Whatever Happened To Blueland Cleaning Products After Shark Tank Season 11?
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In 2019, Sarah Paiji Yoo brought her eco-friendly cleaning tablets to "Shark Tank" with the company's chemist, Syed Naqvi. Paiji Yoo founded Blueland with John Mascari, hoping to cut down on single-use plastics and promote non-toxic cleaning options. Though Blueland had already secured $3 million in funding with a $13.5 million valuation from other entrepreneurs and venture capital, the company made its way into the tank.
Blueland came onto "Shark Tank," showcasing its glass, bathroom, and multi-purpose cleaning tablets, as well as a hand soap tablet. Each product was sold in a kit with a bottle that could be refilled again and again, and the tablets' packaging was totally recyclable. Blueland released its products on Earth Day of 2019, just one month before going onto the show, and did $200,000 in sales. The company was committed to cutting down on plastic waste and hoped the Sharks could help. "Together, we can eliminate approximately 5 billion plastic cleaning bottles each year," Paiji Yoo told the Sharks.
What happened to Blueland on Shark Tank?
Sarah Paiji Yoo and Syed Naqvi went into the tank seeking $270,000 for just 2% of Blueland's equity. While the Sharks were a bit surprised by the low equity, they were also impressed with the product. Paiji Yoo and Naqvi, who had previously worked for large companies formulating non-toxic cleaning products, explained that their tablets had gone through laboratory studies by EPA-approved third parties that showed Blueland's products to be superior to other similar cleaners.
A guest Shark on the show, Daniel Lubetzky, proposed a deal with Lori Greiner that would give the company $1 million for 25% equity. The Blueland team was hesitant to give up a larger percentage of their company, and Kevin O'Leary jumped in with another deal. O'Leary wanted 5% equity as well as a 1% advisory share for $270,000. After a bit of negotiating with the sharks, Paiji Yoo asked O'Leary if he would consider giving Blueland the $270,000 for 3% equity and a 50-cent royalty until his money was repaid. O'Leary jumped at the offer, and Naqvi and Paiji Yoo left the tank with a deal from Mr. Wonderful.
Blueland's success continued after the show
After Blueland's appearance on "Shark Tank," the company continued to gain traction and was posted about on Instagram by Drew Barrymore and tweeted about by Kim Kardashian several times. Kevin O'Leary talked of his high hopes for the company in an interview with Business Wire. "What Blueland has done within the first months of their business is undeniably impressive," O'Leary said in the interview. "They were smart in utilizing customer discovery before launching and have created products that fill a whitespace in the consumer household market. I am excited to work with Sarah, Syed and the Blueland team to build a leading brand in the market."
The year after the company's "Shark Tank" episode aired, COVID-19 made cleaning products a hot commodity, increasing Blueland's demand by 300%. Though the company initially struggled to keep up with the high demands for its cleaners and had to cut down on marketing, Blueland continued to work to make more sustainable products for its customers.
Blueland is still thriving
Sarah Paiji Yoo and Syed Naqvi's company continues to see success and has created various new eco-friendly products, moving beyond cleaning and into hygiene as well. Within the first two years of starting Blueland, the company created 15 different products and secured more than 40 patents. Blueland now carries laundry detergent, toilet bowl cleaner, dishwasher tablets, dish soap, body wash, and face wash. All of the products have a corresponding refillable bottle or tin and are packaged with all recyclable materials.
In 2022, Blueland began selling its products on Amazon. The company also partnered with Prelude Growth Partners, an equity firm founded by women, and received $20 million in funding. Blueland grew by over 400% in its second year, and Paiji Yoo discussed the company's enormous growth and its impact on sustainability in a press release. "When we started Blueland, we set out to change both consumer behavior and industry practices around plastic consumption and production," Paiji Yoo said. "We've seen tremendous positive reception as the first and leading brand to use no single-use plastic across all our cleaning products, and we are excited to expand into additional categories and channels and reach more consumers to maximize our impact on the planet."
What's next for Blueland?
Blueland celebrated its four-year anniversary in April of this year, and the company continues striving to make a positive change in the world. Syed Naqvi currently serves as the company's Chief Innovation Officer, and Sarah Paiji Yoo remains the CEO. In an interview with Amazon, Paiji Yoo explained her persistence in the success of Blueland and her hope that her company would inspire other brands to be more environmentally friendly. "One of our main goals is to move our industry and business in general in the right direction, to make sustainability look so good that other businesses want to do the right thing and prioritize the planet," Paiji Yoo said. "We want to be the case study for a company that can be incredibly financially successful while also demonstrating that it does not have to be a trade-off. And we want to raise so much consumer awareness about the practices that we do, and the practices that we believe businesses should espouse in order to drive consumers to demand better from businesses."
From Blueland's time before "Shark Tank" and after, the company has continued to expand. With a dream to care for the planet and the help of Kevin O'Leary and other investors, Blueland has become extremely successful, and it doesn't seem like the company will slow down any time soon.