Whatever Happened To Ava The Elephant After Shark Tank?
In the annals of "Shark Tank" history, many entrepreneurs have pitched products marketed towards children, like Inchbug customizable labels and the Space Traveler back seat divider for long car trips. The very first children's product in "Shark Tank" history was Ava the Elephant — technically Emmy the Elephant at the time.
The product is an elephant-shaped cover for a medicine dropper that's meant to ease uncomfortable children. When its creator, Tiffany Kruminas, pitched it, it also had an electronic voice feature that could count down from three and then praise a child for taking their medication.
Krumins went into the tank during the show's premiere episode to pitch her elephant product, with her episode airing in August 2009. She asked for $50,000 in exchange for a 15% equity stake in her company. Since the product was so early in its development, Kevin Harrington, Kevin O'Leary, Daymond John, and Robert Herjavec bowed out of the bidding. That left Barbara Corcoran, who countered with an offer of $50,000 for a 55% stake. Krumins accepted.
Was Corcoran right, or was her coterie of male counterparts?
Ava the Elephant is one of Shark Tank's earliest success stories
In fact, the product might be considered the first "Shark Tank" success story. As Krumins explained during her pitch, Ava the Elephant was very early in life as a business. She provided the sharks with a homemade prototype, but she hadn't yet secured a patent or a manufacturing deal.
After "Shark Tank," Krumins did indeed secure a patent for her product, which was registered under the name Ava the Elephant in July 2010, and went into production. "Shark Tank" then provided an update on Ava's prospects in Season 4, which aired in early 2013. Ditching her clay prototype for a professionally manufactured model, Krumins sold 100,000 Avas in that time, adding up to $1 million in revenue. In 2013, she was working with a logistics company and four international distributors.
That year, Krumins introduced the second product in the Ava line, the "Ava the Elephant" thermometer stickers, which offered a gentle alternative to a typical thermometer when taking a child's temperature. While that product didn't take off, Ava the Elephant continued to enjoy strong sales. In 2018, Krumins signed a licensing deal with children's product company Baby Delight. In 2021, Ava was acquired by the Better Family, Inc. brand. Today, it's still available for sale online. Not bad for a product that four out of five sharks dismissed.