The popular TV show Shark Tank gathers some of the best-known investors in the business world. The self-made millionaires started from scratch with their own companies but made it into an empire, but who are the sharks on Shark Tank?
Their money and expertise are now invested in the ideas of ambitious founders. The Shark Tank investors don’t only help out financially, but also provide advice and ideas.
The normal length of a pitch or negotiation behind the curtain is 90 minutes. What we see on TV, however, is a 10-minute segment on the pitch. This is good for people trying to build their own company, as we don’t get to see their fear or mistakes. Meeting the Sharks for the first time is not easy.
These are the 6 leading Shark Tank investors:
Mark Cuban
- Born on: July 31, 1958
- Birth Place: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Current net worth: $4.6 billion
- Participation in the Shark Tank show: Seasons 2 – 14
Perhaps the leading Shark in the group is exactly Mark Cuban. The most recognizable of the six Sharks is a self-made, popular billionaire we’ve been able to see ever since Season 2.
Cuban grew up in a family of Jewish immigrants and had a poor childhood. His first encounter with business was at the age of 12 when he sold garbage bags and stamps to help his family. He decided to attend Indiana University, and soon had a degree in management.
This Shark Tank investor is, without a doubt, the richest and most popular participant in the show. He’s got a net worth of $4.6 billion and was ranked in place 247 on Forbes’s 400 Richest Americans list.
Interestingly enough, 80% of all Cuban’s investments are not linked to Shark Tank at all. He focuses on cryptocurrencies and is also known for philanthropic work and donations to the Fallen Patriot Fund. He even owns the Mark Cuban Center for Sports Media and the Cost Plus anti-drug initiative, both dedicated to social causes.
Kevin O’Leary
- Born on: July 9, 1954
- Birth Place: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Current Net Worth: $400 million
- Participation in the Shark Tank show: Seasons 1 – 14
Kevin O’Leary might have somewhat of a reputation as the ‘mean investor’, but you will like him. For the Shark Tank crew, he is simply ‘Mr. Wonderful, and he has been on the show for as long as the show has been around. He has some experience participating in the Canadian equivalent of the show, namely the Dragon’s Den.
Kevin O’Leary learned the most about the business world from his mother. He was interested in investing and starting his own company ever since school, and he always knew how to manage his funds. As he says, the best advice his mum gave him was to only spend dividends of investments, and not the core. So it seems that he never forgot this lesson.
The first money Kevin ever made was from software promotion. He soon developed his brand called Softkey and turned it into an exceptional business model. The company was based in Toronto, and he could only establish it with a $10,000 loan from his mother.
Storage Now was his next breakthrough. This is a company developing climate-controlled facilities for storage. He established it only in 2003. Thanks to successful mergers and acquisitions, the company now operates in 11 cities and serves clients such as Pfizer and Merck. Storage REIT bought it in 2007 for an incredible $110 million.
O’Leary, on the other hand, is now the director and founding investor of Boston’s Stream Global Services and a member of the Shark Tank cast.
Daymond John
- Born on: February 23, 1969
- Birth Place: Brooklyn, New York
- Current Net Worth: $300 million
- Participation in the Shark Tank show: Seasons 1 – 14
Here comes another regular and beloved member of the Shark Tank cast. John has been around for as long as the show has, and triggered 61 deals from the 400+ available pitches. Generally, he belongs to the group of ‘nicer’ Shark Tank investors who listens to everything contestants have to say. It doesn’t come as a surprise. Daymond John is always committed to supporting aspiring entrepreneurs all around the world.
He is also a multi-millionaire. The very first job Daymond John had was as a waiter at Red Lobster. Nevertheless, this helped him build a billion-dollar company, and find his creative side. Shark Tank star Daymond John is, in fact, the owner of FUBU. This brand is worth even $6 billion. No wonder even other Shark Tank cast members trust his advice and expertise.
As Daymond John always says, the secret to everything is learning. In his own words, only ignorance can be more expensive than education.
He is also the co-founder and board member of several foundations, such as UTSA and Petco. Other than the Shark Tank show, he participates in the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship. Philanthropic work is also part of his life – Daymond John is an ambassador of the global Poverty Project and the Global Citizen project.
Robert Herjavec
- Born on: September 14, 1963
- Birth Place: Varazdin, Yugoslavia
- Current Net Worth: $200 million
- Participation in the Shark Tank show: Seasons 1 – 14
A little-known fact about guest Shark Herjavec is that he was born and raised in former Yugoslavia. It is only in the 1970s that his family emigrated to Canada, which gave him the possibility to pursue a career in entrepreneurship. Robert also had to work and help out the family, at first by delivering newspapers and waiting tables. Later on, he started working as a sales agent.
Herjavec studied at Toronto’s new colleague. Interestingly enough, he majored in English Literature, and it is only in 1990 that he made his breakthrough. He was the co-founder of BRAK Systems, the world’s best-known internet security software.
In 2003, he founded the Herjavec Group. Even nowadays, this is one of the fastest-growing tech companies in the country. As he has shown us as part of the Shark Tank cast, he appreciates a good pitch and a well-planned demonstration. We can describe his offers as fair, and foremost focused on cyberspace and internet security software. We’ve also witnessed how the Shark Tank expert overpays a deal just to win over other members of the Shark Tank cast.
