Joybells founder Joye B Moore on Shark Tank Season 16 (Image Source – Instagram/@sharktankabc)
Highlights
- Joye B Moore pitches in for her brand Joyebells pies on Shark Tank which is inspired by her six generations of family recipes.
- She shared her journey from homelessness to becoming an entrepreneur, earning admiration from the Sharks.
- Her emotional story and unique culinary heritage made a powerful impact.
| Category | Details |
| Name | Joyebells |
| Founder | Joye B Moore |
| Industry | FMCG |
| Product | Pies |
| Funding | Self-funded |
| Investment Ask | $600K |
| Equity Ask | 10% |
Entrepreneur and owner of Richmond’s Joyebells Pies Joye B Moore presented her business on Shark Tank season 16 episode 11, where she introduced her family recipe-inspired gourmet pie business and sought fundraising to expand it.
Moore shared her story during their pitch, saying that she had to deal with multiple challenges, including homelessness while growing up but was adamant in improving her living situation. In an effort to improve her life, she decided the best approach for her was to open a business around her family’s recipes.
The recipes of Joyebells trace back over six generations to her third great-grandmother, Susan Mae Howell. These pies are not merely desserts; they tell a story about her family. Moore, affectionately known as “Joyebell,” is the first person in her family to take treasured family recipes and transform them into a successful business.
The Sharks were emotional after hearing her story and understood that Joyebells is more than just a pie company; it is a symbol of tradition, strength and the wondrous ache.
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What Happened To Joyebells on Shark Tank?
Every Shark on the show agreed that Joyebells pies were among the best they had ever sampled on the show. But the company’s sales figures did not receive such accolades. The company’s founder, Joye B. Moore, disclosed that since launching in 2019, her company has cumulatively sold $16.1 million worth of products.
However, things took a turn for the worse when annual sales plummeted from $7.7 million in 2023 to a projected $4.3 million in 2024. The biggest issues for Joyebells came in 2023 when over 315,000 peach pies were recalled due to a manufacturing defect that made the pies with non-matured peaches.
Consequently, Joyebells lost its partnership with Sam’s Club and had to pull all of its shelf-stable products out of the stores. By 2024, all of Joyebells’ pies were sold only on QVC. The company is currently in the process of rebranding and hopes to return to grocery stores in the United States.
To facilitate the relaunch, Joyebells partnered with a new family-owned pie maker. The company hopes to distribute their new pies to Schnucks grocery stores in the Midwest by April, Mid-Atlantic Kroger stores by June, and then Costco locations in the Northeast by the end of the year.
While delivering the pitch, the Sharks questioned the production costs of ‘Joyebells’ pies. Moore stated that her sweet potato pies cost $5.23 each to make. These pies sell at around 19$$, which is a good profit margin.
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Did Joybells’ Pitch Make The Cut To Get A Deal?
Joye B. Moore left Shark Tank empty-handed, she came to get $600,000 in funding for 10% equity in Joyebells, which meant she valued her company at $6 million.
Joyebells is home to that mouth-watering, Southern, backwoods country deliciousness is how Moore defined her brand when pitching on the show. She brought more verve and joy with every word she said in the pitch. Even though they loved the taste of Moore’s pies, the Sharks had concerns about the business due to unsustainable high production costs and ever-falling sales.
See what else is new! View other businesses featured in this episode.
