S12.E22: Jiggy Puzzles; The Scrubbie; The Bumbling Bee; XTorch

[JTMacc99]

Quote

 

Sharks: Mark, Daniel, Kevin, Lori, Robert

Puzzles by locally submitted artists; A circle sponge that effectively removes stains; A vegan junk food restaurant franchise; A rechargeable solar powered flashlight

 

 

[CrazyInAlabama]

1. Jiggy-Jigsaw puzzles, done by women artists, and the artist gets a part of the sales.    I think Mark made the deal.    (I wasn't that interested in this, so I know the seller was having a long conversation with Mark).   Mark made a loan for $500k, not an investment.   Another product that's not needed.   

2. Scrubbie-a sponge attachment that fits on your kitchen sprayer, or pulldown faucet. or on outdoor hoses.     Kevin is about to explode, the sellers have to have their sales numbers dragged out of them.   The Scrubbie refills are by subscription.    They aren't in retail.   They've only sold $13,000 lifetime sales.    Robert points out that the logo is really similar to Scrub Daddy's logo, same font, similar color designs.  Awful sales, over 10 years.   The sellers also said that you put the Scrubbie on the garden hose to wash your car.   At the size of the sponge attachment it would take me hours to do my small car.    No deal.   

3. Bumbling Bee-Vegan junk food and burger bar. They claim the food is tasty.   They have 'burgers', 'milkshakes', 'hotdogs', and all are vegan.   The sharks love the food.   One restaurant is in Boulder, CO, and Virginia Beach, VA.   Founder started with a hot dog cart, then food trucks,  They want to franchise.   The sharks think it's not big enough to scale yet.   (Why doesn't Mark get a couple of franchises for the Mavericks arena?).  No deal.  

4.  X Torch-solar powered flashlight-Solar powered rechargeable, flashlight, lantern, a table light, and cell phone charger, and will work for 48 hours.  22 hours to charge from zero in full sunlight, or charge in an hour from electricity.  It cost 56 on the website, and 18 (soon to be 14) to make.  Robert wants to buy the entire company, but goes out when the sellers want $750K.   No deal.  (Sold out on Amazon, wonder if that was before or after the ST appearance?).

Edited April 25, 2021 by CrazyInAlabama

[Msample]

3 out of four get no deal. Ouch. That last couple, clueless. Didn’t know what proprietary means?

[DrSpaceman73]

I like the puzzle idea but I just didn't like any of the puzzles.   Great, done by women artists.  But part of your pitch is how out of date and boring current puzzles are and then you show a bunch of puzzles that seem to be in that exact same vein.  She's made money though.  I don't see why she needs an investor really.   She's doing great without them

 

Come on......it's a flashlight.  And you have no sales. 

Scrubby thing.....kind of neat but again no sales.  I don't care what happened at some sales convention.  

Bumbling bee.....things like that it's just so hard to judge without tasting the food.  Plus it bugged me she named it bumbling bee but it's vegan. Isn't honey from bees not vegan?

[KaveDweller]

The scrubby people seemed to think Lori's problem was that their product was similar to Scrub Daddy. I think it was that she thought they copied the Scrub Daddy logo. If they really watch Shark Tank regularly they would know about that product and would have seen the logo. If they couldn't see the similarities they are idiots. The similarity is probably why so many people said they should be on Shark Tank. 

I didn't actually think it was a bad idea, but I don't have one of those moveable faucets.

I love puzzles and was kind of annoyed at the woman who said her puzzles were different because most puzzles on the market are lame. There zillions of puzzles out there and some already use pictures made by artists. But she seemed to have a really good business, so good for her. I didn't totally understand the whole Mark gives her money instead of the business, but glad she got a deal.

The Bumblebee people seemed to have a good business, but restaurants are pretty hard to get investors on. Normally Barbara is the one who would go for something like that.

Flashlight people were idiots. Have they seen Shark Tank before? The Sharks always ask what part of a business is proprietary they should have been prepared for that.

Edited April 24, 2021 by KaveDweller

[DrSpaceman73]

I don't really think the scrub daddy and scrubbie logos are that similar.  

Plus those re going nowhere so I don't think scrub daddy has anything to worry about. 

[BusyOctober]

 Four big yawns for me.  The only thing about the whole show I liked was that the puzzle came in a reusable container vs. those flimsy cardboard boxes that always split on the corners. Not enough to make me buy her puzzles because of it.  I do think she hit the market at just the right time, so not sure what will happen post-COVID. 

