When Poppi cofounder Allison Ellsworth pitched her business with her husband on Shark Tank in 2018, she was nervous, excited—and about to have a baby.
“I was nine months pregnant, so there was the ‘Hey, don’t go into labor on national TV,’” Ellsworth told Fortune.
Ellsworth, 38, originally brewed up the first iterations of what would later become known as Poppi in 2015 by mixing fruit juice, prebiotics, and sparkling water in her kitchen, marketing the drink as a healthier alternative to classic sodas. Today, the viral TikTok sensation now generates over $500 million in annual revenue and was acquired by PepsiCo for $1.95 billion last year.
“A lot of people will say, ‘What would you change from your past?’” Ellsworth said. “Absolutely nothing. Because I sold my company for $1.95 billion and all of those things that happened in my past got me to where I am today.”
How Ellsworth prepared for a successful Shark Tank pitch
In 2018, Ellsworth and her husband, Stephen, took their fledgling startup—then called Mother Beverage—to television, pitching their strategy before Shark Tank investors Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, Rohan Oza, Kevin O’Leary, and Bethenny Frankel.
“What I kept thinking to myself [was], this moment right here could change my life,” Ellsworth told Fortune. “And it absolutely did.”
Getting on Shark Tank was a hurdle in and of itself. Only 0.42% of the applications from Ellsworth’s season were estimated to actually reach the show, and of those who were accepted, slightly over half actually made a deal. That brings the odds of getting on Shark Tank and striking a deal to just about 0.21%. But after deliberations and intense criticism for their plans to manufacture their own bottles, the Ellsworths accepted an offer from Bai Brands Vitaminwater investor Rohan Oza for $400,000 in exchange for a 25% stake in the business.
“We practiced [our pitch] for about six months,” Ellsworth said. “You have to be prepared, walking in and knowing you are going to be nervous.”
The Poppi cofounder believes intensive preparation was crucial to their success on the show: “The more prepared you are, the less nervous you will be.”
Still, according to Ellsworth, it’s these nerves that signal a step in the right direction.
“Honestly, if you’re not nervous, you’re not living, right?” she said. “You’re not pushing yourself. You’re not growing. So nerves can actually be a good thing.”
The preparation paid off. Ellsworth and her husband had the sharks take a shot of apple cider vinegar before pitching their own drink, which has similar health benefits with none of the sour taste. After a successful pitch, Ellsworth welcomed her baby boy just ten days later.
From startup to shark
Two years after the Shark Tank deal, Ellsworth and her team rebranded the drink with a new name and its signature bright, bold colors. But it wasn’t just the new packaging that made the beverage a household name—Poppi saw sales skyrocket after Ellsworth posted a TikTok explaining how she earned a deal on Shark Tank, generating $100,000 in sales in 24 hours.
The newfound notoriety helped propel Poppi to top spot among soda brands on Amazon, and last year, Ellsworth’s company had perhaps the biggest break of them all when Fortune 500 giant PepsiCo acquired Poppi for nearly $2 billion. While not explicitly disclosed, it’s estimated the acquisition has made Ellsworth a multimillionaire.
Ellsworth is now sharing her business know-how with future entrepreneurs, returning to Shark Tank last month, this time as a guest shark. She even partnered with investor and entrepreneur Lori Greiner on an offer of $250,000 for 20% equity in Rip Tie Hair, a hair tie product preventing athletes and swimmers from getting knots in their hair while they exercise (Greiner was also a shark when the Ellsworths pitched in 2018; she said she’d “be a customer but I won’t be a partner” and rejected the deal).
“Something that I really noticed with all of the other sharks is they all really care about the entrepreneur,” Ellsworth said of the experience. “I had a lot of empathy for that person that stood right there, and I feel like it’s the full circle moment that is actually the American Dream.”
Building a business post-Poppi
Ten years after inventing Poppi, Ellsworth knows a thing or two about how to create a successful product—and for her, the key is all about authenticity.
“Something that you should throw out the window is perfection,” she said. “You don’t need the perfect brand. You don’t need the perfect product. You don’t need the perfect idea. You just need to start. Start awkwardly, start messy.”
Ellsworth’s mindset and intense preparation is echoed by other Shark Tank success stories. Jamie Siminoff, founder and CEO of Ring, told Fortune in March that once he landed a spot on Shark Tank, he treated his pitch like an Olympic event.
“Once we got on [Shark Tank], I was like, ‘I’m training now. I’m Shaun White, training for the Olympics.’ No stone will be unturned,” he said.
Ellsworth also partially credits her own awkwardness for her Shark Tank pitch success.
“I just put everything out there, awkwardly, authentically and myself,” she said. “And it did change my life.”
Being authentic doesn’t have to mean taking everything seriously, either.
“The worst business advice I’ve ever received is to not be myself, to change who I was, be more professional,” Ellsworth said. “I think you should be yourself. I think fun fuels success.”
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