I was rejected by Shark Tank four times and now my business is worth $100m

THE founder of the viral Bogg Bag has revealed she was rejected by Shark Tank four times and believes a key piece of advice from Mr. Wonderful is "ridiculous." New Jersey woman Kim Vaccarella created the Bogg Bag after she realized the perfect beach bag did not exist, setting out to make it herself.

Spending all of her savings including her son’s $60,000 college fund, Vaccarella was looking to make something specific that would work perfectly for all her needs as a busy mom of two boys. It had to be durable, water resistant, washable, sandproof, and big enough to carry everything she needed. While sitting on the beach one day with her husband, she was inspired by Crocs .

“I liked the material, how it got warm and pliable in the heat but it didn’t get hot and if you got sand in it you could just hose it off or wash it in the shower,” Vaccarella told The U.S. Sun.

Read more on Bogg Bag “It was the perfect idea for my dream beach bag.” BAGGED IT Despite countless hurdles, Vaccarella's design became wildly successful. Over 10 years later, her business has exploded and is on track to hit $100 million in revenue.

She has even built a strategic partnership with Target, and the bag now comes in over 40 colors. Most read in Money In an exclusive interview with The U.S.

Sun, Vaccarella revealed that she was rejected from Shark Tank four times. Reflecting on her own career journey, Vaccarella says she actually disagrees with one of Mr. Wonderful’s pieces of advice.

Mr Wonderful, one of the infamous judges on Shark Tank, often says that “if you’re not all in, you’re not really in” meaning that to truly commit to a job or business venture, you need to dedicate yourself fully and put in your maximum effort, not just half-heartedly participate. The idea behind this phrase, repeated by Mr. Wonderful on the show, is that the best business results come from people who fully invest and commit to their ideas.

But Vaccarella said she thought that advice was “ridiculous” for many people, especially women with families. She said it was often unrealistic to expect women to put their livelihood and families at risk when you don't actually know if it would ever be successful. “I used to panic when I heard Mr.

Wonderful’s advice, but I find that advice ridiculous actually,” Vaccarella told The U.S. Sun.

“Why would you put your family at risk if you can do both? “Entrepreneurship is tiring but leaving a job and the security of a paycheck can be detrimental.” SIDE HUSTLE FIRST Vaccarella continued to work in her 9-5 job in commercial real estate before she went "all in" with her business, with her full-time job giving her continued financial security until she felt she was ready. Vaccarella said Covid helped the business go gangbusters, with a lot of nurses and teachers purchasing the bags due to their durability.

“We also got creative with wholesalers and always wanted to foster those relationships so they took a page out of our playbook from Hurricane Sandy using Bogg Bags for gift packages,” she said. LOYAL FANS The company is still focused on cultivating strong relationships with their customers, often reposting them and their Bogg Bags at the beach. She said they did not spend any money on advertising up until 2023, and relied on user generated content which was “very real” and the customers loved it.

“People would tag us on the beach, and we would repost them expressing our thank you," she said. “We could get 20 pictures a day in the heat of summer and it was very real, our customers loved it.” Read More on The US Sun The U.

S. Sun covers all things side hustles and recently revealed how Mark Cuban thinks business owners are doing them wrong. The U.

S. Sun also recently reported how a couple turned their $50 side hustle into a $25 million company..