What Happened to Zoobean After Shark Tank?
What is Zoobean?
Zoobean is a company that encourages reading and literacy via education. Their goods are divided into four categories based on their intended audience: libraries, schools, consumers, and companies.
Some of their product offerings include Beanstack for Libraries, software that helps track data and increase student engagement, Badge Books, reading logs and sticker books for children, and Hourglass, a smart night light that is app-connected to quantify home reading time.
The business was co-founded by Felix Brandon and Jordan Lloyd Bookey, who serve as Executive Officer and Chief Client Success Officer, respectively.
Felix earned a bachelor’s degree in television, radio, and film from Syracuse University and a master’s degree in fiction writing from Washington University in St. Louis.
Who is the founder of Zoobean?
The company was founded by Felix Brandon and Jordan Lloyd Bookey, who serve as Executive Officer and Chief Client Success Officer, respectively.
Felix earned a bachelor’s degree in television, radio, and film from Syracuse University and a master’s degree in fiction writing from Washington University in St. Louis.
After finishing his studies, he worked in a variety of creative and instructional positions until co-founding Zoobean in 2013.
Felix and Jordan discussed co-founding a company one night after reading their child a bedtime story.
The book they were reading included an interracial family that looked exactly like theirs, and their child pointed to one of the images and claimed that the family looked exactly like theirs.
Inspired by this little but meaningful occasion, the couple set out to offer equivalent representation to other families that may look a little different from what is typically depicted in the media.
The Zoobean team, which comprises educators, librarians, and parents, matches’ books and apps to each child’s needs and interests.
Zoobean makes money in two ways: through the Smart List service, which recommends books and apps for you to buy, and through the subscription service, which sends you books on a monthly basis.
What Happened to Zoobean’s pitch on Shark Tank?
Felix Brandon Lloyd and Jordan Lloyd Bookey, two Washington D.C. parents, hope the Sharks love Zoobean, their system that recommends books and applications for youngsters according on their interests.
Felix, a former D.C. teacher of the year, and Jordan, a former Google Head of K-12 Education, want Zoobean to become a “Pandora for children’s applications and literature.” They make a proposal in Shark Tank Season 5 Episode 29. Felix and Jordan are looking for Sharks cash to help them with some marketing.
In Shark Tank episode 523, Felix and Jordan entered the pitch seeking for $250,000 in return for a 15% stake in their Zoobean Company, which worth $1.7 million.
Kevin O’Leary immediately brings up the subject of customer acquisition fees. According to Jordan, the cost of obtaining a customer was around $6.03.
They had 85 subscribers at the time of the show’s filming after being online for two months.
Lori asks if the site fills a need, and Mark Cuban responds by asking if there was a secret sauce, an unique aspect of the business.
Lori says that the service isn’t unique enough. She exits. Barbara Corcoran concurs with Lori’s assessment. She went out. Robert Herjavec was close behind.
Kevin O’Leary was “trying to find a way to get thrilled” since “this is my area,” but he can’t get beyond the cost of customer acquisition. He exits.
According to Mark Cuban, “trusted duration is the future.” He debates the value of the service with the other Sharks.
He’d want to know if the service may be expanded beyond books. He believes Zoobean may be used to pick TV shows, as well as other things including books. He was willing to make a $250,000 offer for 30% equity shares.
Mark decides to meet the entrepreneurs halfway with a counter-offer of $250,000 for 20% equity shares.
They strike a deal for $250,000 in exchange for 25% equity in the company and walk out of the Tank with a Shark deal.
What Happened to Zoobean After Shark Tank?
Zoobean delayed a year after obtaining the deal to reveal it, keeping it a secret for nearly a year until the episode premiered.
Because of the delay, they had plenty of time to develop their web presence and extend their product offerings. They were able to incorporate further personalization features as well as Smart List, a Web-based suggestion engine.
The contract had been revised to a 16 percent equity stake for Mark Cuban by the time the show aired, and the couple had received an additional $500,000 in finance from other investors.
They had learned by the time their program aired that curating children’s books was not a feasible economic plan.
Beanstack ultimately changed its name and switched its marketing emphasis away from individual families and toward schools, libraries, and other children’s service groups.
Beanstack is online software that helps children who struggle with reading. The reformation of the firm appears to have been a success, and the company is continuously developing. In 2015, they offered the Beanstack curriculum to its first library.
In 2017, they were in 20 school districts and approximately 600 libraries. They had reached more than half of all US libraries by 2019 and had created a smartphone app for consumers.
Amazon’s Alexa Fund also made an investment in the startup in 2019. In anticipation of the Covid-19 outbreak in 2020, they created free reading challenges via their Beanbright platform to reduce learning loss.
As a result, the platform attracted additional libraries. They are still doing well as of December 2021, with yearly revenues of $5 million.
Zoobean’s Competitors
Zoobean’s main competitors include Apptegy, QDOOZ, Rah Rah, and StudySmarter.
Zoobean’s Net Worth
During the pitch, the firm was valued at $1.7 million; following Mark Cuban’s investment, the company was valued at $1 million; and after negotiation, the company was valued at $1.6 million.
Since then, the firm has performed admirably, with annual revenues exceeding $5 million as of December 2021.
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Zoobean FAQs
How can I pay with a credit card on Zoobean?
Zoobean offers free, secure credit card payments on their website.
Is Zoobean’s service free?
Zoobean is totally free to use. There are no hidden costs, such as a subscription fee or fillers. Plus, Zoobean is a “data-agnostic” company and will not attach extra costs on your child’s account.
What kinds of books are recommended on Zoobean?
Smart Lists is a collection of books and apps that match child’s interests.
How is Zoobean different from other kid’s apps?
Everything about the child is kept confidential. Unlike other subscription services, Zoobean does not show them the products their child has already downloaded, nor does it track them.
What’s Zoobean’s privacy policy?
Zoobean’s privacy policy is simple: “They do not share users’ information with third party vendors.” This means that they do not share your children’s information with partners or any other third parties. They also refuse to release financial details of their users.
How many books are there on Zoobean?
Zoobean offers thousands of books on a variety of subjects such as language and math. Each book has a short review so that the parent can make sure it is the right one for their child.
What are some ways to teach my child with Zoobean?
The platform allows users to play and learn with their children by exploring books, lists, and games. They also have storytelling programs that help them create their own stories, which give parents the ability to share their own hobbies with their children.
How Much Does Zoobean Cost?
There is no cost, but if users want to receive items in the mail, there is an additional cost of $6 per month per membership.
How does Zoobean make money?
Zoobean earns 5% from each subscription.
Where is Zoobean Based?
Zoobean is based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are registered as a US company with the U.S. government and have a US agent for taxes purposes on behalf of the company.
What is the cancellation policy?
The service provides a 30-day cancellation policy.
Is there a minimum age to use Zoobean?
There is no minimum age to use Zoobean.
Can I use Zoobean on multiple children?
Yes, users can create an account for each child and have control over which books they choose to add to their virtual library accounts.
How much information do I have when signing up?
The user’s name, email address, birthday, gender, and gender preference are all included.
