The Mission Belt Update | Season 4
Nate Holzapfel created a belt with ratchets closed. Will it earn him a deal on
Shark Tank The Mission Belt Update
- Entrepreneur: Nate Holzapfel
- Business: Belt that ratchets closed
- Ask: $50,000 for 20% equity
- Result: $50,000 for 37.5% equity
- Shark: Daymond John
Nate brought his innovative product, The Mission Belt, to the tank. Instead of a traditional belt which used holes every inch, his product uses a ratcheting system. Its ratchets shut every quarter-inch for greater flexibility, greater durability, and better all-around value.
Genuine Leather - 1.5" wide, smooth leather with no needless holes to crack or wear out. A Perfect Fit Every Time - Scratch resistant, metal ratchet buckle and 1 / 4" spaced teeth in leather adjusts to the exact size you need.
Robert Herjavec asked to see the belt, and said he found it to be high in quality. He then asked if Nate manufactured the product himself, and Nate said he had a factory that was making the belts right there in America.
Kevin O’Leary asked if Nate had a distribution plan, and Nate said that was his biggest hurdle. He said he needed a “Rolodex” because, while he acknowledged he was a terrific salesman, he simply wasn’t getting in front of the right people. The sharks’ contact list, in his opinion, would help him get the ball rolling in a big way.
Mark Cuban asked where the product was currently sold, and Nate said it was sold in local retailers, country clubs, and men’s clothing stores. Daymond John asked what kind of reorders Nate was getting, and Nate said he was selling more than 250 belts in just one of the twenty-two locations.
Lori Greiner asked about the retail price, and Nate said the belts were being sold for $35. Daymond asked about the previous year’s sales, to which Nate said they sold $39,000. The sharks agreed– that’s not bad for belts.
At this point, Lori and Robert took an issue with the display. From appearances, it was not clear that the belt used an innovative ratcheting system that made it superior to standard belts. They felt it needed to be demonstrated.
Lori felt that the product needed to be demonstrated in order to drive sales, so she was the first shark out. Robert said he wasn’t the right fit for the investment, so for that reason, he too was out. Mark asked how much of his own money Nate had invested. Nate said he had put in $90,000 so far. Mark asked if there was any debt on the company, and Nate said no.
Daymond said he found Nate very impressive, and confirmed that accessories were always hot in the fashion business. He wasn’t quite sure if centering a company around only one belt was enough to call it a business, but he was interested nonetheless.
Mark and Daymond had a brief standoff. Daymond asked if Mark was going to make an offer. Mark said he was being “patient,” but Daymond knew this meant Mark was going to wait to hear Daymond’s offer before doing anything.
Daymond offered Nate $50,000 for 40% equity, telling Nate he would do the licensing, manufacturing, product development, and hire a sales team. He also said Nate would be the obvious Head of Sales, and collect a commission on all accounts.
Mark, without hesitation, told Nate to take the deal and that he was out, presumably because his offer would’ve been worse than Daymond’s. Nate countered, asking if Daymond would be happy with 30% equity. Daymond said at 37.5%, they’d have a deal. With that, Nate accepted and the deal was done. What happened next? Keep reading The Mission Belt update to find out!
We have quite a lot to share in The Mission Belt update! While the company went on to sell millions each year, Nate soon became the center of a number of controversies and problems. In 2019, Larry King sued Nate and won. Then in 2021, he was arrested and charged with two counts of fraud in an unrelated case. In the years since, several other people have come forward accusing Nate of crimes, and he has been charged with several. The Mission Belt, which ousted him completely in light of his criminal behavior, is still going strong in 2023.
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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!