Scrub attachment thingy was doomed from the jump.  Personally, this gadget was a solution in search of a problem.  There are already outdoor hose attachments to wash cars, windows, dogs, etc. And I am unclear on why I’d need that thing on the kitchen sink sprayer.  I use sponges (Scrub Mommy, actually) to wash/scrub stuff. And I would guess 99% of people who wash dishes or pots & pans also have either sponges or dish cloths.  Is anyone really trying ‘wash’ with the sprayer?  Isn’t the sprayer more to get the dishes wet & for rinsing? They “worked on” that thing for TEN YEARS???  I kinda hope Lori and the Scrub Daddy millionaire sue these 3 stooges into oblivion.  Copying an established logo/font that has been trademarked is Business No-No’s 101.

No to the flashlight. Yes, Katie & hubby who’s name I forgot, what you invented IS a flashlight with some add-ons....that are already available on the market.

Vegan junk food (huh?)woman seemed very driven and I’m happy she and her girls have been successful.  But none of that food looked appealing to me.  I am no expert in vegan food, but I know more than I should about junk food/comfort food.

 

 

[DrSpaceman73]

They actually already had not only scrub daddy on here before but also brush hero, which was a much better version it seems of the scrubbie for a hose.  So it's kind of like a mix of two prior products, but a worse version of both.  

[LittleIggy]

If I were a Shark: I do jigsaw puzzles to unwind, but, since I have four cats, I do my puzzles on my iPad. For that reason, I’m out. 😏

[Vermicious Knid]

Wonder if internet in Texas slowed down from everybody trying to order an Xtorch.

[rhys]

Lori looked a bit pissed at the scrubbie trio. Rightly so imo. I just use a dollar store brush to knock food off plates, etc before loading into the dishwasher. Cost a buck.

I'm with the person above --not one of their better, more entertaining episodes.

[TM101]

This was four of the most underwhelming products on an episode we have seen in awhile. 

[SG429]

5 hours ago, TM101 said:

This was four of the most underwhelming products on an episode we have seen in awhile. 

This has  been a very challenging season to cast. Applicants were probably faced with scrambling to keep their nascent businesses afloat along with a quarantine-length absence from that business to make an appearance, with, at the time of taping, a very uncertain economic outlook. As the season comes to a close all that's left are derivative product ideas with lifetime sales in the 100's of dollars.

Edited April 24, 2021 by SG429
subject-verb agreement

[bilgistic]

I was going to defend the XTorch couple, but alas, there are several products on Amazon that do the exact same things that theirs does.

I didn't hate the sponge attachment (though their logo was questionable at best), but I've lived in exactly one place in my entire 46 years that had a pull-out sprayer, and that was my childhood home. It's my experience that those just aren't standard in apartments, nor are places within most affordable complexes to wash one's own car, so there's a large segment of the overall U.S. population that just can't use the sponge.

[jabRI]

They make $30K a year in sales, and turn down 500K and never need to worry about it again? they shouldn't be in business.

[Diana Berry]

21 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

If I were a Shark: I do jigsaw puzzles to unwind, but, since I have four cats, I do my puzzles on my iPad. For that reason, I’m out. 😏

Yes, my cats are not fans of me doing puzzles.  I have plenty but had to give them up need to rest my hands and arms more ( do more of the online puzzles and coloring).  But the most I would spend was 9-15 dollars ( or a buck from the thrift store). No way would I spend 40 bucks for that artwork let alone hang it on a wall.  ( plus how many of the glass containers do you need... she should sell the puzzles for less for  the return buyers and keep the glass container ).

 

 

[eel21788]

On 4/23/2021 at 8:00 PM, DrSpaceman73 said:

 Bumbling bee.....things like that it's just so hard to judge without tasting the food.  Plus it bugged me she named it bumbling bee but it's vegan. Isn't honey from bees not vegan?

That is what I was thinking, too. If you're going after the vegan market, that is a really poor marketing strategy. 

Her marketing in general must not be very good. I live in Boulder, and I have never heard of her. Most of the restaurants I go to, I hear about through word of mouth. No one is mentioning her anywhere as far as I can tell. 

After an on-line search, I found out she actually has a very good location right across from the University, although not on the more popular University Hill. Despite driving down her street many, many times, I've never seen/noticed her establishment. After reading her menu, I don't feel as though I've missed out on anything. All the food really looks horrible, although I would never be seeking out vegan food.

