Getting a baby to sleep is one of the hardest tasks for parents. Mom of four Tara Williams had enough and invented weighted blankets and sleeping bags to soothe babies. To solve this problem, she launched Dreamland Baby and landed a deal with Shark Tank’s Lori Greiner. As of 2024, Dreamland Baby is valued at $10 million.
Tara Williams’ Background
Tara Williams is from Danville, California and graduated from Bentley University with a degree in Finance. Tara received her bachelor’s degree in 2009 and studied SEO and Social Media Marketing at Stanford University in 2019.
She was also a marketing intern at medical device manufacturer Smith & Nephew in 2008. The company later promoted her to endoscopy sales representative.
After three years, Williams left the company to join Beacon Endoscopic as a national sales trainer. In 2013, she was hired by AbbVie as a professional sales representative. Three years later, Bioprint AM hired her as a senior market development manager.
Founded Dreamland Baby
In her early years, Tara coped well as a working mom. She raised her first three children without much trouble because they mostly slept well. However, everything changed after her fourth child, Luke, was born.
Getting Luke to sleep was difficult, and in desperation, she covered him in his bed with a thick blanket. That calmed him, and the idea for Dreamland Baby was born. Tara’s mother-in-law helped her sew the first version of the product.
They created a micro-weighted sleeping bag that was clinically proven to promote relaxation for babies through deep touch stimulation. To help launch the business, the aspiring entrepreneur launched a Kickstarter campaign in 2019, raising $24,541 in just 72 hours.
Pitching on Shark Tank
Despite the fundraising success, Tara’s startup is still relatively small. That’s why she was thrilled to receive an invite to Shark Tank in 2020. On the show’s Season 11 finale, Williams asked for $100,000 for 10% equity.
She came up with a unique invention that fascinated the Sharks. However, when the Sharks discovered that most of the revenue came from Kickstarter, they became concerned.
They said Dreamland Baby was too small to be worth investing in right now. All hope seemed lost until Lori Greiner offered $100,000 for 22.5% of the company and the deal was done. Lori believed the product would sell well on QVC.
Sales after Shark Tank
Tara Williams was excited to sign a deal with Lori Greiner, but according to SharkTankBlog.com, the deal was never completed. Even with the setbacks, the founders persevered and are still running the company today.
Her company focuses on a direct-to-customer business model through its website DreamlandBabyCo.com. Although they have received positive reviews on Amazon, they once reduced their inventory on the platform due to counterfeit products.
After overcoming many obstacles, Dreamland Baby has now become a huge success. The product can be purchased in retail stores such as Target, Nordstrom, and Bloomingdales. At the end of 2021, they announced that their lifetime sales reached $10 million, and in 2022, they are expected to achieve annual revenue of $25 million.
The company launched its second product, the Dream Weighted Sleep Swaddle, in 2019. It has an integrated inner swaddle wing for safety and comfort. Currently, Dreamland Baby is valued at approximately $10 million. Since appearing on Shark Tank, the valuation has quadrupled.
Categories: Shark Tank
Source: dut.edu.vn
