Reviver Wipes - Shark Tank Update

Brothers Ben and Eric Kusin appeared on Shark Tank Season 6 seeking $150,000 for 5% equity in Reviver, valuing their innovative clothing care company at $3 million. The origin story is the kind that every entrepreneur hopes to have - a genuine "why doesn't this exist?" moment.

Ben Kusin was at a convenience store after spending an evening in a smoky environment and wanted to eliminate the lingering odor from his clothes before arriving home. He glanced at the breath mints on the checkout counter and the mental connection snapped into place: if breath odors could be neutralized instantly with a single portable product, why didn't the same concept exist for fabric? "A breath mint for your clothes" was both the eureka moment and the product brief.

Ben and Eric developed a proprietary formula and delivery mechanism - a reusable finger cot-style swipe infused with their deodorizing compound - that could be drawn across clothing, hair, or any fabric surface with a single wiping motion, releasing their active ingredients to neutralize odors rather than mask them with heavy fragrance. Each Reviver swipe delivered up to ten uses before replacement, making it a genuinely portable and cost-effective solution for the modern consumer who moved between environments - restaurants, bars, transit systems, airports, offices, pet-owner homes - where clothing picked up odors during the day.

The product bore patent-pending protection with no direct competitor on the market, a white-space opportunity that the Kusins moved quickly to commercialize. Their business had substantial backing from their father Gary Kusin, a serial entrepreneur who had founded Babbage's (the video game retailer that became GameStop) and served as an advisor at private equity firm TPG Capital, contributing both his $2 million in personal investment and his operational experience and network to support the brothers' venture.

At the time of their Shark Tank appearance, Reviver had been operating for approximately 10 months and had generated over $500,000 in gross revenue, with nearly half of that coming from a strategic partnership with Petco for their pet-specific formulation, and retail distribution already secured in 7-Eleven locations in Dallas, Caesars Entertainment casinos across Las Vegas, Atlantic City, and Reno, and nationally through Walgreens locations, demonstrating that consumer and commercial buyers had both responded positively to the product concept.

During their Shark Tank presentation, Ben and Eric demonstrated Reviver's effectiveness with a memorable live test: they handed Lori Greiner a shirt they had "marinated" in burger and french fry odors, let her register the full impact, and then had her smell it again after a single Reviver swipe - the immediate and dramatic improvement in scent left Lori visibly impressed and considerably more interested than before the demonstration. The pitch, however, ran into an unexpected complication that proved more divisive than the product's reception: Barbara Corcoran made a pointed public statement that she did not invest in businesses started by wealthy families, directly referencing the Kusins' privileged financial background and their father's $2 million investment, before withdrawing from consideration.

Her comment drew push-back from the other sharks who questioned whether parental wealth was a legitimate reason to disqualify a business investment, but it stuck in the air as the evaluations continued. Mark Cuban took issue with the founders' characterization of Reviver as "technology," arguing that a formula in a disposable applicator was a consumer product rather than a technology company and challenging whether the $3 million valuation was justified, before going out.

Kevin O'Leary acknowledged the product worked but felt the revenue level didn't yet support the asking valuation at the equity on offer, and he went out as well. Robert Herjavec and Lori Greiner remained engaged, and a mini-bidding situation developed: Robert offered $150,000 for 10% equity, while Lori countered with $150,000 for 15% equity but emphasized the differentiated value of her QVC platform and mass retail relationships for a portable consumer product like Reviver.

The founders accepted Lori's offer, judging that her channel access and consumer products expertise were worth the additional equity cost compared to Robert's more straightforward financial terms. The deal closed successfully.

Reviver appeared multiple times on QVC with the Kusin brothers, built out a product line including versions formulated for cats and dogs to complement their existing Petco relationship, and reached an estimated $5 million peak annual revenue under Lori's guidance.

However, the business was eventually wound down - Eric took a stake in MirMir, another Shark Tank alumnus, and later invested in the Dallas restaurant Malibu Poke, while Ben launched VENN, a live streaming network focused on gaming and e-sports. Both Lori and the Kusin brothers exited Reviver by 2019, and the products are no longer available, with our latest research confirming the business is no longer operating.