Company: Nerdwax
Founder: Don Hejny
Season: Appeared on season 7
Nerdwax is a balm made from beeswax that keeps glasses from sliding down your nose. You apply the wax to the bridge and nose pads, and it naturally wears off as the day goes on. In 2014, Hejny started a Kickstarter campaign to support his new idea. Just seconds after the campaign launched at midnight, they got their first backer, and by lunchtime, they reached their $5,000 goal, as noted in a Kickstarter update. By the end of the campaign, they had raised over $61,000 from more than 2,800 supporters.
When Nerdwax originally appeared on “Shark Tank,” Hejny came in asking for an $80,000 investment for 20 percent equity. Some sharks found that he presented his business too early or thought that they couldn’t make any money from it. Despite the concerns, both Kevin O’Leary and guest shark Troy Carter made offers, $80,000 as a loan for 10 percent until $240,000 was paid and $80,000 as a loan until $120,000 was repaid for 10 percent equity, respectively. Hejny, however, did not like the idea of a loan and declined both offers.
Where Is Nerdwax Now?
Like many other businesses that pitch in the tank, the “Shark Tank effect” greatly helped Nerdwax. In a podcast with Shopify, Hejny said that before appearing on “Shark Tank,” sales were at $136,000. Since the episode aired, gross sales have totaled nearly $1 million to date. He told Shopify, “I credit Shark Tank to being very similar to the way that we approach Kickstarter, which is I’m being vulnerable. This is me as an entrepreneur. This is my family. We’re building this business together. I think those two things have been the biggest driver of our success so far.”
Hejny added in the podcast, which aired this month, that traffic has slowed down so they are currently in the process of redeveloping marketing strategies to drive traffic into their sales funnels. Hejny closed off the podcast by describing Nerdwax’s goals for the next year, which include relying less on PR-driven strategies and focusing on adding new products.