Richualist Founder Dawn Myers has scored an investment from “Sharks” Mark Cuban and Emma Grede.
On Friday April 5, the founder was featured on ABC’s “Shark Tank.” The purpose of the show is to offer opportunities to entrepreneurs who are looking to start or scale their business by securing funding from its lineup of venture capitalists, its website mentions.
The episode starring Myers featured “Sharks” Cuban and Grede, along with Lori Greiner, Kevin O’Leary, and Robert Herjavec.
Myers was seeking a $150,000 investment in exchange for 10% stake in her company. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, Myers launched The Mint, a hair tool that includes six attachments to detangle and style all hair types, with a special focus on curly to coily types, classified as 3A to 4C. Its technology warms liquid hair products between 130 degrees Fahrenheit and 140 degrees Fahrenheit for deeper penetration into the scalp.
Myers said on the show she is currently in talks with Procter & Gamble and L’Oreal to co-brand styling pods, which mimic the concept of Keurig K-cups in order to disperse the styling creams and gels.
“For people with highly textured hair, it’s beautiful, but it’s complicated. It takes forever,” Myers told the judges. “It makes travel impossible, and it takes all of this to get the job done, but not anymore. That’s why I developed The Mint, a patented three-in-one styling system that makes the process of styling curly hair faster, easier, and healthier than ever.
She continued, “You simply load your pod, think of them as coffee pods except for your styling products. And you let the mint gently warm and condition your products. That’s where the magic happens. Then you streamline the process of detangling and applying your liquid products to get the easiest, fastest, most juicy curls of your life.”
The Mint has been five years in the making. To develop the product, Myers took the bold step of selling her home and liquidating her 401(k) retirement savings to afford payroll, all in pursuit of her vision for the product, per the episode. She shares that in 2022, she secured $1 million in venture capital backing, which left her with 72% stake in the company. Myers also participated in accelerators, incubators, and pitch competitions for further support.
Now, the company will receive a lift. Ultimately, Myers attracted the attention of Cuban and Grede. The pair agreed to invest $150,000 in exchange for 15% stake in the company and 5% stake through advisory shares, equity compensation offered to a startup’s advisors.
“I’d really like to give you an offer because I just think you’re so spectacular,” Grede told Myers on “Shark Tank.” “And I just understand this, like I know that I would go home and use this product. It’s like I completely get it, as does Mark.”
Reflecting on her recent victory to AFROTECH™, Myers expressed how the investment serves as a testament to the varied paths founders can pursue to strengthen their companies.
“‘Shark Tank’ is a HUGE deal and getting a deal from Mark and Emma is AMAZING, but the biggest takeaway is that there is no one way to drive growth,” Myers expressed. “I’m not very comfortable with social media and I’ve been banging my head up against walls for years trying to get exposure. This buzz has confirmed that I’m at my best having organic conversations with real people about issues that matter — their pain points, their needs, resilience, and what it takes to build a strong business. That’s my strength and I need to lean into it.”
She added, “This has been such a great moment for joy and celebration, but now it’s time to get to work growing this momentum and building out the billion-dollar vision in my head.”