Besides his participation on Shark Tank, Herjavec is best known for his bestseller books ‘The Will to Win‘ and ‘Driven‘. He has helped many entrepreneurs with advice and wisdom. His only regret is, he says, not dreaming bigger when he should have.
Lori Greiner
- Born on: December 9, 1969
- Birth Place: Chicago, Illinois
- Current Net Worth: $200 million
- Participation in the Shark Tank show: Seasons 3 – 14
Lori Greiner, or as she is also known – the QVC Queen, is the most warm-blooded Shark tank investor. She has a net worth of $200 million she does qualify as wealthy, but still significantly less than the other Sharks. This, however, didn’t stop her from making most of the investments of the show – she took over even 61 deals, and has invested almost $10,000,000 so far. This accounts for 20% of all investments ever made on the Shark Tank show.
Their first job of Lori Greiner was selling jewelry, where she first discovered her business talent. She is the inventor of a handy plastic organizer for over 100 pairs of earrings. This product was bought by J.C. Penney in 1996, and that’s when her career took off.
Lori Greiner might be rich, but she is also very humble and down-to-Earth. She often speaks of the times when she didn’t have much, and how hard she fought to make it in the business world. She is fond of appealing products and good presentations. At the same time, she has an unparalleled talent for sweet-talking entrepreneurs into accepting her offer over others.
Barbara Corcoran
- Born on: March 10, 1949
- Birth Place: Edgewater, New Jersey
- Current Net Worth: $100 million
- Participation in the Shark Tank show: Seasons 1 – 14
Barbara Corcoran is the favorite Shark Tank investor of many viewers. At the same time, she is a real business guru, popular consultant, and star speaker. Her success has been incredible. She established a massive brokerage company in 1973 (Corcoran Group) which she sold for millions and millions of US dollars.
The Shark Tank star grew up in a family with 10 children and knew even in her earliest days what competition meant. Her dad worked as a printing press foreman, while her mum was a homemaker. The Shark Tank investor struggled through school but seemed to know the values of work ethics. She graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas Colleague in 1971, and nobody foresaw how well her career will develop.
Barbara is the only investor on the Shark Tank cast to have written a book about the show. The book is called Shark Tales: How I Turned $1,000 into a Billion Dollar Business.
As she and Daymond John like to say, success often comes out of failure.
Guest investors on Shark Tank
Next to Daymond John and the cast, the Shark Tank Show also hosted several prominent business icons as guest investors. Some of them are:
- John Paul Dejoria $4 billion (Season 5 – episode 7)
- Maria Sharapova $195 million (Season 11 – episode 13)
- Kevin Harrington $450 million (Seasons 1 and 2)
- Jamie Siminoff $300 million (Season 10 -episodes 1, and 15)
- Richard Branson $4.5 billion (Seasons 9 – episodes 1,10, 24)
- Jeff Foxworthy $100 million (Season 2 – episodes 4 and 7)
- Troy Carter $60 million (Season 7 -episode 3)
- Alex Rodriguez $250 million (Seasons 9, 10, and 12 – episodes 5, 6, 10, 23)
- Steve Tisch $1.2 billion (Season 5 Episode 16)
- Chris Sacca $1 billion (Seasons 7, 8, 9)
- Nick Woodman $300 million (Season 6 -episodes 10, and 29)
- Rohan Oza $200 million (Seasons 9,10, and 11)
- Katrina Lake $380 million (Season 11 -episode 14)
- Matt Higgins $150 million (Seasons 10 and 11)
- Sara Blakely $1 billion (Seasons 9 and 10)
- Bethenny Frankel $70 million (Seasons 9 and 10)
- Alli Webb $100 million (Seasons 10 and 14)
- Charles Barkley $50 million (Season 10 Episodes 4,13)
- Alli Webb $100 million (Seasons 10 and 14)
- Kevin Hart $200 million (Season 13)
- Daniel Lubetzky $1.2 billion (Season 11, episodes 1,6,19,24 and Season 12, episodes 11, 17, 22, 24, Season 13)
- Anne Wojcicki $690 million (11 Episode 8, 21)
- Nirav Tolia $50 million (Season 13)
- Blake Mycoskie $300 million (Season 12 Episode 1)
- Kendra Scott $500 million (Season 12 Episode 2, 14, 20)
- Peter Jones $400 million (Season 13)
- Emma Grede $5 million (Seasons 13)
In Seasons 7 and 14, the Shark Tank show also hosted guest sharks from the movie world.
Alongside Ashton Kutcher whose wealth is estimated at $200 million, season 14 also brought Gwyneth Paltrow.
Gwyneth Paltrow among the guest Sharks
Gwyneth Paltrow was invited to participate in Season 14. The Hollywood actress is not just a prominent Marvel Star, but also a successful businesswoman and founder of the Goop brand.
It was the first time she attended a show of this format, and Shark Tank viewers loved her.
Upcoming: Tony Xu
Tony Xu is another well-known name to have made it among the guest Sharks. We expect to see him in Season 14.
Xu is the co-founder and CEO of DoorDash with a net worth of over $2 billion. DoorDash is a restaurant delivery service which witnessed amazing success since 2013. At the moment, this company is the largest and best-known food delivery chain in the USA. It is based in San Francisco and is also owned by Stanley Tang and Andy Fang.
The Shark Tank show will surprise us with many other guest Sharks. Among them are owners of a learning company, a mail-order record company, and a real estate company.
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