The global health crisis has hit the region’s startups hard, but not all have experienced the same ride as Alexandria tool company Little Burros.
The family-owned business had started the year strong, with high hopes of brick-and-mortar retail sales in stores like Sam’s Club, Home Depot and Tractor Supply Co. Then Covid-19 challenged its chances of success, canceling trade shows and closing off the aisles to their products, a line of wheelbarrow trays for gardeners.
But on May 1, the company got its five minutes of fame: ABC’s “Shark Tank” featured its pitch, about a year after initially filming the segment.
The father-daughter entrepreneurs didn’t get a deal, but it didn’t matter. The episode catapulted their online sales.
“It really was a huge blessing because we just can’t be in stores right now, and we understand that, so we’re really grateful for the ‘Shark Tank’ episode to give us that push on e-commerce,” said Molly Thorsen, the company’s chief operations officer.
She started the business back in 2013 with her dad, Bob, and her sister, Becca. Three years later, Becca passed away suddenly.
“We wanted to honor the work my sister put into it and follow through with that,” Mollie said.
That’s what they’re doing now, by building up their e-commerce strategy, and planning to hire and fundraise down the line. But first, Mollie said, they have to climb out from the stack of emails and orders fueled by their primetime TV appearance.
The Washington Business Journal took a deep dive into Little Burros’ journey since “Shark Tank,” one of multiple small businesses — and alumni of the show — profiled amid the pandemic. Check out the Little Burros story here.
