Are you tired of struggling to carry heavy packages up your stairs or onto your doorstep? Meet Moki Doorstep, the innovative product that caught the attention of the Sharks on ABC’s Shark Tank.
With its simple yet ingenious design, Moki Doorstep makes it easy to access the roof of your car and safely transport oversized items. Join us as we dive into the story behind Moki Doorstep and discover how this product is revolutionizing the way we load and unload our vehicles.
The Moki Doorstep is an aircraft-grade aluminum step made to reach the rooftop of the car.
Zach and Alyssa Brown a married couple from Newington came up with the idea to help people who can’t reach the rooftop of their car. The aluminum step is hooked to the car’s door latch to give the person extra feet to reach the top for sports gear or any other luggage. The couple went on to offer 5% of the company equity for $150,000.
Moki Doorstep at a glance:
Index:
Who is the owner of Moki Doorstep?
Zach Brown is a firefighter who enjoyed outdoor activities and sports, he came up with the idea for the product when he’s 5 feet tall wife Alyssa couldn’t reach for her sports gear on the rooftop of the car.
He ran a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2017 that helped him raise $11,736. Zach was passionate about his career and family so he partnered with Rightline Gear company which helped him distribute the product nationally. The couple appeared in season 9 of the shark tank in 2019. The company got instant fame as it was the first company to be sold on a shark tank.
Did Moki Doorstep get a deal on Shark Tank?
Zach and Alyssa both appeared in season 9 of the show. they offered 5% of the company equity for $150,000 to the sharks. Zach states the name came from the Moki steps carved foot skills by pueblos of southwest America.
As soon as Zach demonstrated the product the sharks were amazed by how easy it was to attach the step to the door. Zach further states the step can hold up to 400 pounds of weight. Robert Herjevec asks “who came up with these designs” the product seemed like a simple solution to problems no one had addressed before.
The sharks were further concerned about the pricing as they thought $44.96 was too high and could be knocked off as they still didn’t have the patent right. The sharks further stated that copy of these products could be sold at even cheaper than that. To which Zach says he has spent a lot of time removing more than 9000 such copies. He further clarifies that one of the investors who is his uncle had applied for the patent for the design.
Upon asking about the investors Zach revealed that his uncle has invested $300,000 and receives $1 per gear sold. Kevin thought the valuation of the company was high. To which Zach explains that he took advice from CFO of a large auto part company who suggested that he shouldn’t value it at any less than $3 million.
The cost to produce one gear was $10.50, the sharks thought the margin was high given the retail price is $45.
Zach also lets the shark know that they were offered a 7-year licensing agreement that guaranteed $ 3 million and 12.5% royalty, but the deal was limited to North America while they wanted the company to be global.
Daymond john steps forward and makes an offer of $450,000 for 20% of the equity. to which Alyssa says they didn’t want to give this much control over the company.
Further Zach states they would rather sell the company than sell such a big share of the equity, upon asking for how much the company could be sold for. Zach states the company is valued at $ 3 million so he would sell it at $ 3 million. Daymond offers $ 3 million to buy the company off Browns.
Investors of Moki Doorstep:
They launched their product in 2017 with a Kickstarter campaign which helped them raise $11,000 with the help of 2000 backers. Zach brown himself had invested $300,000 in the business. Another $300,000 was invested by his uncle who was to be paid $1 per gear for 18 years.
The couple went off the shark tank to offer $150,000 for 5% of the equity. instead, Daymond john offered them $3 million and bought the company off the browns.
What Happened to Moki Doorstep after the shark tank?
Zach Brown who is a professional firefighter invested in Moki’s doorstep and also partnered with Rightline gear company which helped him sell his product. Moki’s doorsteps are currently available on Amazon and retail stores like Dick Sporting Goods and REL.
Daymond john one of the sharks from the shark tank brought the company for $ 3 million. Although the deal hasn’t been as fruitful as they thought it would be. The company still makes ~$65,000 per month.
The founders of Moki Door Step have licensed their product to Rightline Gear in North Carolina and have formed a unique partnership where they still remain involved and participate in trade shows like SEMA.
The product is now being sold in major retailers such as REI, Dicks Sporting Goods, Pep-Boys, Duluth Trading Post, Academy Sports, and many more. However, most of their time is now spent focusing on combating copycat and infringing products, having successfully removed over 9,000 knockoff listings from the internet. This task alone requires their full attention.
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FAQs:
What is Moki Doorstep?
The Moki doorstep is an aircraft-grade aluminum step made to reach the rooftop of the car.
Who founded Moki Doorstep?
Zach and Alyssa brown a married couple from Newington came up with the idea to help people who can’t reach the rooftop of their car. The aluminum step is hooked to the car’s door latch to give the person extra feet to reach the top for sports gear or any other luggage.