By Meg Hodson
Everyone loves a modern day Cinderella story....at least I do. Cinderella gets to go to the ball and leaves her shoe. But what if she left her shoe.....twice? And there was no Prince to rescue her and save the day?
Being a small business owner, writer, blogger, and social media consultant, it's refreshing and inspiring to experience a company's ideas becoming reality and succeeding.
This is a regular occurrence on the popular show Shark Tank. Most of you have probably heard of the reality show on ABC, but here is a quick run down from the show's site to get you up to speed.
Are all entrereneurs truly a success story if they make the show? If they get funding from one of the sharks, are they guaranteed to succeed? If they don't make a deal with the sharks, is there still a chance for success? If they are on the show twice, does it improve their chances?
We may get a few answer this week. Viewers will get an update on some of the most successful companies and CEO's from the show when ABC airs their special "Shark Tank: Swimming With The Sharks". It premieres this Friday, May 2nd, 2014. The show will feature past Shark Tank presenters.....some who did accept deals, some who did not. One of the showcased companies will be Copa Di Vino and their charming CEO, James Martin.
If you're a fan of the show (or maybe you've only watched a few times), the name Copa Di Vino may ring some bells. They were actually featured on the show twice! In both appearances, Martin did not accept any deals from the sharks.
I had the opportunity to visit the winery and meet James recently (you can read my story on Copa Di Vino here). On my visit, I knew they had been on Shark Tank...but that was all I knew. I didn't know what was proposed in the first show, I didn't know what the follow-up show was like, and I actually didn't know whether they had made a deal or not. I didn't want to know too much and intentionally did not Google the story before my visit. I wanted to experience the winery, this new product, and meeting the people behind the company with a clean slate. There were no preconceived impressions.
This idea mirrors perfectly what the panel experiences on Shark Tank. Although I am sure they are judiciously prepped of some basics before the taping of the show, they essentially have not met the entrepreneurs and are also participating with their own clean slate, so to speak.
Yet Copa Di Vino made history by coming on the show a second time! So, the sharks did have some background on the company and had met the CEO before. Did this change their tactics and how they formulated offers? Did Martin approach the process different the second time around? Did it work out for the best that he did not accept an offer again?
I do not know these answers but am anxiously waiting for the premier of the show. I hope you tune in, too. Be sure to join me and a few friends on Twitter throughout the broadcast (in all time zones) of the show. Simply use the hashtag #insidesharktank. To chat about Copa Di Vino specifically, use hashtag #discovercopa.
