show support for the product even after all the delays and setbacks the Peanut Butter Pump faced. For more updates and Information on the Peanut Butter Pump, visit the company’s website here.