Eco Nuts Soap stood out among the wide array of green startups that have appeared in recent months. I have never heard of a soap nut until this discovery. With the help of hard-working entrepreneurs, the easy-made natural soap has been converted into a lucrative business model.
Company Overview in Shark Tank
| Company Name | Eco Nuts |
| Episode | Season 4 Episode 6 |
| Product Offering | Laundry detergent made from reusable tree nuts |
| Founded | 2009 |
| Founder | Mona Weiss and Scott Shields |
| Required Investment | $175,000 for 15% ownership |
| Closing Deal | No deal offered |
| Offered Sharks | No shark invested |
| Current Business Status | Out of business |
What is Eco Nuts?
Eco Nuts makes use of only natural organic ingredients. It is an eco-friendly brand of detergents made from soap berries (also known as soap nuts) found on the Himalayan Lychee tree. Episode 406 of Shark Tank features Scott Shields and Mona Weiss pitching their company.
In addition to cleaning clothing without needing caustic detergents, this innovative laundry detergent contains soap nuts, which serve as an organic fabric softener. Using only authentic ingredients and recyclable packaging, the company prides itself on being an eco-friendly company.
How Does Eco Nuts Work?
Eco Nuts appear as a tree-nut, but it is genuinely dried fruit that originates from a Himalayan tree. In the presence of water, the berry produces its own soap. Eco Nuts is a laundry detergent that softens garments while being washed inside a washing machine.
Mona and Scott created a unique technique for removing the seeds out of the soap nuts, which they patented in 1997. More than this, as far as organic soaps go, Eco Nuts has a distinct advantage over its competitors.
Who Founded Eco Nuts? Founder Backgrounds
In 2012, two entrepreneurs behind Eco Nuts, Mona Weiss and Scott Shields appeared on Shark Tank to present their environmentally friendly and lower-priced solution to laundry detergent as well as the fabric softener. Eco Nuts are biodegradable, hypoallergenic, and may be reused up to 10 times, as they pointed out in their explanation.
Eco Nuts Business Before Shark Tank
The environmental alternative to washing powder that Scott and Mona developed and marketed was a huge success. It was not long before they had gathered a group of besties and began packing the products in the living room.
Were the Sharks going to gobble up this brand-new concept? Let’s dive deeper into more stories!
Eco Nuts During Shark Tank Pitch
During the shark tank show, the founders of Eco Nuts, Scott Shields and Mona Weiss went on the stage and gave a brief introduction of themselves to all the sharks.
Without further delay, both initially presented the company and looked for a $175,000 financing with a 15% stake in the business.
According to Mona, her business, Eco Nuts, produces laundry soap products that are environmentally friendly for a household. All goods are packed in a manner that minimizes or eliminates the use of plastic.
In her presentation, he also added that the products are recognized and certified by organic Berry in the Himalayas, where all-natural soap is being produced.
Immediately, she lifted the soapbox and shook it. Then, she explained to all sharks that the tiny package was enough to complete two years of washing and substitute ten detergent bottles.
According to Scott, they will earn profits and help rescue the earth.
Daymond inquired as to why now was the ideal moment to buy. Mona informed him that they were the first to introduce soap nuts into the marketplace.
Robert asked Scott the market share they had. Scott said 90%.
Kevin inquired about the annual growth. Scott estimated around a million dollars each year in the United States. He also added that they made $100,000 in sales the previous year.
He went on to say that they were on target to make $250,000 this year. Daymond demanded samples. Mona rushed to hand the material they had prepared for the sharks. She began distributing them, and Mark praised her as a conqueror.
Mona informed him that they had developed a patented sterilizing procedure in their facility. She explained to the shark that when they emerged digesting the fruit with their companions, they felt ill at the same time. Then, they sent berries off to the laboratory, where they discovered that they contained something toxic.
Daymond cynically inquired as to if they needed to get their nuts sterilized. Kevin questioned whether or not they had monkey stool on them. Mona confirmed that this was the case. Scott stated that organic sterilizing procedures were extremely harder to achieve and that here was where the proprietary aspect came into play.
The founders claim that 90% of the market has made $250,000 in sales and are seeking a million-dollar valuation for their company.
Daymond was intrigued by the number and wanted to know where it originated. Mona explained that they came up with the number since their sales had quadrupled and tripled in the previous year, prompting them to double and treble their worth.
Mona stated that they could establish their company with merely $1,000. He and his partner made $10,000 in their first year of business without needing to invest any further funds.
The next year, they earned $45,000. Kevin informed her that they were still not making any money, but Mona argued that they had already made more than $100,000 that calendar year.
Barbera was interested in learning how they maintain their consumer base. Mona informed her that she was a social media ninja. She boasted that she had more Facebook admirers than Barbara had, and she was right.
Barbara expressed her displeasure by saying she felt disrespected and left. She grinned and clarified that she was only joking.
Kevin informs them that they will be required to spend a significant amount of revenue training customers unfamiliar with soap nuts to purchase their brand in the future. As a result, he headed out.
Daymond stated that he was still perplexed as to how they could maintain their position as the industry leader. He told the founders that they shouldn’t have made the hypotheses that led to their faults in the first place. So, he walked out.
Scott inquired as to how many people were still present. Robert advised Scott that he needed to understand the financials of his own company to succeed. Scott should not make such outrageous promises when they only had a 10 to 15% share of the market at that time.
Robert expressed an interest in being involved in the firm since he saw the potential for the company’s growth. However, he has to figure out what kind of offer he could possibly make to them that would make sense from a purely financial standpoint.
Eventually, Robert made them an offer of $175K in return for a 50% stake in the corporation. He asked whether they would be willing to consider it. Scott assured him that he would think about it but would not accept the offer. As a result, Robert left.
Following that, Mark informed them that he believed their marketing efforts were ineffective. Scott attempted to convince Mark that if he looked at the boxes closely enough, he would see that they were different, but Mark had none of it. As a result, he headed out.
Mona turned to face Barbara. Barbara said that the most compelling aspect of their pitch was that they were a truly wonderful pair.
She informed them that the Eco nuts brand name was excellent but that this was the only positive quality of the goods. However, she expressed that the founders performed poorly representing their product invention. As a result, she also left.
Eco Nuts Closing Deal in Shark Tank
The two founders, who were looking for an investment of $175,000, offered 15% equity of the company in return. The business generated around $100,000 and $250,000 in revenue in the years prior.
Sadly, they were unable to strike a bargain with any sharks.
Eco Nuts After Shark Tank
Scott, Mona, and all five staff worked tirelessly for many days beyond the planned premiere schedule to ensure that the project was delivered on time.
The business went on to present at the Natural Products Expo East exhibition in Baltimore, in which it was voted as the best green product regarding laundry soap by more than 20,000 participants.
Moreover, the two founders continue to show off their business to the world. Later, the company was awarded the NEXTY regarding the Natural Living section.
According to one of the founders, the company has grown its distribution channels and is in discussions to develop into other nations abroad.
Current Update: Is Eco Nuts Still In Business?
EcoNuts’ sales grew consistently throughout the years, despite the economic climate. Even if everything is wonderful, the couple never gets married.
Indeed, they really broke up towards the end of 2015. Mona resigned from her position shortly after that.
Over time, the business went on to expand its product portfolio. It offers berries, dryers, liquid soap, beard care goods, skincare, toothpaste, bar soap, oil essence, and so forth.
Their yearly income is $1 million in the mid-2021; they are still going strong.
The firm stated in March 2022 that it had stopped all the operations and that it would no longer be accepting purchases.