If she can't make it in a vegan mecca like Boulder, I really don't think she has a chance anywhere else.

[eel21788]

4 hours ago, jabRI said:

They make $30K a year in sales, and turn down 500K and never need to worry about it again? they shouldn't be in business.

Nobody asked them (or it wasn't shown during the pitch) how much they had invested during their research and development. I was wondering if $500K would be taking a loss for them?

[UsernameFatigue]

On 4/23/2021 at 9:54 PM, LittleIggy said:

If I were a Shark: I do jigsaw puzzles to unwind, but, since I have four cats, I do my puzzles on my iPad. For that reason, I’m out. 😏

The puzzle lady's idea was not unusual, and I thought the puzzles were ugly. I just started doing puzzles a year or so ago, and often buy two brands here in Canada that are both by Canadian artists. One brand is called StandOut puzzles which come in a cannister and are gorgeous (and all but one of the artists are women) and the other is called Indigenous Art which are First Nations artists, also gorgeous puzzles. They are $20-$30 ea Cdn. 

Three cats here, which is why I also never did puzzles until I saw a StandOut puzzle of a Spirit Bear and just had to do it. I put the puzzle together on a puzzle mat which keeps the pieces in place. I use puzzle trays to sort the pieces, and also keeps the pieces stacked in the trays when I am not doing the puzzle. Finally I cover the puzzle and trays with a plastic sheet when I am not doing the puzzle to keep everything safe from the cats. They do at times come around to check things out but the mat and trays keep them from carrying off or batting pieces off the table. I also keep a couple of boxes on the table that they like to lie in when I at the table working on the puzzle. 

The Scrubbie logo font is virtually identical to the Scrub Daddy logo. I would not be surprised if Scrubbie is sued and made to change their logo. Assuming they are still in business by the time that may happen.

The flashlight was not unusual at all. We have solar lanterns that we use at our cottage as bedside lamps in the bedroom. They have two light strengths, plus a  flashing SOS light. We can recharge by solar or electricity, and they have a cell phone charger. Also a light that tells us how much power is left before we have to recharge. They are also waterproof. It seems like many of these businesses expect the sharks to jump at their product because they have a charitable aspect to their business. But if your business doesn't make money, the charity isn't going to benefit either. Nor will the shark. 

Edited April 25, 2021 by UsernameFatigue

[eel21788]

On 4/24/2021 at 10:17 AM, SG429 said:

This has  been a very challenging season to cast. . .  As the season comes to a close all that's left are derivative product ideas with lifetime sales in the 100's of dollars.

It was the last episode of the season. I wonder if we had already seen all the businesses that got deals, so this episode had be scraped together from what was left on the cutting room floor.

[bilgistic]

32 minutes ago, eel21788 said:

It was the last episode of the season. I wonder if we had already seen all the businesses that got deals, so this episode had be scraped together from what was left on the cutting room floor.

I think there's another episode in two weeks.

[eel21788]

Just now, bilgistic said:

I think there's another episode in two weeks.

Not according to IMDB.

[KaveDweller]

45 minutes ago, eel21788 said:

Not according to IMDB.

They showed a promo for an upcoming new episode. And the app I use that tells me when new TV episodes are airing says it will be new in two weeks. So does Wikipedia.

[jabRI]

On 4/25/2021 at 12:49 AM, eel21788 said:

On 4/24/2021 at 8:27 PM, jabRI said:

They make $30K a year in sales, and turn down 500K and never need to worry about it again? they shouldn't be in business.

Nobody asked them (or it wasn't shown during the pitch) how much they had invested during their research and development. I was wondering if $500K would be taking a loss for them?

but no matter what they spent in R&D, that's a sunk cost, should not factor into what they can sell the company for

[theatremouse]

Yeah but they don't seem to understand how business works in general. So who knows what they're factoring where and why.

[jabRI]

7 hours ago, theatremouse said:

Yeah but they don't seem to understand how business works in general. So who knows what they're factoring where and why.

Totally agree, they seem too emotionally invested to see the business side of it.  I can see why Robert didn't want to partner with them, they would have blocked his suggestions right and left.  It's admirable to profit share with charities, but you need to be profitable in the first place.  The more money you make the more you can share.

