Speaker A
I'm Steve Gadlin, and my company is I Want to Draw a Cat for You.
Steve Gadlin pitches 'I Want to Draw a Cat for You' on Shark Tank, showcasing quirky cat drawings and securing a deal with Mark Cuban.
Key Takeaways
- Unique, creative business ideas can attract investment despite unconventional models.
- High profit margins and viral marketing can drive small but sustainable sales.
- Personal branding and creativity are both assets and potential risks for business scalability.
- Effective PR and partnerships (like Groupon) can significantly boost sales and visibility.
- Investor skepticism focuses on scalability and reliance on the founder's personal involvement.
Summary
- Steve Gadlin presents his business 'I Want to Draw a Cat for You,' offering custom cat drawings for $9.95 each with high profit margins.
- He demonstrates his creative process and explains the viral appeal and customer engagement through unique, personalized cat art.
- Steve highlights his low overhead as a web developer and his plans to expand into greeting cards and e-commerce growth.
- The Sharks question the scalability and dependence on Steve's personal creativity but acknowledge his unique approach and PR success.
- Steve shares his successful Groupon campaign that sold out quickly, boosting sales and brand awareness.
- Despite some Sharks opting out, Mark Cuban offers $25,000 for 33% equity, which Steve accepts, marking a significant partnership.
- The video also briefly introduces another pitch from a couple with an innovative cat toy product, showing the diversity of pet-related startups on the show.
- The transcript includes timestamps for key moments, from the cat drawing pitch to discussions on business strategy and investor feedback.
Chapters
- 00:00Introduction and Cat Drawing Pitch
- 01:38Business Model and Profit Margins
- 02:48Creative Process and Production Capacity
- 03:51Partnership and Business Vision
- 04:57Marketing and Groupon Success
- 05:59Investor Reactions and Offers
- 07:23Deal with Mark Cuban and Closing
- 08:34Next Pitch: Innovative Cat Toy Introduction
Full Transcript — Download SRT & Markdown
Speaker A
I'm seeking a $10,000 investment in exchange for 25% of my company. Little music maestro. Hey there, sharks. My name is Steve. I got an offer that you won't believe. For the low, low price of just 10 grand, you get a quarter of my company, understand?
Speaker A
You go to my site, you describe a cat. I draw it, I mail it.
Speaker A
It's as easy as that. I'd invest if I were you, and I want to draw a cat for you. I'll draw you a cat that's short and fat. I'll draw you a cat with a pork pie hat. I'll draw you a cat, whatever
Speaker A
the vibe. I draw the cat that you describe. I want to draw a cat for you. I want to draw a cat for you. I want to draw a cat for you. I want to draw a cat for you. Well done. Love the dancing. Thank you. Oh, my God. I saw. That's
Speaker A
my signature move. Now, by now, I'm sure you're asking yourself, how did this idiot make his way into the Shark Tank? Well, let me tell you. There is an economy for stupid, and I am overflowing with it. Now, with their universal
Speaker A
appeal, my cat drawings are poised to be the next pet rock. I charge people $9.95 for my cat drawings. $9.32 of that is profit. I took the liberty of drawing some cats for each of you, ones I thought you might order
Speaker A
if you came to my website. So, Robert, I know you're into fast cars. Thank you, Steve. Barbara, you just closed the deal and you're looking fabulous. Vroom, vroom. Mr.
Speaker A
Wonderful, you are taking your morning bath in your tub of cash. Damon, here's a fancy man about town. And Mark, congratulations on your championship. Thank you, sir.
Speaker A
I have customers who've bought enough of these drawings to start their own cat drawing gallery. Why are people buying them? People ask for their dead pets. They want to draw about their breakup. Or sometimes they have cats fighting an octopus and a T-Rex
Speaker A
on the moon. So they're trying to test you for like bizarro stuff too. Yeah, part of it is, hey, they know this is going to go up on the website. They want to show off their crazy ideas. So you post all these drawings
Speaker A
on the website. Yeah, and then they share them with their friends. And then their friends come and they purchase cat drawings to outdo one another. And there are some people who take this very seriously. You draw these yourself? I draw these myself. I
Speaker A
sit down at a table and I take this person's very personal request, let it play around in my head for about a minute, and then I can knock one of these out in about two minutes. How leverageable is that? How many can you
Speaker A
draw in a day? I can draw about 25 of these in an hour. In a week, I can knock out about a thousand of these. But that's just with me doing this by myself. You know, as this business grows, because of the profit
Speaker A
margin, it starts to pay for its own growth. So the really nice thing about this is I'm a web developer. When I'm not drawing cats, I'm building websites. So I don't have that overhead that any other company would have. What are your sales
Speaker A
today? Okay, I've sold over 1,200 of these cats. In what period of time? This is about a year. Steve, what do you do with my $10,000 if I give it to you? What I first like to do is build on my e-commerce platform
Speaker A
that I have and grow it even further. The other thing I want to do is start dabbling into things like greeting cards. I love the shtick, I love the dancing. Barbara was getting excited when you turned your behind. So it's all very exciting.
