Whatever Happened To Aaron Marino's Alpha M. After Shark Tank?
All men deserve to look and feel their best. However, finding resources that put them in the right direction can sometimes be difficult. Alpha M. aims to change that with a system that gives guys a boost in both their appearance and confidence. The company provides users with a six-part DVD box set that employs proven formulas on how men can improve their fashion sense and grooming habits.
Aaron Marino created Alpha M. His dream to run a business in the fitness and wellness space came true when he opened a gym in Atlanta, but it was far from smooth sailing. The entrepreneur soon found himself drowning in loan and credit card debt and would eventually file for bankruptcy. While working at a country club as a beer cart driver to make ends meet, his wife gifted him a video camera. He used his new gift in 2008 to start making YouTube videos that gave his fellow dudes advice on styling and grooming. This blended with the consulting brand that Marino was also building, birthing what would become Alpha M.
Things began picking up for Marino's new endeavor as his YouTube audience grew. In 2012, Marino took an exciting new step into the entrepreneurial world as he went to pitch his concept on "Shark Tank."
What happened to Alpha M. on Shark Tank?
Aaron Marino appears on "Shark Tank" Season 4, looking to secure a $50,000 investment for a 10% equity stake in Alpha M. He shares the inventory list, which shows the 59 essential items along with their accompanying letter and number codes. Every outfit comes with a formula made of these codes, which the sharks find needlessly complicated. Marino demonstrates his styling abilities on Kevin O'Leary by suggesting how he can improve his look.
While the sharks admire Marino's skills, they don't find the $297 price point of the DVD set to be as fashionable. The company has only sold 75 units over a month, with projections of hitting $250,000 in sales by the end of the year. Along with selling DVDs, Marino also offers consultation services, which is part of how he expects to hit the ambitious revenue goal. He states that an investor will help get better technology and international distribution.
One by one, all the sharks go out. Daymond John doesn't like that Marino wants an investor who will work for him. O'Leary sees merit within the business but doesn't see it as an investable venture. Barbara Corcoran can't get over the product's ridiculous price point. Robert Herjavec doesn't think that most men will go out of their way to watch the DVDs. Mark Cuban wouldn't want to dress the way that Marino suggests. With that, the entrepreneur thanks the sharks for their time and leaves without a deal.
Alpha M. after Shark Tank
Even without making a deal, most entrepreneurs who go on "Shark Tank" can expect to strike some success following the airing of their episode. A business can expect a substantial revenue and online traffic boost, given the unprecedented exposure that a "Shark Tank" episode can generate. However, the immediate aftermath of Alpha M.'s appearance on the show yielded drastically different results.
According to company founder Aaron Marino, Alpha M. only sold one DVD set on the night of the episode's broadcast. Suffice it to say, the evening was a letdown for the hopeful entrepreneur, who shared in a 2015 YouTube video, "I was heartbroken because my main goal and objective going on the show was to get exposure for Alpha M. but then to sell a hell of a lot of style systems, and it didn't happen."
What was especially disappointing for Marino was the segment itself. In reality, while viewers only see pitches presented as ten-minute clips on "Shark Tank," these presentations can go on for upwards of an hour during filming, and Marino's was no exception. "And the frustrating thing for me was that I was out there pitching for like 45 minutes ... so they cut a lot of great stuff out," he stated in the aforementioned YouTube video. In particular, he was upset that the episode failed to mention the upward momentum he was building on YouTube.
Is Alpha M. still in business?
Following the underwhelming results of Alpha M.'s "Shark Tank" segment, it became clear to founder Aaron Marino that change was necessary if his passion was to thrive. The sharks were right in their predictions about the company. The nearly $300 DVD set proved to be a less-than-lucrative effort. It's unlikely that Alpha M.'s theoretical target audience of poorly-presented guys would care to invest such an amount.
As of late, Marino's efforts with the brand have switched to his YouTube channel and social media presence, where he continues sharing tips for how men can improve their way of life. This has been a significantly more successful endeavor, as Alpha M.'s YouTube channel alone currently has 6.82 million followers. As a result, Marino is now considered among the top men's lifestyle influencers on the platform. The company has experienced similar growth across Instagram and TikTok, with likes and followers in the millions.
The closest thing to Alpha M.'s original services is Marino's older website. The site offers consultation services and guides from $24.95 to $97. However, not only are the services limited, but the site itself has not been updated for some time.
What's next for Alpha M.?
Aaron Marino's ambitious business endeavors didn't end with Alpha M. He launched a new hair care line for men called Pete and Pedro in 2015. He returned to "Shark Tank" Season 7 to pitch the product and nabbed a deal with Barbara Corcoran for $100,000 at a 10% equity stake. Despite this, the deal never closed as Corcoran was allegedly more interested in tapping into Marino's influencer status than aiding in his business.
This wouldn't be the last addition to Marino's portfolio of companies. His catalog includes the men's skincare brand Tiege Hanley, the influencer consultation agency MENfluential Media, the short-lived premium sunglasses line ENEMY, and the business consulting agency Area 627. He even renovated a historic church in Marietta, Georgia, and transformed it into a hair salon called Salon Posta.
As for Alpha M., there seems to be no slowing down for the high-performing lifestyle brand, which is what Marino envisioned from the start. In 2016, when asked what his five-year plan is by Gentleman's Gazette, Marino shared, "The only goal that I have for myself in terms of something that needs to happen is I need to be as happy as I am right now. If I can maintain this level of fulfillment ... every day I jump out of bed and I'm excited to get to work creating content. If I can be here in five years, I will be absolutely thrilled."