![\"\"](\"https:\/\/gazettereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/tree-hugger.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nWalking into the tank, the entrepreneur wishes the everyone a happy holiday, before telling them that he is seeking $100,000 for 20% equity of his company, The Christmas Tree Hugger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gesturing towards a small box, Kelly introduces the sharks to his product, the Christmas Tree Hugger. Highlighting the abundance of artificial Christmas trees, he explains that the item helps to \u201cfix the fake\u201d by concealing the \u201cugly secret down below\u201d\u2014that is, the fuzzy green pole at the bottom, which seemingly takes away from the holiday magic. Stating that he has a solution, he goes on to wrap the hugger on the pole, which instantly gives it a \u201crealer\u201d look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As the sharks look on, Kelly continues by saying that it can also be used to hide messy cords. Elaborating, he states that they can simply be run through the hugger, and under the skirt. Continuing his pitch, he explains that there are a couple of different designs\u2014including natural bark, birch bark, both of which can also be reversed to reveal a candy cane pattern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/gazettereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/tree-hugger-2.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nFinishing up, Kelly eventually goes on to hand out some samples. As the others examine the product, Kevin asks about the entrepreneur\u2019s day job. Responding to the question, he states that he works as an art director in advertising. Asked how he had come up with the idea, he explains that he and his wife were not too fond of the \u201cfuzzy green pole\u201d on their artificial Christmas tree. Continuing, he shares that he\u2019d thought of the idea after wondering how he could make it more real. With the support of family and friends, he eventually began to sell them online, he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite his explanation, however, Kevin doesn\u2019t seem too impressed with the product. Defending the concept, Kelly tells him that people do care about how their trees look. Asked about his sales just seconds later, he reveals that he\u2019s done $50,000 over the past year and a half. From there, Mark asks about the production costs, to which he\u2019s told $1.37 including packaging. Continuing, he states that the Christmas Tree Hugger sells for $17.99.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Asked whether or not most of the sales are online, Kelly reveals that they\u2019re also with QVC. Prompted by a question from Lori, he goes on to explain that they had sold 1,000 units in five minutes during the Christmas in July sale, which impresses the sharks. Continuing, he states that they plan on going back to QVC closer to the holidays. To their dismay, however, he eventually reveals the fact that they haven\u2019t reordered any additional units as they still have many in stock from the previous sale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/gazettereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/tree-hugger-3.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nDiving deeper into the topic, Lori inquires about the reordering, to which she is told QVC will probably air the products again come the following Christmas season. Elaborating, Kelly tells her that the Christmas Tree Hugger has received nothing but positive five-star reviews on the platform. Just as he finishes talking, Barbara asks about the price on QVC. Giving her his attention, he replies that they were selling it for $20.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just as Mark expresses his awe, Kevin asks about his other sales and future plans. In response, Kelly states that they did $12,000 last year, which is largely due to a deal that he had landed with Kroger. With further prompting, he reveals that they had ordered 1,500 units for 130 stores nationwide. Asked whether or not they will be reordering, however, Kelly says no, as they had only managed to sell 40% of the stock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To his chagrin, the sharks do not seem all too impressed with the story\u2019s ending. Asked why they won\u2019t be reordering, Kelly admits that the product had not sold that well, which everyone else agrees with. Continuing, he acknowledges the fact that grocery stores such as Kroger might not have been the ideal retailer for the hugger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Continuing to ask questions, Kevin subsequently inquires about their 2017 revenue. In response, he states that they will make $220,000 if the rest of the stock sells. With further prompting from the shark, Kelly says that $110,000 will be profits. While Lori doesn\u2019t the numbers as an issue, she points out the fact that she prefers to invest in things that \u201cfit to a broad mass audience.\u201d Noting that it\u2019s not the right investment for her, she becomes the first to drop out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/gazettereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/tree-hugger-4.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nThanking her for her time, Kelly looks on as Robert eventually begins to speak. Though he commends him for starting the business, he admits that he has difficulty \u201cbelieving in the product\u201d, which leads him to back out of a deal just seconds later. With that, just three sharks are left.