Coffee is undoubtedly great, and freshly brewed coffee tastes even better. However, brewing coffee takes time, which most busy people can’t afford. Kweku Larbi founded Brumachen and partnered with social media star Ross Smith. The company sells portable coffee machines and eco-friendly coffee pods. They were featured on Shark Tank, but no deal was struck. As of 2024, Brumachen is worth $0, as they are no longer in business.
Founder
Kweku Larbi, a Ghanaian immigrant, came to the United States with only $2,000. He studied civil engineering at Cleveland State University and worked odd jobs to make ends meet.
Ross Smith is a social media influencer from Columbus, Ohio. He is known for making hilarious videos with his grandmother. Ross and Granny Smith are very popular on TikTok, with over 23.9 million followers on the platform.
The content creator has worked with brands like Burger King and the NFL. Larbi met him while working at a coffee startup. Kweku was actually the brains behind the product, while Ross was involved mainly because of his large following.
Founding of Brumachen
While working at a construction site, Larbi began to rely on coffee to get him through the day. However, there were no good coffee stands near where he worked. This sparked the idea of making a coffee machine that he could carry with him.
Brumachen was born when the engineering student used a 3D printer to prototype a single-cup portable coffee maker, and the creator also created biodegradable coffee capsules called Leaf Pods.
During their collaboration, Ross liked Kweku’s idea and decided to work with him. In 2020, the co-founders launched a Kickstarter campaign asking for $6,000 but ended up raising $41,553 from 470 backers.
Shark Tank
Despite a successful Kickstarter campaign, the founders had trouble manufacturing and shipping the product. They were desperate for help and appeared on Season 12, asking for $1 million for a 10% stake.
Ross and Kweku confidently presented the rationale behind the product. They further explained that Brumachen had a profit margin of 60%. However, things turned sour when they revealed that sales were meager.
A $10 million valuation was too high for a business with only $41,000 in sales. The Sharks liked the product, but Mark and Robert thought the design could be improved. The pitch would have been more successful if Kweku had gone it alone and the valuation was reasonable.
What happened after Shark Tank?
The founders didn’t get the money they wanted, but received enough publicity to keep the company afloat for a year. According to Kweku’s LinkedIn profile, Brumachen closed in 2021 because they had trouble generating valuable sales.
The Brumachen coffee machine and pods are sold exclusively on its website, Brumachen.com. However, many people hesitate to buy it because the reviews on Kickstarter are mostly negative. Some customers complained about not receiving their orders, while others claimed that the products were damaged during shipping.
Brumachen Brewer had 102 reviews with an average rating of 3 stars on its now offline website. Brumachen did not release any recent sales figures. Kweku Larbi is now the founder and creative director of sustainable clothing company Baxter Wood Company.
Categories: Shark Tank
Source: svlsf.edu.vn