[LuvMyShows]

 

On 4/23/2021 at 10:35 PM, BusyOctober said:

No to the flashlight. Yes, Katie & hubby who’s name I forgot, what you invented IS a flashlight with some add-ons....that are already available on the market.

20 hours ago, jabRI said:

Totally agree, they seem too emotionally invested to see the business side of it.  I can see why Robert didn't want to partner with them, they would have blocked his suggestions right and left. 

Katie and hubby were an odd couple.  She is perky and bubbly, and he is as serious as can be.  He was completely unable to join in on the joke when he said it isn't a flashlight...he was deadly serious that it isn't, and was not able to read the room to recognize that this is 5 people who are like a mini marketplace view, and they all thought it was a flashlight.  Nor did they recognize that they have no marketing plan and thus should expect more years of lackluster sales.  They should have taken Robert's deal, or maybe negotiated with him to do a reverse-Mr. Wonderful and sell for $450K but with a $1-per-sale royalty into perpetuity or until a certain $ limit is reached.

[eel21788]

36 minutes ago, LuvMyShows said:

 

Katie and hubby were an odd couple.  . .   They should have taken Robert's deal, or maybe negotiated with him to do a reverse-Mr. Wonderful and sell for $450K but with a $1-per-sale royalty into perpetuity or until a certain $ limit is reached.

I would have loved to see someone try to negotiate a royalty deal for himself.

FYI: Her name was spelled "Keidy." Either it's foreign, or she is one on those "I'm soooooo unique" people.

[Vermicious Knid]

I had a bank teller a few weeks ago named "Abyghail". The parents are to blame.

[jabRI]

I was just at the Met in NYC and they have a whole section of jigsaw puzzles from famous works of art.  Of course they aren't in reusable glass jars and don't come with glue,, but still...  There was literally a table full of different selections, pick the genre/artist and go at it.  And they were all less than $25.    These judges need to get out more to see what is really 'not available anywhere else'

[seacliffsal]

Again, every presenter overvalued their product/business.  I'm sure it's very tiring for the Sharks to keep explaining valuation as well as what selling actually means.  The jigsaw presenter really mislead the Sharks about current jigsaw puzzles IMO.  Way too expensive.  Also, one can only use so many completed puzzles as artwork.  I end up giving away the puzzles after I complete them (I break them down again first).  Waaaaay too overvalued and I'm so glad that some of the Sharks recognized that she really benefited from the stay-at-home due to Covid phenomenon.  When they say they are impressed with a presenter, I often wonder if the presenter's looks play into it.

I think the Bumbling Bee presenter really just wanted a Shark to help finance her daughters' businesses/restaurants.  Also, once Robert started stating that there are plenty of restaurants that do junk food, that kind of ended her whole foundational argument: "we're the FIRST!"

So, the Scrub Daddy Light guys obviously spent more time on their presentation than trying to sell their product.  I bet they were banking on getting business from the Scrub Daddy market. Very few things makes the Sharks madder than not giving them the numbers for which they are asking (or, ripping off the name/logo of an existing company in which they invested...).  And then they had the nerve to "act" surprised that their name/logo were too close to that of Scrub Daddy.  

The flashlight people really bothered me with their refusal to "understand" what the Sharks were saying.  Kevin (I think) asked a question about propriety and the husband kept talking in circles about other things.  The Sharks pressed on with the question and then the husband angrily told Mark to tell him the question.  Same thing with "you tell me what proprietary means."  No graciousness while being very demanding.  Robert made a reasonable offer based on lack of sales and marketing.  They should have accepted.  I have emergency products that have the different lights as well as radio band which cost about the same (for more functions).  

I read or heard somewhere that the presenters have to quarantine for 14 days before their appearance.  That may be a contributing factor as to why there aren't more viable products/companies this season.  Basically putting life on hold (and separation from the very product/business they are promoting).

Although I think that sometimes some of the Sharks may be a bit harsh, I am actually amazing how nice they are to some of these presenters.

 

[eel21788]

On 4/25/2021 at 2:41 PM, eel21788 said:

Not according to IMDB.

IMDB has now added a 23rd episode with no scheduled air date to this season.

I still think we'll be getting what is left on the cutting room floor.

Edited April 30, 2021 by eel21788

[eel21788]

On 4/28/2021 at 10:48 PM, Vermicious Knid said:

I had a bank teller a few weeks ago named "Abyghail". The parents are to blame.

Maybe her parents were meteorology freaks, and it's pronounce A Big Hail? 

