The "Shark Tank" Ride: What It Was Like Auditioning for the Show & Why This Entrepreneur Believes He Scored a Deal
Thanks for checking out my newsletter. 👋🏾👋🏼👋 Please subscribe, if you haven't already. If you’re back to find out what happened to Sebastian Garcia, the man determined to get Mark Cuban of “Shark Tank” to invest in his lapel innovation, “The Lapel Project,” you’re in luck.
In this issue, you’ll find out the following:
🌴How Sebastian Garcia’s audition turned out to be the first of many auditions
🌴What the timeline looked like for Garcia
🌴What Garcia thinks the “Shark Tank” team is looking for in people when casting for the show and investing in their companies
Sebastian wearing the special lapels from The Lapel Project that got him a "Shark Tank" deal
In Part One, we left our intrepid entrepreneur at the boat dock. Sebastian Garcia had just lost in a charity auction to meet and pitch to Mark Cuban.
Then, the security guard at the dock wouldn’t let him get near a yacht that his friend told him belonged to Cuban.
Sebastian's charity auction bid - just before he was outbid
Fast-forward to a year and a half later.
NEVER PASS UP AN OPPORTUNITY
There was another business expo. Garcia showed up and, lo and behold, there was, yet again, a line for "Shark Tank" auditions.
He didn’t expect it. But the entrepreneur wasn’t about to pass up this opportunity.
He had to do something to get his product seen by the "Sharks." You’ll recall, his product was a lapel you could stick onto a suit to transform it for weddings and other special occasions.
SWING FOR THE FENCES, EVEN IF YOU’RE NOT FULLY PREPARED
Garcia said to himself, “I’m going to swing. I’m not prepared. I don’t have a pitch. But I’ve been selling this for the past couple of years. I’m a salesman… I don’t need a pitch. I’m just gonna go there and do what I can.”
"Shark Tank" doesn't allow picture-taking during the taping - so this is a screenshot he took from his TV when his episode aired
DREAM JOB AS A KID: “International soccer player, playing in Juventus Italy with my own vineyard.”
“I played soccer my whole life. I got a scholarship to play in college. So I took my abilities to the max. And I hit that. I hit the wall.”
I asked Garcia if he still hopes to have the vineyard in Italy.
“Yes, absolutely. I have the Italian clothes. I need the wine now.”
BIGGEST GOAL YET: “The lapels would be used as a stylish fundraising tool to add to all charity galas around the world, helping [create] awareness in a stylish way. And, most importantly, raising needed funds.”
WHY HE THINKS HE WAS SUCCESSFUL ON SHARK TANK: “At the end of the day… "Shark Tank" is looking for things that are new and fresh – and, also, looking for, I guess, people that have good energy. So, for me, the dynamic of my passion, of my knowledge of the industry and, also, my product being so innovative… really helped.”
EVEN IF YOU’RE LAST IN LINE, DON’T COUNT YOURSELF OUT
So there he was, joining the very long line to audition for a spot on “Shark Tank.”
“I’m literally the last person in line because I didn’t sign up.”
He waits and waits. And, finally, it’s his turn. At around 5 p.m.
ALWAYS HAVE A SAMPLE OF YOUR PRODUCT WITH YOU
Sebastian has learned to always have a sample of his specialty lapels on hand
“The producers are, literally, with their head[s] on the table. They’re tired of hearing all this stuff. I go in there with my beat-up samples that I, fortunately, had thrown in the trunk of my car.”
He tells himself to do his best.
“So I give them my spiel. I see them scribble something down on the paper. And I leave.”
CELEBRATE YOUR ACHIEVEMENTS, BIG AND SMALL
Garcia felt good about his pitch and gave himself another little post-performance pep talk.
“I swung. I did it. Keep going. You know what? Keep putting the momentum in. Keep putting the work in. It’s not, at the end of the day, for the trophy. It’s more for that self-fulfillment… Because you don’t have control of the results. You have control of your effort.”
THE WAIT CAN BE LONG
He was happy. And then he just waited.
“For the next couple of months, I would romance the idea of getting a phone call or an email or something.”
Since Garcia had already been selling his lapel product, The Lapel Project, he would get calls from outside of Florida.
Anytime a call came from California, he’d perk up.
He’d think to himself, “Wait! This is it! This is the call…"
It never was.
Until one day, four to five months later.
He got the call.
It was from "Shark Tank."
WHAT YOU THINK IS THE END IS FREQUENTLY ONLY THE BEGINNING
“At this point, I remember the guy, specifically, told me, ‘Sir, you need to calm down. You know, you need to calm down. Listen. We liked what we saw. But you need to send us patent information, and we’re going to sign you up for a private YouTube channel so you can continue in the auditioning process.'”
Garcia felt humbled and energized all at the same time.
“The momentum now is going through my blood, my veins… I’m going to make this happen.”
WITH AUDITIONS, IT’S RARELY JUST “ONE AND DONE”
Garcia started auditioning on the private YouTube channel. He actually had several auditions, passing to the next stage every time.
Garcia said he was told they were choosing 21 companies. And The Lapel Project was one of them.
REMEMBER, LIKE MANY THINGS IN LIFE, THERE ARE NO GUARANTEES
But, just because you get chosen for the taping, “doesn’t mean you’re also going to get shown [on TV]. Because out of the 21, they pick the best… 19. Not too many people know that.” (Note: This was how they did it for season eight)
The day of the taping arrives.
NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER OF GRATITUDE AND GOOD ENERGY
“I’m literally, you know, nervous. I get to California two weeks prior. I’m practicing my pitch in the car. Practicing my pitch on the treadmill. I’m practicing my pitch in my sleep. I’m praying. I’m manifesting. I’m writing in my journal… the grandeur of this and thankful just for the opportunity.”
He doesn’t know what’s going to happen.
DO YOUR THING, WHATEVER IT IS
“I have my playlist in the morning.” He said his prayers. He even listened to televangelist Joel Osteen.
“You know, I’m the son of God. I can do all things. Inspiration. Inspiration. Inspiration.”
“And we did great… We got a standing ovation from Mr. Wonderful. I think it was the first standing ovation in eight seasons – because my season was season eight…”
“It was phenomenal. Obviously, we got a deal with [Mark] Cuban.”
The deal Cuban negotiated with Garcia was a $150,000 investment and a 30% stake in The Lapel Project.
SAVOR THE “MOMENTS”
One of the biggest highlights for Garcia is what happened after the show.
“Months after, Mark Cuban comes to meet me. And he’s the one walking through my door. So… yeah, yeah. It’s really a rad story.”
SOMETIMES, YOU END UP CHASING TALL TALES
Garcia told Cuban the story of the yacht and how he tried to see him there when he was stopped by the security guard.
“He [Cuban] starts laughing. And he’s like, the funny thing is, that was never his yacht. That was an urban legend.”
GET READY FOR A LOT OF WORK AFTER THE TAPING
So what happened after the show?
“After the show, you pretty much have pow-wows with his [Cuban's] team.”
Garcia says they helped him prior to the airing of his episode.
Remember, it’s taped. So there’s a lag between the date of the taping and the actual airing.
IT’S NICE TO HAVE A TEAM
That’s when you get help with the big ramp-up.
“So if you get a deal, obviously, their team is in contact with you. Their lawyers are in contact with you. [They’re] helping you build the website. They’re already helping you have a more-specific business model.”
He says they provide a lot of guidance and learn more about you and your product. It’s a team effort to make sure that, when your episode airs, your website, your product, everything looks great because, “you, obviously, want to have the best return on investment for that airing”, which attracts a viewing audience of millions of people.
SPREAD YOUR WINGS AND FLY
I asked him about sales. He says he’s sold The Lapel Project lapels all over the globe, and they are also in stores nationwide, including at his father's store which houses his sub-brand, My Grooms Room. Garcia also has an Amazon store. He says sales for his lapels increased “100 times after the show."
That’s when the real work started – after the show.
EMBRACE THE DETOURS IN YOUR LIFE
It’s an interesting path Garcia took because this was not what he had planned. When he was in college, he signed up for the Peace Corps.
Except, 27 days before he was supposed to go to Mozambique for the Peace Corps, he ended up with kidney stones and lost his medical insurance. He couldn't go.
Garcia didn't lose his passion for volunteering.
He still volunteers when he travels. So he’s still been able to fulfill that part of his dream.
And, now, he hopes The Lapel Project will be a part of his efforts to continue to do good. He hopes it becomes a fixture for charitable fundraising throughout the world.
His conclusion about the re-direction of his journey in life?
“God works in mysterious ways. You gotta trust the process.”
Sebastian hopes the Lapel Project lapels become a mainstay of charity fundraising galas
INSPIRATION FOR THIS ISSUE:
I love that Sebastian Garcia took a chance and got in line to audition for “Shark Tank." That was even though he hadn't signed up for it ahead of time.
Don’t talk yourself out of taking a chance on a dream.
Instead, talk yourself into the many reasons why you should go for it, even if you get rejected.
We've all been rejected. Many times. You will get over it.
But, when you go for a bold goal and it actually works out, even better!
I had something like that happen to me many years ago.
I showed up to the career fair at a journalism convention.
The wait in each line to be seen was hours long.
So you would just stand and wait. And then wait some more.
I remember approaching one of the news directors at one of the tables at the end of the day.
I wondered if it was a good idea because I, specifically, remembered thinking, he looked like he was going to poke his eyes out if he had to look at yet another resume reel from yet another eager reporter (me).
I, too, hadn't signed up because I didn't realize the news directors for that ownership group were only seeing people with appointments.
But I asked the news director if he would please look at my materials.
I could tell he really, really did not want to stay and look at my reel.
But, for some reason, he did.
I was so excited!
I thought my meeting with him went really well. I reported this back to my agent at the time.
The agent was unimpressed. He said these things rarely turned into job offers.
I was deflated.
I really believed I clicked with the news director and thought there was a real possibility he would hire me.
Sure enough, months went by.
Nothing. No call. No email. No follow-up from the news director with my agent.
Radio silence.
Eight months later, I got the call.
The news director from the journalism convention called and said he remembered only two people from the convention: me and another reporter. He hired us both.
We both ended up getting the nod that we were hired in the #1 TV market in the country – New York.
So it does happen.
It’s okay if you’re last in line.
Convince the person they need to hear you out. Make the pitch. Show your stuff. Show enthusiasm.
Good energy and enthusiasm absolutely make a difference.
Go for it! And good luck! #theskyisNOTthelimit
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🌴I thank you for your support and look forward to bringing you more positive, business-related content (with a Latino twist) to help you go after your entrepreneurial dream. Thanks for reading Generation Si! 😻