Whatever Happened To Brumachen After Shark Tank?
Sometimes "Shark Tank" entrepreneurs get in their own way, especially when they commit the cardinal sin of overestimating their own valuations. When business partners Kweku Larbi and Ross Smith pitched Brumachen, their on-the-go coffee brewing device in a Season 12 episode in 2021, every "Shark Tank" shark promptly tore them apart. Their request for $1 million for 10% equity made Kevin O'Leary's jaw drop. When the pair revealed they had only netted $42,000 in sales to date, he really lost it. "Are you out of your mind? Why would you think this is worth $10 million?"
The other sharks concurred, though perhaps in less harsh terms than Mr. Wonderful. They also criticized the clunky, complicated product design, which Mark Cuban pejoratively (and rightly) claimed looked like an engineer had designed it.
Nonetheless, the sharks were intrigued by the Brumachen, which promised fresh-brewed coffee in five minutes, made anywhere. Also appealing was the company's environmental pledge. Larbi produced biodegradable k-cups that take only 180 days to decompose, compared to their plastic counterparts, which take upwards of 400 years.
Still, the idea couldn't save their risky evaluation or poor design. Unsurprisingly, Brumachen walked away without a deal. Since 2021, Brumachen has gone silent, vindicating the unimpressed sharks.
The sharks were right to doubt Brumachen
Brumachen went out with a whimper, not a bang. Instead of releasing some statement to mark the end of the company, Brumachen doesn't appear to exist anymore after "Shark Tank" but remains in internet limbo. The company's website appears to be nonfunctional at this point.
Their social media presence has gone quiet as well. Brumachen's last Instagram post is from January 2021, advertising the upcoming "Shark Tank" appearance. "What happened?" asked one confused commenter. "I was expecting there to be more posts here after being on shark tank." Another wrote, "I was gifted one of these on Sept 2022. Piece of junk! The world is not a better place with this crappy contraption."
The comments on Kickstarter — the campaign for which had earned over $40,000 — were a similar mix of confusion and disappointment. One comment reads, "So what happened to this?? Did it just fizzle out? Been waiting a long time for you to do anything!!!!" Many backers complained that their Brumachen never arrived or didn't work.
Larbi and Smith have moved on to other projects. The former's fashion brand Baxter Wood has been featured in Esquire and Fast Company, and Smith is still a social media influencer — clout he had attempted to use to market Brumachen. "My mission is to make the world smile," Smith said on "Shark Tank" before boasting of his millions of followers. Apparently, that mission didn't include selling coffee.