Shark Tank’s Lollacup founders used b-school advice to stay calm

“Shark
Tank” is not a good place to be nervous.
ABC

• When she appeared on “Shark
  Tank” with her husband, Mark Lim, Hanna Lim was incredibly
  nervous.
• They were pitching their startup, Lollacup, which
  produced safer sippy cups for kids.
• But Mark told Hanna to remember that the investors were
  their equals, not their superiors, and that alleviated some of
  her anxiety.

Hanna Lim clearly remembers trying out for “Shark Tank.”

There she was with her husband, Mark Lim, pitching their
fledgling startup, Lollacup. The company produced safer sippy
cups for kids, though it’s since expanded into other products for
infants and toddlers and is now called Lollaland.

“I was literally shaking while holding the sippy cups,” Hanna
told me.

By the time they were scheduled to appear
on the “Shark Tank” stage, in 2012, Hanna’s nervousness still
hadn’t abated.

But as the doors to the tank were opening, Mark said something to
Hanna that calmed her down.

“He was like, ‘Listen. We’re here pitching to investors who are
essentially our equals. We’re not here for a handout; we’re not
here to beg. This is an investment. We’re potentially handing
over part of our company that we’ve built.'”

Looking back, Hanna told me, “I think that was very powerful in
shaping the way I personally approached the pitch and our 90
minutes of negotiation.” (The “Shark Tank” episodes are edited so
that each company only gets a limited amount of air time.)

Mark said he learned that lesson in business school, at the
University of California, Los Angeles Anderson School of
Management. As part of the program, he and his classmates pitched
ideas, concepts, and business plans in front of professors and
working venture capitalists.

Interestingly, Mark’s advice to Hanna sounds similar to
real-estate mogul and “Shark Tank” investor Barbara Corcoran’s
advice to entrepreneurs. As
Laura Woods at GOBankingRates reported, Corcoran has told
entrepreneurs to remember, “I [the entrepreneur] have just as
much right to be here as you [the investor], I’m just as smart as
you are. You might not think I’m smart, but I know I’m smart.
Guess what, I’ve done a lot. Don’t you dare look down on me.”

Ultimately, the Lims struck a deal with Mark Cuban and Robert
Herjavec: $100,000 for 40% of the company. Since then,
Lollaland has passed
$2 million in sales.

Mark summarized what he learned in business school. “When you’re
going into a deal, you keep your eyes forward,” he said. “Not up
or down. You’re not looking down on someone, nor are you begging.
It’s a two-way exchange.”