Hire Santa Update | Shark Tank Season 10

Andrew Smith July 14, 2022June 11, 2023

Mitch Allen came into Shark Tank to pitch his company Hire Santa. The concept is really simple, his company simply deploys Santa Clause entertainers to various events, parties, and activities during the holiday season. Due to the logistical challenges that naturally come along when managing this type of company, let’s see how Mitch Allen did with his pitch on Shark Tank before we dive into the in-depth Hire Santa update.

Shark Tank Hire Santa Update

Entrepreneurs: Mitch Allen
Business: Santas for hire
Ask: $200,000 for 10% equity
Result: $200,000 for 50% equity until money back, then 10% equity in perpetuity
Sharks: Barbara Corcoran

Since Hire Santa is basically a holiday entertainment business that involves deploying a Santa to a number of different types of events, Mitch did his best to explain the different scenarios and pricing structures that his company uses. He told the sharks that individual visits from a Santa could cost about $300, while longer-term holiday season bundles could involve larger payments on an hourly scale. These hourly rates can generally be around $50 to $60 per hour and partnerships can involve retail stores, malls, and other similar venues.

With some solid sales numbers from the previous years, sharks were certainly interested. Mitch told the sharks that his company was on pace to easily do over $1 million in revenue in the current year, while potentially doubling in the following year if growth expectations continue at their current rate. This comment from Mitch certainly caught the attention of all five sharks.

The pitch seemed to be going well early on, but some bad news awaited Mitch and his company. The first shark was about to drop out of the negotiations and it was going to be Lori Greiner, simply because she didn’t believe a consistent revenue stream was possible with Hire Santa. Mark Cuban, Barbara Corcoran, and Daymond John quickly dropped out for similar reasons, leaving only Kevin O’Leary remaining to potentially make a deal.

Kevin decided to offer $200,000 for 50% equity. Mitch realized that he wanted to make a counteroffer to Kevin’s original offer. After thinking about counter-offering with a royalty deal, Mitch quickly realized that Barbara and Daymond were back in the negotiations, as they suggested that they’d be interested in the restructured royalty deal.

In a shocking turn of events, Mitch accepted Barbara’s offer, which would ultimately be $200,000 for 50% of company profits, until they get their money back and then 10% equity in perpetuity.

Now let’s look at the Hire Santa update after Shark Tank. Several new clients have approached the company since its appearance on Shark Tank and the company was featured yet again on Shark Tank in December of 2019. Their website is still being updated regularly and it seems that Mitch has developed his company in partnership with Barbara into a company that generates millions of dollars every single year.

The future seems bright for Hire Santa, even though their profit window is so narrow during the holiday season of each year.

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Andrew Smith

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Andrew Smith is the founder and owner of Shark Tank Recap. He is a longtime Shark Tank fan that has been watching it for years and has seen every episode multiple times. His friends know him as the Shark Tank expert, because he can answer any question about the show! His favorite Shark Tank products are Bertello's pizza oven and Bug Bite Thing!