Grease Bags Net Worth | Shark Tank
Grease Bags Net Worth – $700,000
What is Grease Bags’ net worth?
Introduction
Every multi-million dollar business idea starts somewhere, and for LaTangela Newsome, it started in the kitchen.
The former actress, author, and mom was making her family-famous fried chicken when—for the hundredth time—she wondered if there could be a better way to dispose of cooking grease.
Everyone knows not to pour it straight down the drain, right?
Cooking grease binds together and causes blockages—not just in the drain of your kitchen, but further down the line, too.
LaTangela had battled with various methods of grease disposal—like mopping it all up with a roll of paper towel or letting it cool and scraping it into a grease tin.
She’d tried pouring it straight into the compost, too, but none of these methods were fast, convenient, or clean.
And this is how the idea for Grease Bags was born.
From a failed Kickstarter campaign to a successful pitch on Shark Tank, we’ve got all the details about Grease Bags’ rise to the top.
What is Grease Bags?
Grease Bags is a genius little invention—an environmentally friendly, 100% compostable, safe, non-corrosive bag that helps everyone at home get rid of leftover cooking oils, grease, and fats.
These nifty bags are made from highly absorbent natural fibers to help them break down in compost fast, and eliminate the amount of clogging, and damage causing grease to end up in drains, waterways, and sewers everywhere.
Who founded Grease Bags?
When Texas native LaTangela Newsome founded Grease Bags, she was a single mom, and author of the anti-bullying book Military Bratz—which she penned with her mom.
She was also a former child star, having appeared in the 2001-2002 Nickelodeon teen sitcom, Taina, as Maritza.
LaTangela is also a singer and writer and had worked several jobs in an effort to support her growing son, Souljah.
A Journey to the Top
LaTangela worked tirelessly to develop her idea for Grease Bags, testing materials and doing the research to create a sustainable, compostable, environmentally safe product.
But she still needed money—something which was always in short supply for the solo mom.
She launched a Kickstarter campaign in 2016 to raise $25,000, but it fell sadly short of its goal with just $75.
Not one to give up, Newsome tried again.
She launched a fundraising campaign through ifundwomen.com hoping to raise $30,000. This also did not come close to reaching its goal.
Into the Shark Tank
Unlike most of the savvy entrepreneurs that enter the Shark Tank with dreams of startup capital, Newsome didn’t have that long to prepare.
At home in Allen, Texas, she heard about a casting call nearby and raced down to audition.
“I wasn’t prepared. I stood there for hours and hours and hours, but it was well worth it.”
LaTangela finally got to present her pitch on season 8, episode 13 of the hit ABC show.
She was asking for $75,000 and offering a 25% stake in Grease Bags in exchange.
Never one to miss an opportunity, Newsome showed up ready to give it her all.
She delivered a flawless presentation, sold her product well, and executed a seamless demonstration of the Grease Bag in action, showing how it can completely separate oil from water.
It probably didn’t hurt that LaTangela threw in some of her famous chicken wings to sweeten the deal.
The Sharks were impressed, but—as always—they needed to know more.
Newsome had the figures the Sharks needed, but her product is still in the prototype/production phase of its life cycle.
There was only one flaw—Grease Bags cannot take hot cooking fat, because they are not heat-tempered.
In a catch-22, they cannot be heat-tempered, or they will no longer be compostable.
Barbara Corcoran, Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, Kevin O’Leary, and Robert Herjavec all declined—but all note that her presentation was “incredible.”
Corcoran has a change of heart, going over the figures again with Newsome.
She eventually proposes a counter-offer of $75,000 for 50% equity in the business—on the condition that LaTangela drops the retail price from $12.99 to $6.99.
Newsome tearfully agrees, and thanks Corcoran for the opportunity to work with her.
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Grease Bags – Net Worth
Grease Bags hit a rough patch just after the show aired, with Corcoran withdrawing her offer after due diligence.
It turned out that Grease Bags’ production costs were too high to honor the retail price reduction Corcoran had stipulated.
As with all companies that appear on the hit show, Grease Bags saw a peak in sales and used her own money to pay for supplies.
Sadly, she ran out of money to cover shipping on pre-orders.
This, in turn, led to poor customer service reviews.
By the end of 2021, Newsome had turned things around yet again and reestablished some footing in the company.
The product retails for $13.99 in 2022, and is available through the official site.
Therefore, Grease Bags has an estimated worth of $700,000.
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