How This Shark Tank Rejected Contestant Built A $1B Doorbell Company & Returned To The Show As Judge

It was about a decade ago, in late 2013, when all the Sharks on Shark Tank had declined to invest in Jamie Siminoff's Wi-Fi-enabled video doorbell company, which he started in his garage in Los Angeles.

The Journey Until Shark Tank Rejection

Ring

As per Inc, In 2011, Jamie was 35 and had his midlife entrepreneurial crisis. Then, it all started while tinkering in his garage. That idea went on to make Ring founder Siminoff the inventor of the world's first Wi-Fi video doorbell.

Initially, Ring was a way for him to see a delivery person at the front door while he was in his garage.

Then, in 2013, Jamie was broke when he went on Shark Tank. As a contestant, he pitched his startup Doorbot, the maker of a doorbell with a camera that sent the video to users¡¯ smartphones.

Although the Sharks liked the idea and said nice things, like Mark Cuban said, "I think it's a great business. I think you'll be successful. It will be worth $20 million. I just can't invest in something that's not going to be $70 million someday.", But none of the Sharks agreed to invest in his idea, and hence, Siminoff had to return home broke and dejected.

The Amazon Deal

Siminoff¡¯s TV appearance through Shark Tank gave his company much-needed visibility and attracted the attention of Richard Branson, who went on to invest in it. And after years of Siminoff's hard work and rebranding of the startup with the new name Ring, the new chapter began, i.e. Amazon¡¯s deal.

In February 2018, Amazon acquired Ring in a deal reported to be worth more than $1 billion.

The Comeback To Shark Tank

Edtimes

In 2018 itself, Siminoff got a phone call from a producer at Shark Tank, inviting him to appear as a guest Shark in the 2018 season. "That was a quick yes for me," he says.

"Ring would never have survived or been where we've been if it hadn't been for that exposure," Jamie Siminoff said. Even though he didn't get a deal, appearing on the show allowed him to live his dream, so he was eager to help others do the same, as per Inc.

When he became a shark himself, Siminoff says, he understands how the Sharks had failed to recognize the potential in Doorbot, given the speed with which information flies around on the show.

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