[DEL901]

13 hours ago, jabRI said:

I was just at the Met in NYC and they have a whole section of jigsaw puzzles from famous works of art.  Of course they aren't in reusable glass jars and don't come with glue,, but still...  There was literally a table full of different selections, pick the genre/artist and go at it.  And they were all less than $25.    These judges need to get out more to see what is really 'not available anywhere else'

I think this is where the post-show due diligence comes in and why some deals fall apart.  

[Vermicious Knid]

No, it's Abigail with funky spelling. I asked.

[TVbitch]

I didn't understand the Sponge Daddy, er, I mean, Scrubbie. If my water sprayer thing isn't enough to rinse off a dish, then it probably needs a brush, not a sponge, to get the caked on food off. Also, that sponge would have to be taken off, cleaned and sanitized constantly, or else you would be spraying bacteria all over the place.  

[lh25]

I agreed with the Shark comments about the look of the Scubbie.  It looked clunky and cheap.  I live in a 60 year old house with a kitchen that badly needs to be remodeled, and I still wouldn't put on of those on my faucet/sprayer.

[theatremouse]

On 4/30/2021 at 7:26 AM, seacliffsal said:

I think the Bumbling Bee presenter really just wanted a Shark to help finance her daughters' businesses/restaurants.  Also, once Robert started stating that there are plenty of restaurants that do junk food, that kind of ended her whole foundational argument: "we're the FIRST!"

It would've been hilarious is Chris Sacca had been a guest shark. Not that I especially enjoy him at all on this show, but if she did that pitch to an investor in Veggie Grill it probably would've been cringe-funny watching her squirm. If she genuinely believed they're first, she'd look incredibly out of touch with her own industry and if she knew she wasn't at all first (or only) she had no pitch left.

[Eolivet]

On 4/29/2021 at 10:11 PM, jabRI said:

I was just at the Met in NYC and they have a whole section of jigsaw puzzles from famous works of art.  Of course they aren't in reusable glass jars and don't come with glue,, but still...

I thought the puzzles showcased works from female artists from around the globe. I never heard the woman say they were famous works of art. And I wouldn't want a puzzle version of Van Gogh's sunflowers, but a more niche, avant garde-type piece might look better as a puzzle.

While I agree puzzles made out of pictures are obviously not new, I thought the point of these was to employ (or showcase) female artists. So, less of "famous works of art" and more "variations on businesses with a charity aspect/conscience." Much like Grace & Lace never claimed to have invented socks.

[jabRI]

4 minutes ago, Eolivet said:

I thought the puzzles showcased works from female artists from around the globe. I never heard the woman say they were famous works of art. And I wouldn't want a puzzle version of Van Gogh's sunflowers, but a more niche, avant garde-type piece might look better as a puzzle.

While I agree puzzles made out of pictures are obviously not new, I thought the point of these was to employ (or showcase) female artists. So, less of "famous works of art" and more "variations on businesses with a charity aspect/conscience." Much like Grace & Lace never claimed to have invented socks.

That's true, I was responding more to how she was saying most puzzles are really lame, like cats or landscapes.  Agree that helping artists is totally worthwhile..

[needschocolate]

The Jiggy woman is impressive because she was able to sell something, that has been around for decades, like it was a new thing.  She took something (jigsaw puzzles) that has been around for decades, encouraged something (gluing the puzzle so it become artwork) that has also been around for decades, and made a bunch of money.  Next, she will probably promote a piece of felt to transport your in-process puzzle (another thing that has been around for decades) and make money on that too.  

[CrazyInAlabama]

The biggest puzzle & toy company has sold glue to make the puzzles permanent art work, and puzzle caddies to make moving them for storage, and working on the puzzle for a long time.     I don't recall seeing anyone actually use the glue, and keep the puzzle, but I'm sure some people do.    

[Aurneriel]

You have me intrigued. I already want to buy it. So far, I have been doing puzzles like this, but this idea looks exciting. It must be a lot of fun to assemble jigsaw puzzles.  When I was a kid, these things didn't exist. Or, if they did exist, they were expensive, and my family couldn't afford to buy them. I remember my brothers and me coming up with different puzzles and logic problems and solving them every time. It was fun. But even now, it's not bad. You can buy any interesting puzzle these days. I like to relax that way after work. I wouldn't say I like the only thing about my brother, and I made up the game. That's why I chose puzzles.

Edited December 17, 2021 by Aurneriel