Cookie Kahuna: What Happened After Shark Tank? [Updated]

As the name itself suggests Cookie Kahuna is a Cookie brand inspired by the Hawaiian Aloha spirit.

The cookies come in plastic packaging. They have 3 major flavors- Chocolate Chip, Butterscotch Macadamia, and Chocolate Chip Pecan. The cookies were majorly sold in Hawaii in small 6-ounce packs.

They were available for sale online as well. As the creator of the company- Wally Amos is from Hawaii, the Kahuna reference was used in the name of the company.

Cookie Kahuna at a glance:

Cookie brand inspired by Hawaiian Aloha spirit.
Founder: Wallace Amos Jr.

Asked For $50,000 for 20% at a $250,000 valuation on Shark Tank.
Received no deal.
Currently out of business.

Index:

Who are the Founders of Cookie Kahuna?

Wallace Amos Jr. aka Wally Amos created and pitched Cookie Kahuna in Shark Tank in 2016. He is known as the King of Cookies. Wally Amos is also an Author and American TV personality. He started Cookie Kahuna after the age of 80. Along with Cookie Kahuna he also founded Aunt Della’s Cookies.

Before Cookie Kahuna, he had started another cookie brand called Famous Amos Chocolate Chip Cookies. For Famous Amos he took a $25,000 loan from Marvin Gaye and Helen Reddy. Famous Amos was sold in many supermarkets in the USA.

But later, due to financial instability, he had to sell Famous Amos, whose name was trademarked. That’s why he later started his own cookies and muffins company with the name Uncle Noname’s Cookie Company and Uncle Noname’s Gourmet Muffins.

Uncle Noname’s Gourmet Muffins was later renamed Uncle Wally’s Muffin Company. The muffins were sold in more than 3,500 stores and received a lot of positive responses.

Wally Amos is also an author. He wrote books like The Cookie Never Crumbles and The Power in You. He also wrote Man With No Name: Turn Lemons Into Lemonade, The Famous Amos story: The Face That Launched a thousand chips, and Watermelon Magic: Seeds Of Wisdom, Slices Of Life. In total Amos has written 10 books.

Before starting his own business he worked as a clerk in William Morris Agency and later became that agency’s first African-American talent agent.

How was the Cookie Kahuna Shark Tank pitch?

Wally Amos pitched Cookie Kahuna on Shark Tank seeking $50,000 for 20% equity stakes. He made a song for sharks named ‘Cookies for Sharks’ and even sang it while pitching. All the sharks tasted the cookies and they all said that Wally Amos is a cookie legend.

While asked questions on production and profit, Wally started reading a paper on which all the costs were written. Which sharks did not like? They were expecting Wally to know about it offhand. After discussing production cost and margins Robert said the profit Wally is making behind each bag of cookies is less and it’s not sustainable for a business.

Lori said that Wally should put his love, passion, and enthusiasm into doing a more profitable business. And enthusiasm won’t be enough to sell cookies. So, Lori and Robert refused to invest. Talking about Wally’s previous business, Barbara said Wally along with his company sold his name, personality, and image too.

She further added that her instincts say that it will be really difficult for Wally to be successful in 2nd cookie business after what happened with his first cookie business. Kevin also agreed with Barbara. So Barbara and Kevin also backed out.

Cookie Kahuna revenue:

While pitching his product on Shark Tank, Wally Amos said that he sells each bag of Cookies to Costo at the cost of $7.89. The same bag’s production cost is $5.25.

Wally was making a $2.62 profit for each bag. considering the production cost, the profit margin was less than 20%. As already mentioned by the sharks, it was not enough to make the business sustainable. If Wally wants to ship the cookies, the shipping cost would actually put in in debt.

Cookie Kahuna was also sold in brick-and-mortar stores in Hawaii as well as online. They were sold at the cost of $5.99. They sold about $37,000 in cookies before Shark Tank.

How much is Cookie Kahuna worth?

At the time of the shark tank appearance, Cookie Kahuna was valued at around $250,000. Before Shark Tank, Cookie Kahuna’s sales were $36,215.

After Shark Tank, Cookie Kahuna observed a rise in sales. Wally Amos himself accepted that Cookie Kahuna and he gained more popularity after Shark Tank.

Wally Amos went broke after Cookie Kahuna failed to make sales. In 2017, he had to launch GoFundMe to raise the money he needed to get back on track financially.

Who are the Competitors of Cookie Kahuna?

Famous Amos:

Famous Amos cookie brand was started by Wally Amos himself in the year 1975. Later he tried to include more investors. Diluting his own share in the company. Today the company is owned by Ferrero SpA and manufactured by Kellogg Company. Today Famous Amos has a turnover of $18.1 billion.

Alyssa’s Bakery:

Mark Cuban invested in Alyssa’s Bakery. Alyssa’s Bakery sells healthy, sugar-free, gluten-free, and delicious cookies. Making them one of the best cookie companies. Alyssa’s Bakery was started in 2010.

Is Cookie Kahuna still in business?

Cookie Kahuna went out of business. Later Wally Amos started concentrating on his other cookie brand Aunt Della’s Cookies. But that company also went out of business.

Due to this, Wally Amos had to face some financial crises. But at the age of 84 as well, his passion to bake and sell cookies keeps him going. He wants to spread joy through his cookies.

Interesting facts about Cookie Kahuna:

In an interview, Wally Amos mentioned that he just wanted to be honest and wanted to add some humor while pitching his product. That is why he even wrote a song for Sharks called cookies for sharks.
Even after Wally Amos’s company went out of business, his enthusiasm and love for cookies keep him going. He is known as a cookie legend.

Wally Amos started many Cookie and baking companies. Starting from Famous Amos to Aunt Della’s cookies. When he had to sell Famous Amos due to some problems, his name was trademarked which’s why he was not allowed to use his own name.
He got his world-famous cookies recipe from his aunt Della. To honor her, he later started the company and named it Aunt Della’s cookies.

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