'Shark Tank': Must Love's $8 million valuation raises concerns among Sharks
ABC's award-winning show 'Shark Tank' is back with an all-new episode featuring some interesting pitches. One of the pitches was by a vegan ice cream brand called Must Love. Best friends Hannah Hong and Mollie Cha struggled to find a delicious vegan alternative to ice cream which led them to launch their brand Must Love, a 100% plant-based ice cream brand. Even though the Sharks absolutely loved the delicious ice cream, sadly Hong and Cha failed to secure a deal from the Sharks.
The two best-friends who graduated from UC Berkeley and pursued their MBA from MIT managed to impress the Sharks not just with their delicious product but also their educational qualifications. Just as things seemed to be going in their favor, the Sharks began enquiring about the numbers of Must Love. Hong and Cha explained that they were estimating revenue of around $1 million this financial year, but also admitted that they were running in a loss to the tune of $400,000. The Sharks especially Kevin O'Leary got very curious about why the two ladies came into the tank seeking $600,000 for a 7.5% stake in their brand.
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Must Love's founders then explained that they were running in losses as the frozen food segment is pretty competitive and that they had to shell out money to get their products shelf-space in big supermarkets. So, they were looking for a Shark's help to get their foot in the big stores and also increase their production. The Sharks were curious to know about how they were funding their current operations. They explained that they each had invested $200,000 from their own pocket and that they were raising more funds through seed funding and that the brand was valued at $8 million.
The minute the Sharks heard that they were raising funds through seed funding and that investors would be involved as well, they were put off. The Sharks felt that the ladies didn't value the Sharks or what they would bring to the table so they all unanimously decided to sit out on the deal. Even though Peter Jones shared how his previous experience of working with a frozen food brand taught him about all the challenges involved in that segment so on that basis he decided not to make any offer, while Lori felt that it would be a conflict of interest for her if she invested in Must Love as she is already invested in Frozen Farmer which does similar work. So Hong and Cha had to leave the tank empty-handed.
'Shark Tank' Season 13 airs every Friday at 8/7c on ABC. Missed an episode? Been wanting to catch up? Episodes can also be viewed the next day on demand and on Hulu. Not just that, you can also watch old seasons and episodes on Amazon Prime Video and iTunes.