In Season 6, Air Force veteran Kristina Guerrero entered the Shark Tank with her K9 meals bar and clinched a deal with with Daymond. Back then, we spoke to her about the healthy and nutritious treats and how her rescue dog Dunkan inspired the company.
As the Tank revisits TurboPup in Season 7, we caught up with Guerrero again to see how the business has grown since leaving the Tank.
The bars have gone from being in 50 retailers to launching in 900 PetSmart stores in January. “I am astounded such a big company would support a small, veteran-owned business like TurboPUP,” she said. “They’re wonderful people to work with.” Another milestone happened when Inc.com honored TurboPup by naming it one of 2015’s Best Pet Startups.
Buy TurboPup bars here.
Due to their rapid growth, they moved their consumer shipping to a fulfillment center and Daymond arranged a licensing deal with Fetch4Pets. “They’ve been a wonderful partner and have assisted TurboPUP with marketing, sales and distribution,” she explained.
And as for Daymond’s involvement, she praised him for his sound advice:
Daymond has been part of the process every step of the way. When he first mentioned the licensing deal with Fetch4Pets, I was hesitant because I didn’t understand what it entailed. He said, “Write down a list of all your questions, then call me Sunday.” He answered every question and empowered me to make the final decision. That was my introduction to working with him, and he’s remained consistent.
Her experience on the reality show made her realize that having Daymond’s support behind the company is invaluable and wouldn’t have been possible if she hadn’t changed her mind on air. “Before I faced the Sharks I had a percentage in my head I promised myself I wouldn’t exceed. I had a split second to change my mind in front of the Sharks and a national audience. In hindsight, the equity and capitol could not quantify the value of having a Shark like Daymond on my team. If I would have walked away from the deal with Daymond, I would have always regretted it,” she said.
Buy TurboPup bars here.