Sixty seconds. That’s how long 200 small business owners across the country had to wait to…Pull-ups and throws” for a chance to win part of $30,000 in prizes in a Shark tank-as an event on Saturday in Philadelphia.
Clothing for people over 1.80 metres tall, bottle-cleaning brushes with silicone barriers to prevent splashes and even a lipstick that claims to help women have better orgasms were among the contenders.
Mount Airy resident LaVaughn Jones woke up early Saturday to line up outside World Cafe Live shortly after the sun came up. Getting a head start was important, she said, because candidates were to apply on a first-come, first-serve basis until seven people were selected for a second round.
Three years ago, Jones felt “back against the wall” after her husband’s incarceration left her a single mother of two. She was overworked, but living off food stamps and cooking halal food for her Muslim family became an impossible task. That led her to create Aruba’s Halal Cuisinea frozen halal food alternative.
She was one of 77 “founders,” as event organizer Black Girl Ventures calls the contestants, who made it to the judges.
One thumbs up would mean $200 for the entrepreneur; two would mean $250; and three would guarantee $500 and a spot in the second round.
Jones earned a ticket to the second round, but not everyone was so lucky.
Ingrid Prescott drove two hours from Brooklyn, New York, to make this tantalizing proposition: “If you’ve never had an orgasm, your vagina isn’t broken.” Her Oralicious lipstick promises to enhance, arouse and stimulate libido.
Sadly, the 60-year-old actress only received two thumbs up from the judges. Despite not making it to the final, Prescott said the enthusiastic reaction from the 150-person audience made her feel like a winner.
“The way they applauded me made me feel like I did exceptionally well,” Prescott said. “But in order to get to the second round, I have to improve my shooting. This is my first time.”
Seven companies earned a spot in the next round, where each had three minutes to present their pitch to two judges and earn a spot in the top three and a chance to win $10,000, $3,000 and $2,000, respectively.
Was the money to stay in Philadelphia? Would some visiting small businessmen pocket the profits?
Philadelphia has more than 44,000 businesses, 90% of which have fewer than 100 employees and therefore fall into the small business category, according to data from The Pew Charitable Trusts. And three of them landed in the final.
Aruba’s halal cuisine, Bib with bottle brushand urban clothing brand Street of veils They outbid the Detroit and Colorado companies. In other words, all the prize money stayed in Philadelphia.
Baby Bottle Brush Bib and Veils Street took second and third place, respectively. And as surreal as it seemed to her, Jones’ frozen halal food business became the Pull-ups and throws winner.
“Hard work pays off, especially when we are rewarded with capital funding to continue the hard work we do. It’s just amazing,” the 35-year-old said as he held tightly onto a giant ceremonial check.
She plans to use the money to expand to other retail stores, beyond the 17 stores that already offer her halal meals, including ShopRite and Weavers Way.
The next Pull-ups and throws in Philadelphia will take place on October 26 at Liberty View in the Independence Visitor Center.
For any small business thinking about starting a venture, “the key is understanding your business,” said Omi Bell, CEO of Virginia-based Black Girl Ventures. “If I give you access to capital today, how could you leverage that capital and grow your business exponentially?”