Guardian Bikes got their time to shine on "Shark Tank" Season 8. Founders Brian Riley and Kyle Jansen are looking to get a $500,000 investment for 10% of their business. Kevin O' Leary wants to know why they aren't licensing the SureStop brake to other bike companies. The two explain that this was their initial way of breaking into the market and that SureStop is currently on 40,000 bicycles. However, several major bike manufacturers have not wanted to implement the technology with fear that it would make their other products seem more dangerous in comparison, which the sharks find ridiculous.
Over the past three years (the segment was filmed in 2016), they have made $200,000 from the SureStop brakes. The Guardian Bikes have only been on the market for seven months and have hit $95,000 in sales with projections of $350,000 by year's end. They are currently working on getting the word out about their bikes and educating the public, which the sharks feel is going to be extremely challenging. Mark Cuban thinks that their marketing and PR strategy is extremely undercooked, especially given the high cost of their products.
O'Leary's $500,000 deal for 20% is contingent on the team no longer producing bikes, although he retracts his offer when they take too long with the other sharks. Lori Greiner, Barbara Corcoran, and Chris Sacca also go out. Mark Cuban proposes the $500,000 for 15%, but won't give them anything until they've hit their sales projections for the year, can prove their product's unique value, and hire a PR person. Riley and Jansen accept the deal.
