Here's What Happened To Fat Shack After Shark Tank
On ABC's "Shark Tank," billionaire tycoon and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban leads a team of powerful businesspeople, the "sharks," as they consider investing in businesses pitched by entrepreneurs. In the show's 13 seasons and 281 episodes, the sharks have heard over 500 pitches and invested in more than half of them (via Sharkalytics). Since this is reality TV we're talking about, it's always worth asking: how much have they actually helped the businesses they claimed to help?
In the Season 10 finale, which aired on May 12, 2019, (via YouTube), Tom Armenti and Kevin Gabauer pitched their late-night restaurant Fat Shack, which specializes in burgers, wings, and Fat Sandwiches – sandwiches with fries and all sorts of other good stuff on them. The restaurant started in 2010 as a part-time operation, sharing a location with a New Jersey bagel shop. In 2011, Armenti moved to Fort Collins, CO and started the first Fat Shack (via FatShack.com). Business boomed, and by 2015 Fat Shack was able to open its first franchise.
When Armenti and Gabauer appeared on "Shark Tank" in 2019, they asked for $250,000 in exchange for 7.5% equity in their company. In the end, Mark Cuban paid $250K for 15%. How has Fat Shack done since then? Read on to find out (via The Denver Channel).
Fat Shack's popularity exploded almost immediately after Shark Tank
While Cuban's money certainly helped Fat Shack, the real benefit of appearing on "Shark Tank" for the restaurant was the publicity. Right after the episode aired, franchise requests flooded in.
"So after we aired we had gotten what was it, 3,000? Yeah, we had over 3,000 franchise requests come in through the website," Gabauer told The Denver Channel.
Armenti and Gabauer already had 11 locations by the time they appeared on "Shark Tank." Less than a year after their "Shark Tank" appearance, the Fat Shack guys added five more locations across the midwest for a total of 16. Since then the company has expanded even more rapidly, with 28 locations as of January 2022.
Currently, Fat Shack has locations in Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Washington. You can check out a full list of their locations at Fat Shack's website.