They built a toilet night light in college — now it’s a ‘Shark Tank’ product with over $1 million in sales
What initially seemed bizarre turned out to meet a surprisingly common need. Brothers-in-law Matt Alexander and Michael Kannely surprised the 'Shark Tank' panel when they pitched their product, Illumibowl. The multi-colored toilet night light appeared in Season 7 of the reality business show. According to Shark Tank Blog, Alexander invented the light while he was a student at BYU. Alexander launched a Kickstarter campaign that raised $95,399, far surpassing his $20,000 goal. Soon, he brought in Katelyn, whom he referred to as “number two.” By the time of filming, the duo had sold over $1 million in product and more than 50,000 units.
The product in question was an LED light that lasted 100,000 hours. It clips onto the side of the toilet and emits a soft light into the bowl. Alexander’s invention helps in eliminating “bathroom blindness” that is caused by switching on the bright light while taking a trip to the washroom at night. The duo sought $100,000 for 25% equity and explained that their product was motion-sensitive.
The light features an eight-color spectrum and can be set to a single color or cycle through all of them. The entrepreneurs also revealed future plans to add a germicidal bulb that would clean the toilet while the light is on. Their product was already available on Amazon when the episode was shot, but the entrepreneurs aimed to get it into physical retail stores.
When Robert Herjavec asked why someone wouldn’t just use a night light instead, Alexander stated that his product was dimmer, more targeted, and didn’t need to stay on all night, according to Shark Tank Recap. Kevin O’Leary jumped in to ask if there were any chances of electrocution, to which Alexander replied with a No. Alexander also emphasized that, beyond its function, the light adds a fun and stylish touch to any bathroom.
Daymond John told the entrepreneurs they want money for inventory, but they don’t need the Sharks if they take “affordable next steps” and dropped out of the deal. O’Leary, while mentioning, “I like it; it’s kind of nuts,” offered the entrepreneurs $100K for 25% equity. Meanwhile, Mark Cuban called it a product and not a company as he stepped out of the deal, following which Lori Greiner compared it to Squatty Potty and decided to partner with O’Leary. The deal closed, and the product was later pitched to local retailers.