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Breaking the silence, Barbara goes on to compliment Kelly on his accomplishments. With that, the entrepreneur takes the chance to highlight once again the fact that he had landed his deals with QVC and Krogers through cold calls. Despite her kind words, however, Barbara eventually also makes it known that she will be backing out. Just as Kelly is thanking her, however, Kevin chimes in bluntly to say that the market \u201cdoesn\u2019t care about [his] product\u201d, which leads the creator to raise his eyebrows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Continuing, Kevin reasons that QVC is only willing to work with him again, in order to get rid of their inventory. As Kelly looks on, Mark cuts in to say that that is not true. After more talking, Kevin surprises everyone by telling him that he should \u201ctake it behind the barn and shoot it.\u201d Asked for his opinion, the entrepreneur admits that the sharks are the first ones that he\u2019s encountered to feel that way towards the product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/gazettereview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/tree-hugger-4-1.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nInterrupting Kevin, Mark applauds him for having made the cold calls to QVC and Kroger. From there, the sharks talk briefly before he asks Kelly about the sale price. After telling him that he had sold the units to Kroger for $6 each, Mark confirms the fact that he had made over $4 in profit per unit, to which he agrees. As the entrepreneur looks on nervously, Mark and Kevin eventually get into somewhat of an argument regarding his work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After a drawn-out discussion, Kevin drops out. With that, Kelly gives Mark his attention as he begins to talk. While he compliments the well-designed package and concept, however, he mentions that he only sees it \u201cas a product and not a company.\u201d Much to the disappointment of the entrepreneur, he also backs out. Despite not having landed a deal, he lets the sharks know that he will not be quitting anytime soon. After a few final comments from the panel, Kelly turns around to exit the tank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Christmas Tree Hugger in 2018 \u2013 The After Shark Tank Update<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Many months have passed since Kelly pitched his product to the sharks on Shark Tank. How is the company doing nowadays?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After the episode aired, they saw a huge spike in sales that lasted for several weeks (the fact that it aired a few weeks before Christmas definitely helped). Not only that, but they\u2019ve received countless positive reviews online. All in all, the \u201cShark Tank Effect\u201d has gained them a tremendous amount of traction. According to a recent interview with Kelly, it has also allowed them to seek out new deals and opportunities with sellers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In terms of other news, the Christmas Tree Hugger has since also been made available at a number of online retailers. Compared to before, when it could only be purchased from their official website, the product can now also be found at Amazon, Walmart, Home Depot, Wayfair, and Zulilly, to name a few. Considering that, it\u2019s likely that their sales will continue to go up come this holiday season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What Customers Think of the Christmas Tree Hugger<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
As far as we can tell, the Christmas Tree Hugger has been doing fairly well since their appearance on Shark Tank. For one thing, they currently have a 4.5-star rating on Amazon out of more than two dozen reviews. Looking at the comments, most customers agree that it\u2019s an effective way to conceal the \u201cugly pole\u201d at the bottom of faux trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Similarly, on Facebook, the product has a 4.9-star rating out of 13 reviews. As with those who had purchased the item on Amazon, most users are happy about the item.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Will we be seeing Kelly back on Shark Tank? Unfortunately, seeing as how he wasn\u2019t able to land a deal on the show, this appears unlikely. Nonetheless, it would appear that the product has since taken off\u2014if anything, they\u2019ll probably do even more sales this upcoming holiday season.
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Christmas Tree Hugger Shark Tank Perfect for those who want to get into the holiday season, the Christmas Tree Hugger is designed to make faux trees look like real trees. Easy to use, the product simply wraps around the pole at the base\u2014and you\u2019re done! The ultimate finishing touch, it makes artificial trees look […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/960"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=960"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/960\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":961,"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/960\/revisions\/961"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=960"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=960"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projectlando.net\/master\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=960"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}