Entrepreneurs Caroline Matthes and Rose Fierman pitched their lighting solution during
If you’re short on time, here’s a quick overview of what happened to Poplight after
Caroline Matthes and Rose Fierman appeared on
| Shark: | Result: |
| Kevin O’Leary | Accepted deal for $150,000 for 8% equity, plus $2 per unit royalty $500,000 is made back. Then, the royalty drops to $1 per unit, in perpetuity |
| Barbara Corcoran | $100,000 as cash, plus $50,000 as a line of credit. Plus a $12 per unit royalty in perpetuity |
| Robert Herjavec | No offer |
| Lori Greiner | No offer |
| Mark Cuban | No offer |
Shark Tank’s Poplight Pitch
- Entrepreneurs: Caroline Matthes and Rose Fierman
- Business:Renter friendly lighting
- Ask:$150,000 for 8% equity
- Result: $150,000 for 8% equity, plus $2/unit royalty until $500,000 is made back. Then $1/unit royalty in perpetuity
- Shark:Kevin O’Leary
Founders of Poplight, Caroline Matthes and Rose Fierman understand how difficult installing lights can be, so they came up with a smart solution. They invented Poplight, which is essentially a wall sconce that sticks right to the wall.
Installation doesn’t require any tools, and the lights are installed in seconds. The base has stick strips that stick to the wall and it also has a built-in level to make sure the light isn’t crooked. If you get tired of the light or want to move it, the stick strips are easily removable and do not damage the wall.
You simply place the base where you want it, then twist on the light. It runs on a rechargeable, USB battery, and you can turn the light on and off by just tapping it.
However, if that isn’t easy enough for you, the light can also be controlled by an app that the ladies created. Further, the light is also dimmable, either manually or from the app.
At the time of filming, the ladies reveal that they are only in the prototype stages. Likewise, the products that they present to the sharks are from their first round of tooling.
In terms of cost, they will retail for $95 a piece. Additionally, it costs $30 landed to manufacture each light. Overall, this gives them a profit margin of around 68%.
Barbara Corcoran questions how long the charge of the light lasts. It turns out, that it takes around 4 hours to charge, and will then last between 5-9 hours, depending on how bright the light is.
That said, the light can be left plugged in, making this a nonissue. Lori Greiner wants to know if their product is the only one like it.
Apparently, nothing else just like it exists, according to the entrepreneurs. They said they needed it, but couldn’t find it, so ultimately had to create it themselves.
They hold a design patent on Poplight, and then two pending patents on the technology that is involved. More specifically, one is for the way that the light swivels and pops onto the base, while the other is for the tape on the base.
In terms of sales, they completed a Kickstarter campaign at the beginning of the year, raising a little over $170,000 in 4 weeks. They happened to also meet their goal in just around 20 minutes of the campaign being live.
However, the problem that they’re running into is inventory. At the time of their pitch, they are slated to run out of their first run of the product in about 4 months.
They have not shipped any orders yet, including about $5,000 in sales that have recently come in through their new website.
Kevin O’Leary has heard enough and offers $150,000 for 8% equity, plus a $2 per unit royalty until he makes back $500,000. Then, the royalty drops to $1 in perpetuity.
Barbara offers $150,000 for no equity, but she does want a $20 per unit royalty. The royalty would be in perpetuity.
Robert Herjavec loves the product but thinks they’ll figure things out without him. He also encourages the ladies to take Kevin’s offer, however, as for him, he’s out.
Lori Greiner is too hesitant about the marketplace for such a product. Therefore, she is also out.
Mark Cuban also drops out, because he feels there are too many unknowns with the product at this point.
With that, the ladies decide to counter Barbara for a $12 per unit royalty. Barbara comes back with $100,000 in cash, with $50,000 as a credit line and a $12 royalty.
They then decide to counter Kevin, asking him to do the $2 per unit until he makes back $350,000, instead of $500,000. However, he declines.
In the end, they decide to accept Kevin’s offer. Keep reading our Poplight update to find out what happens next for the company!
Shark Tank Poplight Update
We reached out to Caroline and Rose for our Poplight update, and they were kind enough to do an interview with us!
“It’s so inspiring to see entrepreneurs share who they are and what they’re doing,” Rose told us. “Shark Tank reached out to us and we felt like we couldn’t say no,” Caroline added.
After the episode aired, Caroline told us that Poplight experienced a 1,500% increase in orders! “We’ve also been able to connect with a much broader community of people across our social channel,” Rose added.
While the deal with Kevin hasn’t closed yet, Rose and Caroline are hopeful that it will go through. “Because of the rush that comes with your air date, we’ve had to just focus on operations, but we are still working with Kevin to get our deal through,” Caroline and Rose told us.
Going forward, the duo told us that they’re already working on designing the next Poplight style and plan to introduce even more colors.
Poplight is still in the presale stage, but plan to begin shipping in May 2024. Products are available for preorder on the Poplight website and are available in 6 color options.
We’d like to thank Caroline and Rose for taking the time to give us a Poplight update. The future looks very bright and we can’t wait to see what’s next!
Before you go, check out our other company updates from Season 15 Episode 11 by following the links below!
- The Table Tyke Update
- Like Air Puffcorn Update
- The Duo Update
For even more on companies and products, be sure to stop by our Season 15 Products Page before you go!
Jennifer Shelan
Website | + posts
Jennifer is an avid Shark Tank fan that has been watching the show for years. She serves as Senior Editor at Shark Tank Recap and ensures that all our information is accurate and that our posts are up to date. Her favorite Shark Tank products are Le-Glue and Ring!