Speaker A
But how does this go from $9,000 to $100,000? Well, here's the leap of faith.
Speaker A
Working with me on this, you're partnering with one of the most creative minds, period.
Speaker A
I strike gold in very unpredictable ways. What you guys bring to that is the business acumen to take those ideas. We have a fun little marriage there, and I believe my ideas are billion-dollar ideas. Steve, the problem is every business model is all
Speaker A
about Steve. Nothing wrong with that, but... What happens if you're walking outside and a meteorite crushes you into road pizza? Steve, you've convinced me you're a very creative guy, but am I buying into Steve the creative guy and taking a leap of
Speaker A
faith and saying, let's go, baby, we'll figure out the business tomorrow? Or are you trying to sell me the cat business? I'm trying to sell you the cat business and a partnership with me. I have so many ideas which will seem at face
Speaker A
value equally as stupid as this. So obviously PR is the big push, because you're not out there spending money to drive people to your website. Yeah, there are no cat drawing fairs. So tell me about the publicity process. So I'm a real hustler
Speaker A
for everything I do. I tend to bring a lot of press attention to what I do on a local level. I emailed Groupon. I knew they had a cat mascot. And I said, hey, I draw cats. Do you guys want to do a
Speaker A
Groupon for this? I got a response the next day. And then on Black Friday, we launched it, and it was one of their most successful. It sold out very quickly. And how many did you commit to do? Well, the nice thing about Groupon
Speaker A
is 1,000 people said, I'm buying. But only about half of them ever actually redeemed those Groupons. So you got to keep the money. Exactly. Look, very interesting, really small dollars. Not investable from my point of view. Can I tell you something, Kevin? You
Speaker A
know what I'm about to say. Just let him go out. I want you to go out, and then I want you to go back to your hotel tonight, put your head on your pillow. I promise you, the last thing that's going through your
Speaker A
head before you go to sleep is I want to draw a cat for you.
Speaker A
I want to draw a cat for you. I beg you, please, let me do this. I'm out. Okay. I accept it, and I'd like to counter, if I could.
Speaker A
So, Steve, you've done a phenomenal job of... But does it worry you that after all this PR, that the net result is 7,000?
Speaker A
I'm out. These guys just don't get it. I get it. I love your creativity.
Speaker A
Thank you. I'll give you 25 grand for 33%. Just say yes. 25 grand, 33%. Oh, man. Because if you say no, that means you don't really want to work. I'm interested. I'm interested.
Speaker A
Hold on. I'm the one that knows technology. Don't fall for this dirty trick. He's done it before. I'm not going to go in a bidding war with a cat guy. Steve, you've got to make a call here. No, Mark, I would love to
Speaker A
partner with you on this. I want to ask one thing. What's that? Maybe one in a thousand cats. Will you pitch in and draw it for me? Yes. You've got to do it. Done! What? I love it. You're hysterical. Thank you very much.
Speaker A
Like this? Hit it. Turn around. That is ugly. No, it's not. It's good. I love you. Thank you. Congratulations. We're going to do great. We're going to make a lot of money. Can't wait to work with you.
Speaker A
Thank you so much, Mark. Take care. I don't care how hard you look. You cannot find talented people like that who have the vision and have the guts, right? And the enthusiasm. You gotta make a lot of money with him. I love
Speaker A
it. It's hilarious to me that a silly little joke I started a long time ago has come far enough to where Mark Cuban just became a business partner of mine. Holy freaking cow, that's awesome. Oh my gosh. First into the tank is a couple
Speaker A
with an innovation in pet products. PBX Pet Design. And today, we're asking for $300,000 for 15% of our company.
Speaker A
Now, Jason and I are of the generation that grew up online with computers, so naturally, we met online. We eventually got married, and you know what happens next. We adopted more cats. The problem with cat toys today, it's this.
