For his second shot at a deal, Les Cookson aimed high, asking the celebrity investors of “Shark Tank” to invest 10 times what he sought for Carsik Bib: $300,000 in exchange for 10% of LUCIDArt, the company behind the LUCY Drawing Tool.
His flagship product works quite similarly to the camera lucida. A viewing portal (attached to an adjustable arm) with magnifying lenses and mirrors allows novice artists to see exactly what was in front of their portal on paper. As Cookson explains during the episode, it requires more skill than using tracing paper, translates to actual technical development, and can be useful to artists of all experience levels — 40% of his sales at the time were split evenly between total newcomers and professionals, with the remaining 60% lying somewhere in the middle.
The device itself is impressive enough (with Kevin O’Leary even drawing a crude shark with its help), but what really wows the investors are Cookson’s solid sales numbers and sizable profit margins. By the time he appeared on “Shark Tank,” he had sold $10 million worth of product. The sharks’ praise is unanimously effusive, with Lori Greiner going so far as to question if he needed their help at all. Despite this, four out of the five sharks present quickly drop out, citing a lack of interest in the product and market.
As the last in the tank, Daymond John has an enviable negotiating position, though it’s hard for him to push for a valuation more reasonable than what Cookson came in with. After a brief back-and-forth, John and Cookson agree to $300,000 in exchange for 15%.
