Shark Tank Products That Failed: Causes, Outcomes and Failure Rates

Shark Tank products that failed include ToyGaroo, Body Jac, CATEapp, Foot Fairy and Breathometer, each described in published accounts as having closed, gone offline or been pulled from sale.

What Failed Means Here

The label gets used loosely online. Some lists count a pitch that drew no offer as a failure even when the business carried on. This article keeps those cases apart and notes how firmly each claim is supported, drawing mainly on three published pages, with three claims checked against outside sources.

Four Ways the Word Is Used

Writers apply it to businesses that closed, products that malfunctioned or were withdrawn, pitches that received no offer, and deals that fell apart after the episode aired. Readers who compare lists often find one company filed under failure in one and under missed opportunity in another.

How Claims Are Labeled

Stated in sources means at least one reviewed page says it. Founder account means the version comes from one party. General understanding marks a pattern read across the cases that no single source tested.

Shark Tank Products That Failed After Airing

The last column counts how many of the three pages report the status, not how many agree on cause.

Operations, Sourcing and Cost

Small consumer product companies commonly report that a burst of orders after a media appearance strains stock and cash before it helps.

ToyGaroo

Founder account: toys were hard to source at a workable price, and shipping costs grew because items varied in size under a free shipping model. The other two pages point to inventory, cleaning, shipping and funding.

Foot Fairy

Both pages say the app was buggy and failed to record commission payments, so it earned nothing.

Product Accuracy and Testing

Consumer device makers generally treat accuracy testing as a condition of sale, and Breathometer shows why. Both pages covering it say readings were inaccurate, sometimes far below the true alcohol level, which could encourage someone to drive.

As reported by TechCrunch, the company agreed to a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission that includes refunds for buyers of its two devices. One page says the company is still operating.

Disputes Between Founders and Investors

Terms agreed on air can change once due diligence begins.

Sweet Ballz

Two pages describe a falling out between the founders soon after the deal. One says a lawsuit followed over a suspected competing product, a restraining order was issued and the site went offline for a period.

ShowNo Towels, HyConn and You Smell Soap

Founder account: in all three, the story of what changed comes mostly from the founder. The ShowNo Towels founder says Lori Greiner later asked for seventy percent instead of twenty five. The HyConn founder says Mark Cuban wanted to license the product, which he feared could cost him control of the company.

The You Smell Soap founder waited about six months for an offer that came back reduced, and the page says the delay was costly even though investors may revise terms after due diligence.

Pitches That Drew Objections

One page, Shark Tank Blog, lists many pitches that drew objections or no offer and rarely reports what happened afterward. The site calls itself an opinion blog, so its explanations read as commentary.

Shark Tank Products That Failed to Land Investment

Its objections fall into four groups. Pavlock, Minus Cal and Nootrobox faced questions about evidence. Squirrel Boss, Skinny Mirror, Copy Keyboard and Wired Waffles drew concerns about patents or copying.

Sticky Note, Fish Frenz and His and Hers were questioned over valuation or weak sales. Original Man Candle, Licki Brush, NoPhone, Throx Socks and Pet Paint met doubts about practicality or demand.

Investors reviewing early product pitches generally ask for sales or proof of claims before discussing price. A pitch with no offer says little about later results.

Cases Listed as Failures but Described Differently

Declined Offers

Doorbot, the smart doorbell later known as Ring, turned down an offer of seven hundred thousand dollars for five percent plus a royalty. Both pages covering it say Amazon later bought the company, and, as reported by CNBC, the price was not disclosed but was reportedly more than one billion dollars.

Coffee Meets Bagel turned down thirty million dollars for the whole company, and one page says it kept raising money and reached ten million users. In practice, a declined offer is hard to judge until years of results exist.

A Case Where Pages Disagree

HillBilly Brand shows the problem. One page says the founders sold the whole company to three sharks for seventy five thousand dollars plus royalties and treats it as a failure. Another says that deal fell through and the brand now earns at least one million dollars a year. The pages do not settle which is current.

Shark Tank Failure Rate

Reported Figures

One page reports that twelve of two hundred ten companies in seasons five to nine had failed, about six percent, with around twenty percent operating without a profit. For seasons one to seven, it says about forty three percent of accepted deals fell through, thirty percent were changed and twenty seven percent stayed as agreed.

Limits of the Figures

These figures cover older seasons, and the show has continued since. The same page calls the result a ninety four percent success rate while noting a fifth of companies make no profit, and it cites several different startup failure figures without reconciling them.

Deal estimates also differ. According to Entrepreneur, a podcast host who surveyed almost one hundred contestants estimated that about two-thirds of on-air deals did not close, higher than the page above reports.

Patterns and Takeaways

Why Shark Tank Products Fail

This is general understanding, a reading across the cases that no page tested. Reasons cluster around cost and logistics, product performance, disagreements over terms or control, and thin evidence for claims, often several at once.

What Founders Take From the Cases

The pages draw similar lessons: test that the product works before scaling, plan inventory and cash before an episode airs, and settle deal terms early. Advisers to small product companies tend to suggest the same, though no case proves following it would have changed the outcome.

Conclusion

Failed Shark Tank businesses fall into several groups: closures, pulled products, pitches with no offer and collapsed deals. The pages reviewed often disagree on cause and outcome, and the reported failure rate covers older seasons only. Each claim should be read at the level of support noted.

Frequently Asked Questions

What counts as a failed Shark Tank product?

There is no single definition. Pages use it for closed businesses, withdrawn products, pitches with no offer and collapsed deals. This article keeps the four apart.

Which Shark Tank products failed?

Published accounts describe ToyGaroo, Body Jac, CATEapp, Foot Fairy, Breathometer and You Smell Soap as closed, offline or pulled. Support varies, and some accounts rest on one page.

What percentage of Shark Tank companies fail?

One page reports about six percent for seasons five to nine, plus another twenty percent operating without a profit. The figures cover older seasons and use a narrow meaning of failure.

Does no deal on the show mean the business failed?

No. A pitch with no offer says nothing by itself about later results. Doorbot and Coffee Meets Bagel both left without an accepted deal, and the pages describe both as growing afterward.

Why do Shark Tank deals fall through after filming?

Terms agreed on air can change during due diligence and negotiation. Pages report disputes over equity, royalties, licensing and control, and one reports about forty three percent of accepted deals fell through in seasons one to seven.