Jay Leonard
Next up is New York-based product Hotshot. He is seeking $300,000 for 10 percent equity.
The product is a can of coffee for those people who are on-the-go in the morning. (And let’s be honest, who isn’t?) The can of coffee is heated at 140 degrees and ready to go when you are.
The sharks are in agreement that the coffee tastes good and wonder how he came up with the product. Having visited Japan, he was inspired by coffee found in a sort-of refrigerator.
I can drink coffee anytime! Throw me a #hotshot right now! #SharkTank
— Saboor Khan (@saboortweets) October 31, 2015
Classic Kevin O’Leary cites a story of Greek mythology relating it back to pushing on for six years without sales. He calls it a hobby and goes out. He has been developing the product the entire time to ensure that it can remain heated across four months.
He says that the major demand is in movie theaters to serve coffee. Robert Herjavec wonders if people would really go for that when there are a plethora of coffee shops. He goes out.
#HotShot would be good on mass transit. Airplane coffee is awful and this would be welcome. #SharkTank
— Barbie Thoeming (@BarbieThoeming) October 31, 2015
Chris Sacca finds the market too competitive and goes out.
Mark Cuban likes his product but goes out. He offers, however, giving it a test if he could get it in Landmark theaters.
Lori Greiner suggests stopping the product for having invested over six years without sales, so she goes out.
I'm really loving Hot Shot Coffee! I really think @ABCSharkTank missed out on a cool & new concept. #HotShot
— marissa grace (@marissagrace_) October 31, 2015
Final deal: None.
This article was written for Business 2 Community by Jay Leonard.
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I think hotshot is a fabulous idea. I’d like to see it out at the airports at the gift shops. I don’t like waiting in line at a coffee shop for a strong hot cup of coffee.
I think Kevin O’Leary is an idiot on this deal. Here’s the problem. If the guy from Hot Shot showed the time line of what he did over the last 6 years, they would fully understand that he’s not even shipping the product until Jan ’16. He designed their own HotBox, had to get UL approval, designed the insulation labels, developed the actual product and all of this takes time. The thing is, he was ASKED by the producers of Shark Tank to appear on the show based on an article about the company in LA Times. The company is getting a LOT of media attention. the thing is that Cuban DID agree to being a test site, so he’s a MAYBE. So, they didn’t really fall flat. The guy simply was pre-revenue and guys like O”leary and Lori don’t want that much risk. No problem, they weren’t the right investors anyway. I think Cuban will end up funding him if the test market goes well next year, so saying they fell flat is kind of misleading. Typical idiot journalism. I can see a LOT of potential and since he would be the first in the US, he has a lot to gain. Isn’t the coffee industry about $30 Billion a year? He could grab 1% with the right partners/funding, and that’s a $300 Million a year company once they get their initial traction. I think people would LOVE to have an alternative to making their own coffee or standing in line at Starbucks for 1/2 hour in the morning. I think the Airline industry might be a long term play since they would have to custom design units for airplanes, so that would take a little while to get them on board. I think a vending machine at companies, and colleges would be a great thing for them to do as another way to distribute the product. Also, I can see him marketing through large hotel chains as most people hate making their own coffee in the room and I think a lot of people would rather just wake up, grab a hot can and start drinking as something they could do in a hotel wet bar model heating fridge. I see a lot of potential for this and he just needs the right partners. Shark Tank doesn’t always invest in winners and they do pass on deals that end up being good deals. I was shocked he didn’t land anyone since they all have an interest in getting into the coffee business. Maybe they’ll change their mind, I see a lot more potential for this than I do for the coffee subscription program they invested in. Oh well, O’Leary and Co. messed up. This was one that got away, temporarily.