D.C.’s Surprise Ride, the subscription box for educational kids activities, has raised $1 million according to an SEC filing. The Washington Business Journal first reported the news.
Founders and sisters Donna and Rosy Khalife have had a rocky, and public, relationship to fundraising. The company appeared on ABC’s Shark Tank in November 2013, but walked away empty handed after stalling on Robert Herjavec’s offer. Then, in 2015, the sisters were back on TV as part of ABC’s new spinoff show, Beyond the Tank.
When that episode finally aired in early 2016 (it was kind of a rough, ahem, ride) it was revealed that Shark Kevin O’Leary had come back to the table with another offer — $50,000 for a 2.5 percent stake in the company. The Khalifes accepted.
“Fifty grand isn’t much compared to what a startup needs to grow, but it’s not about investment in terms of monetary value,” Rosy Khalife told DC Inno in an interview at the time. “It’s about Kevin’s marketing value. “That’s worth millions in itself. We’re excited to be working with him on customer acquisition and growth.”
Surprise Ride is looking to raise $1 million more, according to the same SEC filing.
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