Hummingbirds are one of nature’s most spectacular creatures. If you love them as much as John and June Creed do, you should get Hummviewer ASAP. It’s a mask that lets you watch hummingbirds forage for food right in front of you. The founders appeared on Shark Tank and landed a deal with Daniel Lubezki. As of 2024, Hummviewer is valued at $500,000.
About the Founder
John and June Creed were a couple from Colorado. Little is known about their family and educational background, but their childhoods were similar.
As a child, John’s family would go to a cottage in Westcliffe during the summer. It was here that he fell in love with hummingbirds and studied their behavior. Joan spent most of her youth touring the Highlands and where she lived, there were bird feeders.
Founding Hummviewer
The couple’s shared love of birds led them to find a way to see them up close. John spent weeks designing a product that would easily attract birds. He combined a welding mask, rubber tubing, and artificial flowers to create a hummingbird feeding mask.
It lets people get up close and personal with how the birds feed on nectar, and released its first prototype in 2017. Four years later, sales are at an all-time high, but not enough to force them to quit their jobs.
Appeared on Shark Tank
Soon after discovering their product worked, the Creeds tweeted a photo of their feeding mask to NBC affiliate 9News/NEXT. The next day, a reporter from the station called and filmed a segment about their invention.
A spot on a local news station made them realize they needed to do more to promote their business. They applied to be on Shark Tank and were accepted to appear on Season 14.
Shark Tank Appearance
John and Joan gave an upbeat speech and the sharks laughed at the demo. The founders had sold about 500 units and had lifetime sales of $25,000. Most of the sharks did not see this as a business worth investing in and viewed it as just a hobby.
Only Daniel Lubetzky was interested because his father loved hummingbirds. Guest Shark was excited but also believed that this product could be a hit due to its novelty. He offered $75,000 for 35% and they happily accepted the deal.
Post-Shark Tank Updates
Being featured on Shark Tank in December 2022 was huge for the company. John revealed in an interview, “We definitely felt the ‘Shark Tank’ effect.” 24 hours after the episode aired, 1,500 units sold out. As of January 2024, they have grossed $350,000 in sales and recently visited a factory in China to help improve production.
In February 2023, the company moved into new offices and acquired a warehouse. Lubetzky’s team has also been in regular contact and rebuilt their website from scratch. You can purchase this unique bird feeder for $69.95 at Hummviewer.com. Unfortunately, there is no other way to purchase this product as it may not be suitable for retail stores.
The founders now run the business full-time. Previously, John worked as an electrician for over 40 years and Joan ran a grocery delivery service. John’s new goal is to turn Daniel’s $75,000 into $1 million. The feeder has four 5-star reviews on its website and one 5-star review on Google. The company’s valuation has doubled since the show aired and is currently valued at $500,000.
Categories: Shark Tank
Source: svlsf.edu.vn