pitch unfairly

Cheat Codes · Pitch decks

Scrub Daddy, 2012. Pitched unfairly, 2026.

A smiley sponge, a $1M ask, and the deal the show is known for. Same story, same numbers. Rebuilt the way we'd pitch it today.

Template: Shark Tank pitch

  • $100K for 10%
  • Took $200K for 20%
  • $670M+ sold
Play the 2026 deck Read the real story Steal the structure
2012 Shark Tank pitch

Scrub Daddy

A smiley sponge, a $1M ask, and the deal the show is known for.

Legend
Original craft
Unfair

The story→11 slides

It's a live deck. Press start, then scroll or use the arrow keys, or play it full screen.

Play the 2026 deck

The Scrub Daddy pitch deck, slide by slide

Every slide opens the live deck right where it is.

  1. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 1: $100K for 10% of a sponge that smiles. 01$100K for 10% of a sponge that smiles.
  2. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 2: Asking 10% for $100K says this sponge is worth $1M. 02Asking 10% for $100K says this sponge is worth $1M.
  3. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 3: Every sponge you own is too soft, too scratchy, or too smelly. 03Every sponge you own is too soft, too scratchy, or too smelly.
  4. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 4: Cold water makes it tough. Warm water makes it gentle. 04Cold water makes it tough. Warm water makes it gentle.
  5. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 5: 3M bought his company and left the sponges behind. 053M bought his company and left the sponges behind.
  6. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 6: One supermarket sold 100 times more of these than normal sponges. 06One supermarket sold 100 times more of these than normal sponges.
  7. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 7: It costs $1 to make and sells for $2.80. 07It costs $1 to make and sells for $2.80.
  8. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 8: Every doubt about a sponge already has an answer. 08Every doubt about a sponge already has an answer.
  9. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 9: The bidding doubled the cash and held the $1M price. 09The bidding doubled the cash and held the $1M price.
  10. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 10: He picked the Shark with the shelf space over the cheaper money. 10He picked the Shark with the shelf space over the cheaper money.
  11. Scrub Daddy deck, slide 11: The $1M sponge has sold more than $670M. 11The $1M sponge has sold more than $670M.

Then · 2012

How it really went

Read the real storyEntrepreneur, on the deal economics the week it aired (2012)
  1. Aaron Krause walks into the tank asking $100K for 10% of Scrub Daddy
  2. He demos a smiley sponge that is firm in cold water and soft in warm
  3. The numbers: about $100K in sales, mostly from three QVC appearances
  4. Unit economics: $1 to make, $2.80 wholesale
  5. The money is for his own factory
  6. Lori Greiner and Daymond John bid from $150K for 25%
  7. Kevin O'Leary switches to a royalty: 25¢ a sponge until repaid, then 7.5¢
  8. Lori Greiner offers $200K for 20%, and Krause takes it

Now · 2026 · 11 slides

What we changed

  • The valuation math is liveDrag the cash and the equity and watch the implied valuation, the multiple of sales and five Shark fins react. Price it rich and the fins sink.
  • The demo has a tapTurn the water from cold to warm and the sponge goes from firm to soft on screen, the way it did on the show.
  • The grill fits on one slideSales, cost to make, wholesale price, margin, channel and use of funds: the six questions every Shark asks, answered before they ask.
  • The bidding plays offer by offerStep through the ask, the opening bid, the royalty and the final offer, each priced on the same line, until the deal stamp lands.

Steal the structure

Pitch your company like Scrub Daddy did.

  1. 01 The ask Say the amount and the equity in the first breath. The valuation is the first thing they compute.
  2. 02 The valuation math Show cash divided by equity, before and after the money, and the multiple of sales it implies.
  3. 03 The problem A pain every investor has felt personally, shown in one picture.
  4. 04 The live demo One gesture that makes the product obvious. If it can be touched, let them touch it.
  5. 05 Why you The founder story that explains why you, specifically, found this.
  6. 06 Traction Sell-through, not interest: units per store, per day, against the alternative.
  7. 07 The numbers Sales, cost to make, price, margin, how you find customers, and what the money is for. One slide.
  8. 08 Objections The four doubts they are about to raise, each answered in a line with a fact.
  9. 09 The negotiation Every offer on the same line: cash, equity, implied valuation. Know your walk-away number.
  10. 10 The choice Pick the investor who moves your hardest number, and say why.
  11. 11 The close Say the deal out loud, then the result it should lead to.

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