Startups

ABC’s ‘Shark Tank’: 700 pitch at regional auditions held at NextFab

By 1 a.m. on Saturday, there were about 130 people camping out in a nearby parking lot rented by NextFab, said Ogihara, despite an ongoing thunderstorm. Several people waiting in line Saturday morning said they had been waiting since 5 a.m.

Seven hundred hopeful entrepreneurs representing 500 ideas descended on South Philly maker space NextFab Studio this past weekend to audition for “Shark Tank,” ABC’s investor pitch reality show, according to NextFab community development specialist Itsuki Ogihara.

The casting call, which was the only this year in the Northeast U.S. and was advertised as “first come, first served,” drew entrepreneurs from Boston, Delaware, New Jersey and even Florida. Ogihara estimated that more than half  of the entrepreneurs came from out of state.

By 1 a.m. on Saturday, there were about 130 people camping out in a nearby parking lot rented by NextFab, said Ogihara, despite an ongoing thunderstorm. Several people waiting in line Saturday morning said they had been waiting since 5 a.m.

Despite the rush to get an audition spot, every company — all 500 — secured a chance to pitch, Ogihara said.

Most entrepreneurs Technically Philly spoke to did not have a tech focus, like John Hackett of Mantua Township, N.J., who had built a sponge for drywall sand, Jennifer Mitchener of Delaware, who was pitching a hairbrush that bends and the Mechanicsburg, Pa. trio that runs Torchbearer Sauces, an “accidentally healthy” hot sauce line.

There was, at least one, tech-focused entrepreneur in attendance: Mihir Shah, CEO of University City Science Center-based UELifeSciences. Shah’s company sells a Drexel-built handheld breast exam tool. Shark Tank is a good “PR opportunity to create awareness,” said Shah, adding that the audition was a good experience and felt more like a conversation than a pitch. It lasted about five minutes, he said.

Others didn’t enjoy their audition as much as Shah, like the guy who stormed out of NextFab yelling, “Thirty seconds if you’re lucky!” (We didn’t get the chance to catch his name.)

Inside NextFab, entrepreneurs waited in line for one of five audition rooms, holding props of all kinds: lamps, plastic dolls and even a dog.

Twelve NextFab members auditioned, said NextFab’s Yulia Novozhilova.

NextFab Studio turned into Shark Tank audition headquarters this weekend.

sharktank1

The audition waiting room on the second floor of NextFab.

sharktank3

One of five audition rooms.

sharktank5

Entrepreneurs held props of all kinds. This woman was pitching a child safety product.

sharktank4

Some of the campers waiting to audition for Shark Tank. Photo from NextFab Studio’s Twitter.


 

Companies: NextFab

Before you go...

Please consider supporting Technical.ly to keep our independent journalism strong. Unlike most business-focused media outlets, we don’t have a paywall. Instead, we count on your personal and organizational support.

3 ways to support our work:
  • Contribute to the Journalism Fund. Charitable giving ensures our information remains free and accessible for residents to discover workforce programs and entrepreneurship pathways. This includes philanthropic grants and individual tax-deductible donations from readers like you.
  • Use our Preferred Partners. Our directory of vetted providers offers high-quality recommendations for services our readers need, and each referral supports our journalism.
  • Use our services. If you need entrepreneurs and tech leaders to buy your services, are seeking technologists to hire or want more professionals to know about your ecosystem, Technical.ly has the biggest and most engaged audience in the mid-Atlantic. We help companies tell their stories and answer big questions to meet and serve our community.
The journalism fund Preferred partners Our services
Engagement

Join our growing Slack community

Join 5,000 tech professionals and entrepreneurs in our community Slack today!

Trending

Trump may kill the CHIPS and Science Act. Here’s what that means for your community.

A week before Election Day, some Philly city employees question unexpected website change

A Pennsylvania voter’s guide to tech policy on the ballot in the 2024 election

How Philly officials keep your vote secure — and stop dead people from casting a ballot

Technically Media