Two deals were sealed in the fourth episode of Shark Tank SA on Sunday night (24 October): one for a hair product called Perfect Hair and another for boozy Ja Brew.
Here's a recap of events by the show:
Episode 4
In total there were two more deals struck this week, with the youngest Shark in the tank, Marnus Broodryk, finally making his first investment in a delicious micro brewed beer company.
Geologist Jacques Nel and his four-legged friend and mascot of his brand, bulldog Lady Trinity, were looking for an investment in his micro-brewery named “Ja Brew”. The Sharks loved Jacques’ branding and the potential for growth in the micro brewing market, but had concerns around the fact that he was still waiting for his liquor license.
However, Shark Marnus, who has previously owned a vegan restaurant and understood the challenges that come with acquiring a liquor license, felt that he could have a lot of fun developing the business with Jacques, rather than simply investing.
Marnus offered Jacques a R250 000 loan in exchange for a 50% stake in “Ja Brew” and committed to helping Jacques lay the essential ground work to get his business up and running properly. “Take the deal!” fellow Shark Gil Oved advised Jacques, which he was happy to do.
The second entrepreneur to present the Sharks with bait that interested them was 40-year-old media consultant Taryn Gill. Taryn came into the tank with her company “Perfect Hair”, a collection of proudly African products for African women.
Taryn’s naturally made hair care products are targeted at all different hair texture types, for women, children and men, and she wanted to use the Sharks’ investment to open up concept stores. Most of the Sharks told her that this was an unrealistic idea, and not the right direction required to successfully grow her business.
But Taryn’s personality and hustling attitude is what really got the Sharks excited. She received her first deal offer from marketing guru Gil Oved, who offered her R250 000 for 50% equity in her business, with the view to take the marketing of her products to the next level.
Romeo, however, came on board with a deal that included his secure base of distribution channels, as well as more money for less equity. Romeo’s offer was R400 000 for a 40% share in Taryn’s business, but it wasn’t over yet.
Vinny also chipped in on the basis of his experience in e-commerce. Wanting Taryn to keep her business sales online, Vinny offered to partner with Gil for the same offer that Romeo gave her, which Gil also agreed to.
As if this wasn’t already an incredibly hard decision for Taryn to make, Romeo then introduced a game-changer by offering his wife, business woman and former Miss South Africa Basetsana Kumalo, as a partner in the business, specifically to focus on the marketing side of things. It was an offer that Taryn simply couldn’t refuse, and with that, Romeo clinched his second deal of the season.
Unfortunately there were two blue-sky-thinking visionaries who came into the Shark Tank with ideas that were possibly a little too big for the Sharks to stomach.
Inventor Wayne Goelst came into the tank with his product, “Glo-V” hand signaling gloves, with an unusual deal proposal: R85 000 investment in exchange for 85% equity in his business.
Wayne invented his reflective gloves particularly for South African taxi commuters to stay visible after dark, and to aid them in signaling taxis effectively. Unfortunately the Sharks felt that Wayne required them to do all of the work to get his product onto market, and for that reason, they all declined.
Another unlucky entrepreneur who entered the tank was engineer Arthur Blake, with his unique business aimed at revolutionising student housing, “Modular Projects”. Arthur came to the Sharks asking for a whopping sum of R48 Million in exchange for 20% equity in his business.
As the developer of modular construction container buildings such as 27 Boxes in Melville, Arthur wanted the Sharks to invest despite having a business that is currently not generating any income due to his main partner having withdrawn a year ago.
“I think you’re crazy to come in here and ask for R48 Million for an idea alone. I’m out,” Dawn Nathan-Jones summed up as the rest of the Sharks also categorically declined Arthur’s proposal.