Rob Merlino: Blogger, Writer, Entrepreneur & Foodie

Bright Wheel creator David Vasen envisioned an app that not only allowed him to connect with his young daughter at daycare, but also allowed for daycare operators to manage their business while keeping in contact with families. Vasen hopes the Sharks will see the power and utility of his app when he presents it in […]

People familiar with ZipCar or CitiBike will immediately get the concept behind Brella Box. The company “rents” umbrellas to New Yorkers from over 500 locations throughout the city. Each Brella Box kiosk holds around 50 umbrellas and members use a key card to rent an umbrella for $2.50 for up to 12 hours. Once you’re done […]

For twelve years, Brenda Lee Feldman made Inch Bug a profitable, viable business. She began by selling personalized stickers and labels for kid’s snacks and other possessions so they could be easily identified when going to school or day care. Her original Orbit labels were a hit with parents everywhere, she hopes the Sharks like the […]

Kid Runner inventor Will Warne hopes joggers, and Sharks, like his pull-along jogging stroller when he pitches it in Shark Tank episode 723. The product looks like a bicycle trailer that attaches to the torso, allowing parents to pull their kids behind them while they jog. Basically, the child is pulled behind their parent as they run. […]

Jarret Parker and Raja Rahman hope the Sharks will back their magic, music, and comedy extravaganza, Miracles: The Show, when they pitch the idea to the Sharks in Shark Tank episode 723. The pair, also known as “The Magic and Piano Guys,” have been wowing audiences all over the world since 2010. Their act is […]

DripDrop inventors, childhood pals and ice cream lovers turned entrepreneurs, Oliver Greenwald and Sam Nassif, are the youngest entrepreneurs to appear in the Shark Tank without their parents. They’ll pitch the Sharks on their edible “shield” against messy ice cream hands in Shark Tank episode 723. The pair created their product when they were just 10 […]

Pop Slate wants to change the way people look at the back of their iPhone. Look at it now: all you see is your camera lens, an Apple logo, and a bunch of unused space. Inventor Yashar Behzadi envisioned using that space as a way to display pictures back in 2012. Since then, he turned […]

Professional snowboarder Keir Dillon and business partner Sheen Moaleman pitch Frends Headphones, their line of high fashion headphones for women, in Shark Tank episode 710. The business got started back in 2011 when Dillon and some of his friends in the extreme sports and snowboarding world decided they wanted to create a branded business together. They […]

Husband and wife team Steve Watts and Angela Ferendo hope the surf’s up in the Shark Tank when they pitch Slyde Hand Boards in episode 710. Watts first used food trays strapped to his hands to get more speed and control while body surfing as a kid. That little body surfing “hack” became a business […]

Pet Nostics creator Stephen Chen is like most pet owners: he loves his pet and he wants to keep it healthy. While regular trips to the veterinarian are a must, Chen created a pet urinalysis app to allow pet owners to perform their own “check up” when they have concerns. Chen pitches his patented solution […]

Cool Box inventors Chris Stoikos and Jason Neubauer are serial entrepreneurs who wanted to make a tool box for the 21st Century. Along with co-founder Mike D’Agostini (who doesn’t appear on the show), the guys have a lot of construction experience behind them and they got sick of lugging around multiple items to job sites. […]

Robots aren’t usually associated with plush toys, but entrepreneurs Jeremy Scheinberg and Chris Harden seek to change that with TROBO, their story telling robot. They decided to create TROBO as a cuddly toy that educates kids with an accompanying story telling app. TROBO, through the app, reads STEM related stories to kids with the aspiration of […]

Advertising art directors Van Gould and Chris Sheldon created the NoPhone as a “cure for phone addiction.” They fully acknowledge that the product is a novelty item, calling the business “the largest fake phone company in the world.” The accolades are pouring in: CNET called the NoPhone the “most useless gift since the Pet Rock,” […]

Sean Knecht and Steven Blustein, who present Pride Bites in Shark Tank episode 728, love playing with their dogs. That’s why Blustein invented the custom pet accessories company – he was sick of cheap dog toys that fell apart after a few uses. He also wanted to create something a bit edgier than the standard, […]

Stephanie Boone’s dog, Luna, almost died using a chemical, commercial flea control product. Instead of putting her down, she did some research and started creating green pesticides for pets as an alternative to the harsh chemicals available in many pet stores and veterinarian offices. Her dog got better and before long, she and business partner Laura […]

Steven Bofill and Brian Shimmerlik want their smart vending machine to go where vending machines have never gone before. The small-sized machines fit anywhere you could hang a picture and sell small items like gum and mints, or even toothbrushes and ear buds. The technology lets the machine owner track sales via smart phone and […]

Karen Posada started The Good Promise to make snacks that were “nutritious, convenient and delicious.” She was sick of settling for junk food snacks and drinks when traveling around with her family, so she invented portable smoothies, packed with healthy and natural ingredients. She hopes the Sharks like The Good Promise when she pitches her […]

Is the Beer Blizzard the best invention of season 7 so far? Mark Cuban seems to think so and entrepreneurs Mike Robb and Tom “Ozzy” Osborne hope Cuban, or another Shark, invests in their product when they pitch it in Shark Tank episode 725. Mike and Tom like their beer and they like it cold. Often, […]

When Matt Alexander created Illumi Bowl, he didn’t think he’d be quitting school and selling over $1 million worth of his product. He had an idea to light the way for late night bathroom visits and he made it a reality, with the help of over $95,000 he raised on Kickstarter. Illumi Bowl is a […]

Beloved shirts founder Jeremiah Robison grew up in the clothing business. He also likes pizza. It may sound like a strange correlation, but it was an “all over everything” pepperoni pizza shirt Katy Perry wore that put the company into the forefront of fashion as “the fastest growing sublimation brand in the world.” Their quirky […]

Tim Taft and Victoria Coopman have over 30 years combined experience in the pet industry, so they created their own company to manufacture and sell a wide variety of pet toys in 2012. Their line of products is extensive; they make pet toys, chicken coops, cat scratchers, dog houses, and much more. They’ll find out if […]

Mob Craft beer co-founder Henry Schwartz knew he wanted to start a micro brewery, but he wanted to stand out from the hundreds of others in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. That’s not easy to do in a city and a state known as much for its beer as its cheese! To differentiate the brewery, which he co-founded with Andrew […]

Katherine Krug started looking for a better back pain solution after spending several years sitting at a desk developing the failed goal setting app, Everest. As the COO of that company, she found herself slouching at her desk all day and night, causing a lot of back pain. She did some research on back pain […]