The Fidget Game For Reading Literacy Update | Shark Tank Season 15

In every country Brandi Dugal taught in, she noticed that parents struggled to teach their kids how to read at home. To make reading easier and more effective, she created The Fidget Game, a series of fun, multisensory games based on proven reading strategies. The games help kids reach grade-level reading in just a few weeks and are now used in over 40,000 schools worldwide. Will Brandi win a deal on this episode of Shark Tank? Find out in The Fidget Game update and pitch recap.

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

Brandi pitched her reading literacy games on Shark Tank Season 15, seeking $500,000 for 10% equity. After her pitch, she made a deal with Barbara Corcoran for $500,000 for 15% equity.

In terms of The Fidget Game update, the company grew its product line from 7 to over 40 SKUs by mid-2024, including new games like King Komodo and Tricky Trolls, and released versions in French, Spanish, and Hebrew. 

Shark:	Result:
Barbara Corcoran	Accepted deal for $500,000 for 15% equity
Mark Cuban	No offer
Lori Greiner	No offer
Kevin O’Leary	No offer
Daymond John	No offer

Shark Tank The Fidget Game Pitch

• Entrepreneur: Brandi Dugal
• Business: Educational game for kids
• Ask: $500,000 for 10% equity
• Result: $500,000 for 15% equity
• Shark: Barbara Corcoran

The Fidget Game isn’t a typical board game. Brandi, its creator, describes it as being more like a teacher in a box.

She designed it as a multi-sensory educational tool that helps children improve their reading skills through fun, interactive gameplay.

As a former teacher, Brandi had seen how struggling with reading could crush a child’s confidence.

That experience pushed her to find a better, more engaging way to teach literacy. Her solution was a game that turns reading practice into something fun and low-pressure.

The game includes word cards marked with hearts or lightning bolts. Heart cards are words kids should memorize, while lightning bolt cards are for sounding out.

If they get the word right, they roll a die and pop that number of bubbles on a fidget mat. The first to pop all their bubbles wins. The design makes reading interactive, competitive, and stress-free.

During her pitch, Brandi got emotional. She said the idea for her business wouldn’t exist without Barbara Corcoran.

After a sudden divorce, she was in a dark place when she came across a TikTok video where Barbara shared a similar experience.

Inspired, Brandi moved into her mom’s basement and launched the company within a week.

She told the sharks she had been in business for just 13 months and had already made $3.2 million in sales. That caught everyone’s attention.

Daymond John, Kevin O’Leary, and Barbara all shared that they are dyslexic and deeply understood the value of what she had created.

Kevin even spoke about his own success with The Learning Company and how impactful reading-focused businesses can be.

Brandi said 85% of her sales come from Amazon and 15% from her website. Early on, she sent copies of the game to 100 teachers, asking for feedback. The teachers loved it and promoted it on TikTok.

That exposure helped her game rank #1 in Amazon’s reading category within six months.

While others have tried to copy the game, Brandi stands out by including a learning guide aligned with the science of reading, which is now mandated in many U.S. states.

She broke down the numbers. The cost to manufacture each game ranges from $3.45 to $3.89, depending on the version.

Her customer acquisition cost is $6.40. Both games retail for $29.99, and she currently has a net margin between 25% and 32%.

Her return on ad spend is 2.6 on Facebook and 3.7 on Amazon. She projected $1.25 million in profit for the year.

Brandi said she’s looking for a shark to help expand the product line across all reading levels, translate it into other languages, and enter the ESL market.

She wants to focus on the creative side and get help hiring someone to run the operations.

At this point, Barbara offered $500,000 for 20% equity. Brandi said she believed Barbara was the right partner, but countered with 15% equity. Barbara accepted.

The two sealed the deal, and Brandi walked away with a shark by her side. What do you think happened following Shark Tank?

Keep reading The Fidget Game update to find out!

Shark Tank The Fidget Game Update

We were able to catch up with Brandi for a quick interview to see how The Fidget Game is doing after Shark Tank. “It was a surreal and rewarding experience,” Brandi told us.

While preparing for the pitch itself was extremely stressful, Brandi shared that all of the cast and crew were incredibly supportive and helped make it a “joyful experience.”

She also shared that the deal with Barbara is still in the due diligence process, but made no indications that it wouldn’t go through.

As expected, sales have picked up since airing on Shark Tank, and Brandi has big plans for the future of The Fidget Game.

“We aim to expand our impact across the USA, reaching more communities and schools,” Brandi told us. “A key focus is on exploring ways to engage with lower-income neighborhoods and inner-city schools to contribute to the improvement of literacy scores.”

At the time of this writing, we have great news as the deal with Barbara Corcoran closed successfully.

As a result, within the following year, The Fidget Game reported that it was being used in over 50,000 schools.

The company expanded its game lineup beyond reading to include math and time-telling games. They also grew their product offering from seven to over 40 SKUs by mid‑2024.

Still that same year, The Fidget Game became available in French, Spanish, and Hebrew.

New titles released in 2024 included “King Komodo” for grades 3–5 and “Tricky Trolls,” both focused on phonics instruction.

The game “SquishyLand” launched during this time and sold out in just 10 days. Alongside product growth, the company also expanded its team tenfold.

During the summer of 2024, Brandi continued donating games to underserved schools.

In May 2025, during Teacher Appreciation Week, Brandi and the team publicly thanked educators on their LinkedIn and Instagram pages.

Around the same time, they announced a new retail partnership with Fisher Hawaii. Three weeks before July 2025, they promoted this partnership alongside an Easter-themed sale offering 20% off.

If you’re considering this program for your kids, check out the rave reviews on both Amazon and The Fidget Game website.

You’ll also find that the brand is quickly expanding its product line for all areas of learning.

The future looks bright for Brandi, and we cannot wait to see where the next The Fidget Game update takes us!

In the meantime, you can check out our other company updates from Season 15 Episode 7, by following the links below!

• Bunny Eyez Update
• Rekkie Update
• Yum Crumbs Update

Before you go, be sure to check out our list of all the Shark Tank Season 15 products.