'Shark Tank' guest judge chases after contestants backstage with a massive deal in wild TV moment

Walking away empty-handed from “Shark Tank” is a heartbreaking experience for an entrepreneur, but sometimes things unexpectedly work out for people. Founders on an episode of the show believed that they’d be going home without an offer, before they were surprised by the guest shark chasing them into the backstage area to offer them a deal.

The entrepreneurs were a couple of women named Amanat Anand and Shubham Issar. They sought $100,000 for a 10% stake in their company, SoaPen. The company produces a soap shaped like a pen with which users can draw on their hands before rinsing it off. This makes washing hands a fun and healthy exercise. It goes without saying that the product was made with kids in mind as the primary consumer.

The sharks loved the idea as it was an innovative twist on an already existing product that sells everywhere in the world. However, there were still several factors that were believed to be problems. The entrepreneurs did not have the best sales figures, and since the soap industry can be a highly competitive market, all five sharks backed out. Kevin O’Leary did not believe Anand and Issar had the marketing side of things figured out.

Mark Cuban revealed that the entrepreneurs had to be on social media 24 hours a day, all year round, getting their product out to the masses. That would require a lot of time and effort, which he wasn’t willing to do, so he backed out. Lori Greiner, Robert Herjavec, and guest shark Nirav Tolia followed suit shortly afterwards. All three believed that it was too early to invest in the business. The entrepreneurs seemed disappointed, but they were left without choice.

However, that was not the case for long, as Tolia might have seen potential in the product and felt like he let a good opportunity go. “I think I made a mistake,” Cuban said, before running after the entrepreneurs to the backstage area. It seemed like Anand and Issar were in the process of doing their post-show interview when the shark popped in and apologised for interrupting.

Tolia claimed that he and his wife would help the company get off the ground. However, he needed a safety net if he was to invest in SoaPen. So, he proposed a royalty deal. “I’m happy to put in the $100,000. I would like to have 10 percent of the company. However, for safety, what I would like to propose is a $1 royalty that pays back $1 per unit sold until I reach $200,000, at which point, the royalty goes away. You have nothing else that you owe me besides the original 10 percent,” he said.

Anand and Issar were more than happy with this offer and accepted it, with the disbelief still clear on their faces that they got an offer. It was a rare occurrence, but it was beautiful to see.