Rob Merlino: Blogger, Writer, Entrepreneur & Foodie

Two young entrepreneurs, Casey Gandham and Mike Shannon, have a solution for high textbook costs with their textbook rental service called PackBack. Textbooks cost BIG money: the average college student spends over $1,000 on text books and, when they go to sell them back at the end of the semester, they get pennies on the dollar. […]

Pat Crowley wants to introduce the world to Chapul, his Cricket Energy Bars, in Shark Tank episode 523 on March 21. Made from “cricket flour,” the cricket energy bars are a protein bar powered by crickets. Crowley, an avid water conservationist, thinks traditional sources of protein energy like pigs and cows are unsustainable. Traditional farming […]

When I first heard the name of this business, Morning Head, I was intrigued. Entrepreneur Max Valverde claims to have the cure for “morning head” in Shark Tank episode 523 on March 21. CURE? I didn’t know one was needed! All double entendre aside, MorningHead is a shower cap-like headpiece with super absorbent material inside. […]

Henry Miller introduces America to his line of spicy honey called Henry’s Humdingers in Shark Tank episode 516 – the young entrepreneurs special – on March 14. Henry started keeping bees when he was 12 and before he knew it, he had more honey than he knew what to do with. According to his mother, […]

Carter Kostler, the 15-year-old inventor of a fruit infused water bottle called Define Bottle, pitches his business in episode 516 – the young entrepreneurs special. Carter has a dual mission: he wants to sell water battles and he wants to educate other kids about the benefits of drinking from a fruit infused water bottle as […]

Boo Boo Goo, a paint on bandage product, was “invented” by 6 year-old Kiowa Kavovit and she’ll pitch the Sharks on March 14 on a special “young entrepreneurs” episode. Kiowa is the daughter of actor Andrew Kavovit who best know for a long stint on the daytime soap opera As the World Turns. Other than […]

IReTron is a company that allows consumers to recycle electronics and get paid cash for old cell phones, tablets, even calculators. Company founder Jason Li, makes his pitch to the Sharks in episode 521 – the young entrepreneurs special – on March 14. As a high school senior, Li is the eldest of the entrepreneurs […]

Inventor and entrepreneur Michal Quinn hopes his pitch shines in episode 521 when he introduces his drill powered shoe buffer called The Buffer Bit. If you’ve ever seen a mechanical shoe buffer, you’ll get a good idea of what Buffer Bit is all about. Quinn took the shoe buffer pad off the old style shoe […]

Tim Talley, a “shoetrepreneur” extraordinaire, introduces the Sharks to ULace, his custom shoelace system, in episode 521 on March 7.  Talley is no stranger to entrepreneurship, or business for that matter. He is a principle in Fraternal Golf, LLC, a company that sells personalized golf gear with Fraternal Greek lettering. He’s also done stints with […]

Kent Frankovich rolls into the Shark Tank in episode 521 on March 7 with his Revo Lights LED bike lighting system. Once installed on bike wheels, Revo Lights act like a headlight in the front and a brake light in the back. The secret is a set of lighting rings that clip onto the front […]

Squeaky Knees isn’t a new joint problem, it’s the business Ivan Barnes and Lisa Evans pitch in Shark Tank episode 521 on March 7. Evans created Squeaky Knees, a line of toddler wear, in 2010 when she wanted to protect her toddler son’s knees and bum for the inevitable tumbles. The hook is, the knees and […]

If making your bed with hospital corners every day isn’t your thing, zip on sheets from ZipIt  Bedding could be just what you’re looking for. Entrepreneurs Hayley Carr and Jennifer MacDonald  hope the Sharks snuggle up with an investment in episode 517 when they pitch their concept on February 28. The two friends and business partners want […]

Cheek’d dating cards creator Lori Cheek just might have created the next eHarmony or Match. That’s the kind of buzz Cheek’d is getting prior to appearing on Shark Tank on February 28, imagine what people will be saying after the business jumps in with the Sharks. Lori Cheek claims she was “tortured” with her last […]

Buzzy for Shots is a vibrating, bee shaped band that houses a small ice pack to numb the site of an injection and distract those people who don’t like getting shots. Kids are probably the biggest group of people who hate shots, hence the cartoonish appearance of Buzzy for Shots, but inventor Dr. Amy Baxter sees […]

The idea for creating bamboo paper towels came to Irene and Noam Krasniansky in 2011 when Irene decided she wanted to live a more sustainable lifestyle. She knew how wasteful paper towels are, so she and Noam set out to find and make a “green” substitute. That’s how Bambooee – the bamboo paper towels – were born! Bamboo […]

Erica Barrett dishes out her short stack pancakes to the Sharks in episode 520 on February 21. She started making artisan breakfast foods a little over a year ago under her brand name, Southern Culture Foods, when she couldn’t find quality pancake mixes in her local grocery store. She calls her mix “Short Stack Pancakes,” […]

Ryan Carpenter, a self-professed Portland “hipster,” hopes the Sharks drink in his bike powered smoothies business in episode 520 on February 21. The name “Moberi” is a mash-up of “mobile food” and Oregon’s native “berries.” Carpenter started making bike powered smoothies in 2011 after he saw videos of Guatemalan tribes powering all kinds of appliances […]

Former professional wrestler and three-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion Diamond Dallas Page hopes to wrestle an investment for his DDP Yoga fitness program from the Sharks in episode 520 on February 21. After rupturing his L4 and L5 discs, Page set out to create a low-impact fitness plan “for athletes like himself who had suffered years […]

Former CIA Agent Jason Hanson pitches his Spy Escape and Evasion course in Shark Tank episode 520 on February 21. Hanson has an entire information product empire built around a concealed carry permit course he markets online. The course gives students the educational credentials to apply for a concealed carry gun permit in Virginia and […]