Michael Sweigart invented the Fur Zapper by accident. He was dabbling in special effects make up as a hobby and he dropped some of the “zombie face foam” on the floor. When he picked it up, it was loaded with pet hair. After seeing how easily it rinsed clean, the wheels started turning.
Michael worked at home designing websites for auto dealerships, so he was the family laundry guy. He knew how their pet’s hair got all over everything. So he began experimenting and he threw a chunk of foam in the washer. To his delight, it kept pet hair off his clothes. It worked when he put it in the dryer, too. After experimenting with different sizes and shapes, he settled on a hockey puck sized disk.
After getting a patent pending, he set up a website and started selling FurZappers. He was pouring the “zombie foam” – a silicon based product – in his garage by hand. As sales increased, he made more molds and hired some people to help. When his business partner, Harry Levin, signed them up for Walmart’s “Made in America” program, they were chosen to put the Fur Zapper in all 3,888 stores! Walmart introduced them to a Wisconsin silicon manufacturer and the product took off. Now, they’re in Ace Hardware, Bed Bath and Beyond, Walmart, Amazon and more. They likely want a Shark’s help managing their explosive growth.
My Take on the Fur Zapper
We have a 70 pound American Bulldog who thinks she’s a lap dog. She loves cuddling and laying on our bed. Needless to say, her white hair gets everywhere. Forget about it if you’re wearing dark colors. We have to keep lint brushes in our cars to clean up the white hair!
Needless to say, when I showed FurZapper to my wife, she ordered a couple on Amazon. It’s probably the best 15 bucks we’ve ever spent. I just wished we had this when we had our old dog. She was part lab and shed like crazy. If it works as advertised, this product could be a big as Scrub Daddy.
Will Sharks Think This Opportunity is Fur Real?
This pitch is going to cause a feeding frenzy. In four short years, Fur Zapper went from zero to nearly ten thousand retail locations. They have huge sales which will cause the frenzy. I expect offers from multiple Sharks. Expect royalty structured deals from Mr. Wonderful, Barbara and Lori. On Michael’s Linked In page, he calls the Shark Tank experience “amazing.” My only question is who does the deal?
