When we talk about Shark Tank successes, they've usually earned offers from the show's panel of investors or even started a bidding war. That's not the case with Shawn Davis, AKA Chef Big Shake. The chef debuted his shrimp burgers on Shark Tank in 2011, and when his episode aired the next year, America saw him go home with nothin' but his patties in hand. But even without any of the sharks biting, he's gone on to become one of the show's more successful contestants. Here's how he did it.
It all started with his daughter and PETA magazine.
When Davis's 10-year-old daughter came home from school declaring she wouldn't be eating meat anymore because of anti-animal cruelty propaganda some classmates had shown her, he had to get clever. "First I tried to convince her it's okay to eat some meat, but she wasn't going for it," Davis laughed. So he started making seafood patties. The shrimp was his daughter's favorite, and his wife's. She had Davis made 40 of them for a family reunion, and when those were a hit, she convinced him to start selling them.
Shawn first tried to sell to restaurants and supermarkets.
Davis made the patties with the little equipment he had in his home kitchen and went around town pitching them to local restaurants. Some began serving them, but Davis didn't have the same luck with markets. "I called hundreds and hundreds, and they'd just hang up," he shared.
His friend was the one who turned in the 'Shark Tank' application.
"He found the show, and said, 'I'm going to fill everything out for you.'," Davis remembered. Several months later, Davis got a call from a producer. "I thought it was a joke at first, since I'd completely forgotten my friend had applied for me," Davis said. After the initial phone call, he sent in a video showcasing his personality and his product. It didn't take too long to come up with an elevator pitch: "I've had mine ready from the day I started doing this!" Davis joked. Shark Tank's staff liked what they saw and invited Davis to Los Angeles to appear on the show.
The weeks leading up to Shawn's 'Shark Tank' taping were the most stressful.
Davis was put up in a hotel for two weeks prior to filming his episode, and he went from "super-duper confident" to "incredibly nervous." The producers would call at all hours of the day, needling Davis with questions like, Are you sure you're asking for enough money? and How confident are you in your brand? "I think it was kind of done purposefully," Davis admits.
The sharks loved his shrimp burgers — just not enough.
Davis wanted to partner with an investor who had grocery experience and contacts, which no one on the panel had in Season 2. Everyone but Barbara (she's not a fan of shrimp) declared his patties delicious, but they were hesitant to join forces with him, and Davis ultimately left without a deal. The day after his episode aired, though, Davis was fielding dozens of calls. "The phone rang off the hook," he said. And while there were "a bunch of weirdos" inquiring about the company, "I eventually found an investor who was genuine." In just a year, his sales grew from $30,000 to $5 million.
Shawn has kept in touch with the two of the sharks.
The day of taping, Marc Cuban told Davis he'd be a customer for life, and the businessman's gone on to admit that skipping out on the shrimp burgers is the biggest mistake he's made on the show. But Davis has remained even closer with Daymond John. "He called asking me to ship some burgers for a party he was throwing," Davis revealed. He also gave Davis his private cell number, telling him to call anytime he needed anything. "He's a really solid guy," Davis said. "To this day, I thank him for that."
Now, his business is bigger than ever.
Because of the fees associated with it, Davis stopped selling his patties in grocery stores, but restaurants across the country still serve his burger, as does his own Tennessee chain, Big Shake's Hot Chicken & Fish. He's gearing up to begin franchising — soon with the help of his daughter. Yes, the one who started it all — and, no she's no longer a pescatarian ("She eats all kinds of damn meat!"). "She's a sophomore in college, and I told her she could work for anybody, but she said she wanted to get a degree and come back and help us," Davis said.
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