Of anyone out there, you'd think two PR execs from Los Angeles would appreciate the buzz-generating possibilities of an appearance on " Shark Tank."
But when Jenn Deese and Kelley Coughlan founded Pursecase, they had no interest in booking a spot on the show. They knew someone who had done it, and it didn't turn out well.
Sharks may be powerful, but they're also prone to attack.
"I didn't want to do it," Deese tells me. "I'd seen them rip so many people apart."
For the uninitiated, the reality competition "Shark Tank" puts entrepreneurs in front of savvy business investors (the sharks) for an opportunity to jump-start their business. The investors will ask questions of the entrepreneurs, and if they like what they see, they'll compete to offer up investments for a slice of the pie. The "sharks" include multimillionaires and billionaires such as NBA Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, " Queen of QVC" Lori Greiner, real estate mogul Barbara Corcoran, tech entrepreneur Robert Herjavec, branding guru Daymond John, and venture capitalist Kevin O'Leary.
Deese and Coughlan were huge fans of the show. But it wasn't until the pair took a trip to New York with their friend who had already swam with the sharks that they realized the power of reality television.
"We were at the 'Vogue' offices when one of the editors recognized our friend," says Deese. "She asked, 'Don't I know you?' And our friend said she didn't think they'd met before, she thought she would remember."
But the editor insisted she had seen their friend before.
"She said 'Yeah, you were on 'Shark Tank.' All of our editors watch that show,'" recalled Deese. "And I was like, 'Ding, ding, ding — we need to see if we can get on.'"
Deese and Coughlan, co-founders of the public relations firm Melrose PR, had recently created the prototype for Pursecase, a small clutch purse that holds an iPhone and essentials such as credit cards. The idea started as something Coughlan wanted for herself.
"We were handing out coffee to people waiting in line for the iPhone 5 back in September of 2012," recalls Coughlan. "Our PR firm was promoting an app, and we were amazed at how many people were in line. I also bought the new iPhone but wouldn't take it out of the box until it had a case. At the time there wasn't much selection, so I ordered one off of eBay."
When it arrived, Coughlan told Deese not to poke fun at her because she ordered one that had a chain on it, like a purse.
"It was kind of a funny idea that we kind of joked about. We called it a Pursecase," says Coughlan. "But then we looked into it and we found that the domain name and the social media channels were available."
At the time, there weren't a lot of wallet-style cases, and the concept kept coming up in conversation. The pair finally started talking to style bloggers to see if there was a real market for their product.
"We were PR professionals, so we knew we could create buzz," says Coughlan. "Manufacturing was going to be the hard part."
The pair first turned to Kickstarter. Having little experience with manufacturing, Deese and Coughlan thought they would throw the concept up on the crowdfunding site in October and have Pursecases to give to friends and family by Christmas.
"We didn't want to take on investors," says Deese. "We wanted to do Kickstarter because we needed to see if people wanted it."
They launched a campaign to raise the $35,000 they thought they would need as a down payment to start working with a manufacturer.
"Money came in at the beginning, but then it started to trickle," said Coughlan. "Kickstarter has a more male-based audience than we thought, and people don't donate to campaigns that look like they're going to fail. But ultimately we were able to reach our goal, and guys did organically find us and ordered them for their girlfriends."
"It took far longer than we expected," said Deese. "We didn't even have a prototype until January of 2013."
Although the campaign wasn't a huge success, it did get them a small fan base. It also caught the attention of a representative from Dowell International, a Chinese manufacturer that offered them warehousing, importing and a $1 million line of credit.
"Suddenly, we no longer needed the Kickstarter," says Coughlan. "We only had to put down 10 percent and could pay it back after our sales."
Still, the overwhelming nature of launching a product made Deese and Coughlan realize that perhaps they needed a mentor to guide them through the business elements on the horizon, including website sales and customer service.
It was then that a friend who was a casting producer for "Shark Tank" suggested that they apply for the show, which could provide the support of one of the business-savvy sharks along with the publicity they needed to grow. That, coupled with their trip to the Vogue offices, spurred them to take a chance.
"We might as well put our name in the hat," Deese recalls thinking at the time.
They sent in their audition materials and were selected by the producers of the show. The producers worked with Coughlan and Deese for a month on prep but didn't provide them with the questions that would be asked.
"What you see on TV is the first time we were asked all those questions," says Coughlan. "So to prepare, we watched all the episodes and rehearsed all the possible questions and answers. We knew who would answer what. We were prepared for everything, which was an advantage."
Another advantage was all the work they had put into Kickstarter and the brand awareness they’d generated before they appeared on the show.
"We already had $30,000 in preorders, and we had wholesale customers lined up when we went on," says Coughlan. "We wanted one of the 'sharks' to help with sales. We really wanted Lori [Greiner] from QVC."
The partners also knew the amount of investment they were looking for and the percentage of the company they were willing to give up.
"We knew that $55,000 was our threshold. We didn't need the money as much as we needed the publicity," says Coughlan.
The show filmed in July of 2013, and the preparation Deese and Coughlan put in led to a nearly flawless execution of their pitch.
"We got the deal with Lori, and we were thrilled," says Coughlan.
Fortunately, Deese and Coughlan had prepped their website for traffic following the win. Before the air date, Pursecase's best days would bring in around $2,000. When show aired in November of 2013, they did $30,000 worth of business within just 10 minutes of the show ending.
"Lots of sites crash after their product is shown on 'Shark Tank,'" says Coughlan. "Our website was prepared to handle the traffic."
They appeared on QVC the day after their first air date, and they sold 7,000 units via the television shopping network. Soon after, they broke records at a Bloomingdale's trunk show for units sold in that location.
"Being on the show was totally worth it," says Coughlan. "The sales numbers were crazy all week."
The Pursecase has become one of the bestsellers at Kitson, a trendy L.A. chain that caters to celebrities and tourists. Deese and Coughlan were also able to get the product into swag bags at Coachella, which is how starlet Vanessa Hudgensacquired one that she's been photographed with multiple times.
"She uses it to hide her face from the paparazzi," Coughlan says with a laugh. "There are so many pictures of her with her Pursecase in front of her face. It's great publicity."
The company now has one dedicated full-time employee and Deese and Coughlan would eventually like to sell the company as a whole. Until then, they are also looking to license out their design patents to companies like Kate Spade orMichael Kors that might want to make similar cases in their own style.
"We didn't sign up to make Pursecases forever," said Coughlin. "What I like is marketing to people. We're trying to prove the concept."
originally posted in Bizwomen
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