When Jessica and Gabe Miller showed up on Shark Tank to pitch their Squid Socks, they did it with their daughters. All four of them came in disguise as the “Squid Squad,” a move that had Mark Cuban laughing before introductions were even made. But is their innovative sock design and sense of humor enough to impress the sharks and to get at least one of them to invest?
When they did hit the tank, the Millers asked for $125,000 for 20 percent of their company.
What makes Squid Socks special?
Unlike conventional baby socks, Squid Socks are made with a special patented slip-resistant silicone dots that they call “squiddy dots.” As seen during the demonstration, the silicone dots make the sock much hard to slip off, even when it is pulled. That means less lost socks as they really aren’t easy to just slide right off.
The socks are made for babies and toddlers with the idea that these slip-resistant socks will save parents’ sanity because they will no longer be on the hunt to figure out where their child lost a sock.
How to buy Squid Socks?
Squid Socks are available online and can be purchased in collections, or packs of three. They retail for $24 per collection, however, there is a special running right now to get two collections, or six pairs of socks, for $42. The special deal doesn’t require a code and all orders will receive free shipping. There are varieties available for boys, girls and unisex options are available as well.
The socks can also be found in Nordstrom, with two collections being exclusive to the high-end retailer.
Like many products seen on Shark Tank, Squid Socks aren’t cheap. However, they are well made and are manufactured with the idea that they will last longer because less socks will be lost along the way.
Did Squid Socks get a deal?
Unlike others presenting on the latest episode of Shark Tank, Squid Socks had a couple of sharks fighting for a chance to work with them. Robert Herjavec was first to make an offer but he wanted 40 percent of the company for his $125,000.
That left an opening for Daymond John, who actually is in the sock business. He came behind Robert and said he wouldn’t want to own more of the company than them and offered up a similar deal except that for his $125,000, he only wanted 33 percent of the company.
Then, Lori Greiner came along and wanted to team up with Daymond on the Squid Socks deal. The problem is, he didn’t want her in it with him as seen in the ABC clip below.
There must be something about those Squid Socks because Robert wasn’t done. Not wanting to be outdone by Daymond John, he offered to move his offer up to $250,000 and keep his share of the company at 40 percent. Then, after a bit more haggling, and asking the sharks if either were willing to drop to 25 percent ownership, Robert offered up $125,000 for 30 percent of the company.
Ultimately, the Millers chose experience over more money and went with Daymond John’s offer of $125,000 for 33 percent of the company.
Shark Tank airs Sundays at 9/8c on ABC.