Speaker A
They're cute, they're colorful, but when you take them home, your cats play with them for about five minutes. These guys are basically throwaway. Instead, you can walk into a pet shop and there'll be an entire aisle dedicated to the wellness
Speaker A
of your cat with products that enhance your kitty's lifestyle and really help you improve your relationship with your cat. Well, that's what we are doing at PDX Pet Design.
Speaker A
For our first product, we created Shrew, the intelligent cat companion. As you can see in the video, Shrew
Speaker A
your little tiger. It's basically going to be your cat's new BFF. we looked at the fact that cats groom each other as a form of social bonding. There's also evidence to suggest that your cat thinks you're a big cat, not
Speaker A
a human. So why should you be left out of their intimate bonding ritual? Well, with Licky Brush, you don't have to be left out anymore. Licky Brush is a tongue-shaped brush you can use to finally lick your cat, just like
Speaker A
a mama cat licks her young. No, you're not gonna stick that in your mouth, are you?
Speaker A
Kevin, demonstrate how it's done. You're joking. Oh, they're freaks. I'm not joking. You're joking. So who wants to join us on the quest to improve kitty lives?
Speaker A
We're gonna give each of you guys a cat and a licky brush and a shrew so you can test it out. Oh, no, you're not. Oh, yes, we are.
Speaker A
I want a cat. What's the name of the cat? Chestnut. Chestnut is now psychologically disturbed. Robert, if you could take a cat. Jason, what happened, man? What happened to you, man? This has been a viral hit. I admit it has. I'll try it with the real cat.
Speaker A
So you just put it in your mouth and you want to lick her with the grain, right? You don't want to go against the grain. As any pet owner knows. Oh my god. Yes, you just hold her nice and tight. There you go.
Speaker A
Nicely done. Oh my god. I hate myself so much right now. People use it and they say this is a wonderful bonding experience with their animal. But like, what's the difference if you were to put this in your mouth and lick the cat? Yeah, I'm just brushing her. She likes that.
Speaker A
Then it's just a brush. Okay, guys, I want to take it seriously because you asked for $300,000 before I saw you lick a cat with this. Well, we don't know what their sales are. How many did you sell? To
Speaker A
date, we have sold about $250,000 worth of shrew and about $52,000 worth of lick your brush. We have five other designs in the pipeline right now, and we think they're going to be equally viral. We know how to talk to people on the internet about CADs. What did you guys do before
Speaker A
Lickety Split? Well, I'm an electrical engineer by trade, which makes perfect sense. Jason's created Shrew and Licky Brush himself. We have not outsourced any of the contracting, the engineering.
Speaker A
We do everything. And I work on the business management side of it. Actually, I went to the University of Waterloo, Mr. Wonderful. You did? Yeah. And then I went on to explore a PhD in neuroscience. Are you a Canadian? Sure am. She's targeting
Speaker A
you. She thinks you might be a cat. I'm gonna make sure they throw you out of the country. Did we ever ask you how much it sells for? No, you haven't. Okay. The MSRP today is $119. $119? It has a computer
Speaker A
inside. Are you kidding? There's a lot of technology inside of here. It's reconfigurable. What's the Licky Brush sell for? Pre-order is $19. MSRP is gonna be $25. That's more like it. That's cool. Guys, can you just give me, for this year, combined what
Speaker A
total sales will be in your forecast between the liquor and the egg? Our projected sales for this year are $180,000. So what would make you think that you could price this business at over $2 million in valuation? We're really focused on future revenues.
Speaker A
So it's... So we can give you the money five years from now. You can, but I'm gonna be looking for a lot more because I know we're gonna double our revenue next year and the year after and the year after. I've never heard
Speaker A
anybody say, I promise we're gonna fail. This is so crazy. I mean, it's just...
Speaker A
Well, you guys know as soon as this episode airs, this episode's gonna go viral.
Speaker A
I want to explain to you something really important. Everybody says, I want to go viral. I'm going to go viral. We did. We did. You said you went viral.
Speaker A
We had like 20 million views. But your sales from that was $250,000 on the one and 52 on the other. For going viral, I think it should be higher.
Speaker A
I'm out. Thank you, Lori. I appreciate that. I have to tell you, sales aren't there. I'm sorry I'm out. Thank you, Robert. Listen, I wish you wouldn't have asked so much so soon. You only really have a little proof of
Speaker A
concept. I don't know how I get around that number. Everybody has the same problem.
