Ryan Shell hopes to find a fit with a Shark when he pitches Home T, his line of home state tee shirts, in Shark Tank Episode 628. Shell founded the company after moving from North Carolina to New York City in 2010. He longed for home, so he made a tee-shirt with his home state. The rest, as they say, is history.
All the tee shirts Home T prints on are made in the USA. They make a big deal out of how soft and comfortable their tee shirts are, too. Each US state has a tee shirt and there are hats, onesies, hoodies, pillows and more. The company donates a portion of each sale to the Multiple Sclerosis Society for research.
To date, Mr. Shell has over $1 million in sales. He’s likely looking for a Shark’s help to expand his line. Will one of the Sharks Tee up an investment proposition?
Home T Shark Tank Recap
Ryan enters the Shark Tank seeking $250,000 for 5% of his business. He gives his pitch and tells the Sharks he was homesick for South Carolina when he got the idea to create the shirts. He hands the “insanely soft” samples to the Sharks and Robert questions the valuation.
His first 12 months in business, he did $1 million in sales. He made $540,000 in profit on those sales. When the Sharks probe, they find out Ryan is a marketer who used to work at a digital agency, which explains his marketing savvy. Kevin goes on a rant how this isn’t proprietary, he could do it himself. Ryan says sales were mostly word of mouth and he only spent $5000 on Facebook ads. Robert and Mark aren’t buying that.
Kevin says Tee shirts are just a commodity; he’s out. Mark says it isn’t investable for him; he’s out. Daymond thinks Ryan is just there for a commercial; he’s out. Robert is concerned the sales could flatten, but he offers $250,000 for 35% of the business. Lori jumps in and offers $250,000 for 30%. Ryan says he’d go to 15% and Robert drops out. Ryan, after some scolding from Kevin, counters with $400,000 for 10%. Lori drops out. As Ryan is about to leave, Daymond offers $250,000 for 20%. After some back and forth about valuation, Daymond withdraws his offer.
NO DEAL
Home T Shark Tank Update
The Shark Tank Blog constantly provides updates and follow-ups about entrepreneurs who have appeared on the Shark Tank TV show. After the show, Ryan told Inc Magazine why he turned Daymond down. Daymond’s offer valued the business at $1.25 million which was his total 2014 sales. He also said he felt the Sharks apply pressure to get you to take lopsided deals. Lastly, going with Daymond would have been the easy way out.
The business continued to grow over the years and Ryan added many more styles than the state tee shirts. As of May, 2024, he’s still in business with $2 million in annual revenue.
Posts About Home T on Shark Tank Blog
Company Information
I find it somewhat ironic that Mr Wonderful told this charlatan that he had nothing that couldn’t stop someone else from doing the same thing when that is exactly what this guy did. He stole the idea from homestateapparel.com which was started and is still based in Greensboro North Carolina. They have better selection, more colors, use Eco friendly ink, are more affordable and pay their staff a living wage. If you feel a connection to home stay connected to the home of the home t shirt.
This guy is so unoriginal he had to steal someone’s design. He may be a good marketer but lacks any shred of ethics.
http://www.news-record.com/business/local_business/greensboro-company-says-it-created-home-t-shirt/article_8522cb7c-d4f0-11e4-856b-63cb79c5b3b5.html
This guy was abrasive and his company is not proven to be that great and he definitely overstated the value of the company