Granola Gourmet Update | Shark Tank Season 1

Jeff Cohen, a diabetic for 15 years, was frustrated by the lack of healthy, tasty snacks that wouldn’t spike his blood sugar. This led him to create Granola Gourmet snack bars. Despite initial success, his past bankruptcy from a failed software venture made it hard to secure traditional funding. Will Jeff finally have a breakthrough with any of the sharks? Find out in our Granola Gourmet update and pitch recap.

If you’re short on time, here’s a quick overview of what happened to Granola Gourmet after Shark Tank. 

Jeff entered Shark Tank Season 1, seeking $175,000 for 25% equity in his energy bars. Unfortunately, he left without a deal.

In terms of a Granola Gourmet update,  the company experienced a significant boost shortly after its episode aired. The product became available in hundreds of stores nationwide, including major retailers like Safeway, Vons, Whole Foods, and Amazon. However, this rapid growth proved unsustainable, and the company eventually closed its doors.

Shark	Result
Robert Herjavec	No offer
Kevin O’Leary	No offer
Kevin Harrington	No offer
Daymond John	No offer
Barbara Corcoran	No offer

Shark Tank Granola Gourmet Pitch

• Entrepreneur: Jeff Cohen
• Business: Energy bars for diabetics
• Ask: $175,000 for 25% equity
• Result: No deal
• Sharks: None

Jeff walked into Shark Tank with a clear goal: to introduce his low-glycemic energy bars, which are made for diabetics and health-conscious people.

As the sharks tasted the bars, Jeff shared the personal story behind them—how he and his family worked hard to perfect the recipe.

After connecting with the sharks, Jeff put his offer on the table: $175,000 for a 25% stake in his business.

Further, he explained his motivation and the challenges he faced, emphasizing the need for funds to expand and meet growing demand.

Granola Gourmet is a healthy, low-glycemic energy bar brand created to offer tasty snacks that don’t cause rapid increases in blood sugar levels.

Additionally, the bars are made with whole grains, nuts, and seeds, providing a satisfying and nutritious treat. 

They are free from high-fructose corn syrup, artificial additives, and trans fats, making them a popular choice for diabetics, athletes, and health-conscious consumers.

Beyond its core granola bar product, Granola Gourmet has expanded to include vegan, gluten-free, and energy-bite options.

Meanwhile, the sharks all agreed that the energy bars were delicious.

Jeff proudly shared that his product is already stocked in 90% of Whole Foods stores in Southern California—that’s 24 locations.

Impressively, he was generating monthly sales between $8,000 and $10,000. 

Robert Herjavec expressed approval of Granola Gourmet’s presence in Whole Foods.

However, he asked why Jeff hadn’t leveraged that success to expand the product nationwide within the same retailer. 

In response, Jeff explained that cash flow constraints had been a significant obstacle, alluding to his previous bankruptcy. 

Kevin O’Leary doubted the business was worth the $700,000 valuation implied by the $175,000 investment request. 

In contrast, Kevin Harrington said there wasn’t anything spectacular about the business and dropped out. 

Daymond John revealed he didn’t enjoy the granola bars and bowed out. 

Barbara Corcoran didn’t believe Jeff could secure more capital in the future, making him a poor investment risk. 

Meanwhile, Kevin O’Leary agreed, calling Jeff “radioactive” due to his bankruptcy history. He believed Jeff was too risky an investment, and he’s out as well.

Finally, Robert Herjavec explained that Jeff’s lack of focus on expanding the Whole Foods deal was a huge concern for him. He was the last shark to exit the negotiations.

With no offer from any of the sharks, Jeff left without a deal. 

Keep reading our Granola Gourmet update to find out what happened next for his company.

Shark Tank Granola Gourmet Update

Our research on Granola Gourmet update found that Jeff secured investments from other investors and expanded into over 600 stores, including Safeway, Vons, Whole Foods, and Amazon, by 2011.

This growth led to a follow-up feature on Shark Tank, where he further shared his success and revealed more details about his expansion into Amazon.

However, the company faced challenges. By 2013, Granola Gourmet’s social media went silent, and the website became inactive in 2016. 

While Jeff’s LinkedIn profile indicates the business is still active, the product has vanished from both physical and online stores, suggesting a quiet closure. 

According to our Granola Gourmet update research, intensified competition and market oversaturation likely contributed to declining sales and the company’s eventual disappearance from the public eye.

However, as of this writing, Jeff has since shifted focus to other ventures, leaving Granola Gourmet’s future uncertain.

This will likely be our final Granola Gourmet update.

Would you like to learn about the other companies featured in Season 1, Episode 5? Follow the links below for our other company updates from the episode.

• Body Jac Update
• Face Blok Update
• Good Grief Celebrations Update
• My Therapy Journal Update

Before you go, check out our Shark Tank Season 1 page for more updates.