Speaker A
You asked for too much. I'm just thinking I go back to my office, meet my team, say I gave them 300 grand, and I stick this in my mouth, and they look at me and say, I'm getting a job somewhere else now. Well,
Speaker A
that's just one product, though. It's impossible to get back to 30. Guys, I'll simplify it. Look, you've had fun with it. Obviously you've owned it, so it's become more than just a business, right? It's part of your personality looking for a big break.
Speaker A
You didn't price this asking for a big break. If you guys had come in and said, you know what? Believe in us, 50 grand for 20% of the company, we all grow together. Yeah, I think we'd all be in it. Then somebody could
Speaker A
take a flyer. Yeah. But $300K, that's too much, and for those reasons, I'm out.
Speaker A
Thank you, Mark. You know, it just reminds me of an old story. A cop, an old school Irish cop, he's walking down the block, a woman runs up to him, oh my God, my cat's in the tree. He looked up in the tree
Speaker A
and he said, lady, you see any cat skeletons hanging around up in the tree?
Speaker A
Sooner or later, the cat's gonna come down. They'll have to work it out. We can't help with that valuation. You're gonna have to work it out by yourself. I'm out. Thank you, Damon. Thank you, Damon. So, Mr. Wonderful, we haven't heard from you.
Speaker A
I tell you, I'm worried about my daughter, my son would look at me saying, what happened to you, Dad? Why did you do that? Well, we made you a lot of money. You're not worth $300,000 now. It's just too much money for this.
Speaker A
I'm out. Guys, I just want to say how happy I am that you met each other. Thank you, Kevin, so much. We wish you good luck. Of course, we're disappointed. Everyone wants to get a deal. But we also have backup plans. We have
Speaker A
pending POs. We are going to build this company, and so this isn't the end.
Speaker A
That was crazy. Why do I do Shark Tank? Because you never know when someone's gonna lick a cat.
Speaker A
Next up is a technological solution for optimizing brain performance. Hi, Sharks. I'm Allison. And I'm Ken. And we're the brains behind one of the hottest devices in the world. We're looking for a $200,000 investment for 10% of our
Speaker A
company. Sharks, nowadays everyone is searching for ways to increase productivity, focus, and performance. To get a boost, students, professionals, video gamers, and athletes are all consuming too much caffeine and sugary snacks. These chemical stimulants raise the heart rate and travel through the entire body, but only a small bit of the
Speaker A
stimulant makes its way to the brain. What if there were a smarter way to get a similar boost of energy using a new emerging technology? Well, now there is. Introducing lifted neurostimulation. Lifted utilizes a process called transcranial direct current stimulation, or
Speaker A
TDCS. Our device uses a mild electric current that passes through two electrodes placed on the upper forehead area known as the frontal lobe, a part of the brain that, when stimulated, has been shown to increase focus, attention, and memory.
Speaker A
A stimulation session lasts 20 minutes once a day while a user is performing a task. like studying for an exam, playing a video game, or reading a book.
Speaker A
Designed by a world-class neuroscience team, Lifted is easy to use, lightweight, stylish, and well-positioned to become the coffee of the future.
Speaker A
Sharks, who's ready to get productive? Get focused and get lifted. Sharks, we would love to do a Lifted stimulation session And it's safe. We're not gonna get electrocuted. It is so safe. Okay, so what you have in front of you is a kit that has everything that you will
Speaker A
need to do a lifted stimulation session. So if you open the kit and you'll pull out the device. This device. That's the device. And you turn it over, you'll see there are two black electrodes. And what we're gonna do is there are sponges
Speaker A
in front of you. Right in front of you that are in a saline solution.
Speaker A
put them inside your electrodes, and then you're ready to go. I'm gonna put this on Allison's head, okay? And then what do we do? Okay, so then you're gonna put it on your forehead. This is freaking me out. Grab
Speaker A
your sponges in there. All right, I'm gonna hold mine, okay? Everybody reach for the button. Press that down for two seconds. Hold it for two seconds, and you'll hear a beep. Does everybody hear a beep? Ooh, I'm a robot.
Speaker A
I can feel it. It's ramping up for 30 seconds. I feel like I'm being shocked. That's what TDCS, it's a little prickly and tingly. I feel it in my upper teeth, too. It stings a little bit. I don't feel that same stimulus like
Speaker A
with a coffee or anything. Like, is it immediate? So this device, you are supposed to be doing something to get your brain working and focusing on something, and that's how you improve your focus. Well, I'm gonna ramp it down, guys.
