'Shark Tank' fans think this founder got a deal because of 'pretty privilege' — then she fired back

"Shark Tank" is a platform where anyone with an innovative idea and the ability to communicate it can bag an investment to build a successful business, and viewers are mostly happy about it. But while people from all walks of life and all age groups get visibility through the show, women still face harsh judgment. When Blaine Anderson bagged a six-figure deal from Mark Cuban on an earlier episode of “Shark Tank”, a lot of people were left surprised. It was because she didn’t know how many classes her company, Dating by Blaine, sold over the year before appearing on the popular television show according to a Toronto Sun report.

A Reddit user named FreshPrice2038 uploaded a long post on r/sharktank suggesting that Anderson didn't deserve the deal. They had an issue with her initially asking for $100,000 for 2% equity, her want of a male investor, the fact that she rejected Kevin O’Leary since he would be more focused on the business and numbers, and the fact that she wasn’t fully aware of how much she was selling.

“She didn’t know her revenue numbers by product? She didn’t even know how many units or revenue she did for her biggest product,” the post read. Several comments under it suggested that she was only able to get a deal from Cuban since she was being extra nice to him and because of her appearance. Anderson was not going to remain silent and she hit back on X (formerly Twitter).

Speaking about the claims that ‘pretty privilege’ drove her to success, she wrote, “Pretty privilege probably helps. Deal with it.” In addition to that, Anderson wanted to give away 2% of her company at first but had to settle for 10% and Barbara Corcoran also played a part in her getting that deal. However, she also revealed that the deal did not actually go through.

It was not that the investor backed out after giving his word on national television. Blaine Anderson has a lot of respect for Mark Cuban. “Mark is down to earth, easy to work with, shockingly accessible, super smart, and funny. He cares about his entrepreneurs, and I’d be glad to work with him someday,” she wrote on X. However, it was she who backed out despite spending a lot on legal fees.

She said that her life would have been a lot harder if her company had outside investment and just wanted to run the company she founded in a way that she saw fit. It was nothing personal against Cuban.

Anderson was the one who was approached by a producer of the show in 2023 and was encouraged to apply. At the time, she thought that an outside investor might not be a bad thing. “It took me months to realize that, and for everyone involved’s sake, I’m sorry I didn’t see the light sooner,” she wrote, explaining why she did what she did.