Speaker A
something won't go wrong. Well, first of all, that's a great question. DDCS is backed by 5,000 published studies. They're using it for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's.
Speaker A
Any evidence it works? For epilepsy. What is it doing for those things specifically? The brain has billions of neurons. And in those billions of neurons, most are dormant.
Speaker A
So when you're doing a stimulation session and you're doing, for example, a spreadsheet, what's happening is called neuroplasticity. That means the more you do that, the more those neurons are likely to fire the next time you do it. When all sharks, this is
Speaker A
a notice to all sharks. Warnings for lifted neurostimulation. Read along with me, sharks. Do not use if you have any electronic implanted medical device, a metal plate in the brain or head, a pacemaker or defibrillator. Do not use if you have epilepsy,
Speaker A
seizures, brain lesions, or severe heart disease. Do not use if you have sensitive skin or a rash, broken skin or open wounds such as sores, cuts, or pimples. Do not use while driving, drinking, operating machinery, or any situation where you may be impaired.
Speaker A
has no medical benefit and is not intended to protect or treat any medical conditions.
Speaker A
We're not making any medical claims. I'm not saying you're making claims, but the point is, if it has no medical benefit, what's the point? Mark, you know neuroscience. This is for cognitive benefit. It's for focus, attention, and memory. You're very, very passionate about
Speaker A
this. It's clear. Why are you so passionate about this, and why did you decide to do this product? I've always had an eye for product. I was National Salesman of the Year for Hasbro at 23 years old. Also, when I was in college,
Speaker A
I sold solar hats on the streets of DC. I introduced General Mills to the two-piece spoon in the lid that was on Columbo yogurt, if you remember that. I get it, Ken. I get it. Keep it going. Keep on going. You've got a
Speaker A
lot of energy, but I want to go back to hear me. I just want to ask a question. We got best product. I got best product of the year.
Speaker A
Ken, you came to the Shark Tank for an investment. You won't let the investors talk. I've traveled to every trade show in the world. I've come to go on to Consumer Electronics for 30 years. I'm going to press that button on your head
Speaker A
in a second. I have to ask a question, okay? Please, just, okay, listen. Ken, how much have you sold of this? We have sold 1,240 pieces. Since October 1st. We are here. How much do they sell for? They're landed for $22 with
Speaker A
duty all in, and they sell for $149. So how many dollars is that, Ken?
Speaker A
$126,000. Here's the problem for me. I have never created or been a part of or invested in any products that make claims that have to do with physical things, like you'll lose weight, you'll look better.
Speaker A
I have to feel that I can show efficacy 100%, so I steer clear. So for those reasons, I'm out. Okay, thank you. I accept the fact that you were a great salesman because you were telling me that, but I can't justify the great
Speaker A
salesman with the absolutely horrific presentation you did today. But Robert. You did nothing but come out here and talk. Talk. Right. And you were like a machine gun. Your job is to get me to share that passion. And the way to
Speaker A
not do that is just to talk over everybody. The nicest thing I can say to you today is I'm out. OK. I do not doubt for one second that you believe every single thing you shared, and it may well be true. I cannot connect to stuff, and I cannot invest in
Speaker A
stuff that I cannot connect to, and for that reason, I'm out. And I appreciate that. This is a dream to be here. We did this, and we're here today, and this is a major... Good for you, Ken. It's a major home run for
Speaker A
us. Ken. Yes. Silence for one moment. Yes. I have a headache, and I don't know whether it's you or my session on the lifting. I believe you're a great sales guy. I really do. And you're very passionate, that's clear. But you're now in
Speaker A
the lexicon of the craziest pitches ever on Shark Tank. I can't join you guys.
Speaker A
But Kevin, I'm out. Guys, look, you tried to sell science without using science. And for that reason, I'm out. Good luck. We appreciate it. Thank you.
Speaker A
Bye-bye. Bye. The Sharks... are gonna regret that they did not invest in Lifted. It's a multi-billion dollar category and it helps people. And we've got that device and we can't wait to keep growing this particular brand. Lifted is here to stay.
Topics:Shark TankI Want to Draw a Cat for YouSteve GadlinMark Cubancustom cat drawingscreative businessviral marketingGroupon campaignpet productsstartup pitch
