The hit ABC series Shark Tank kicked off its eighth season in September, and it’s now fair to say that a season isn’t complete without Philly-based entrepreneurs taking the stage.
On Friday, October 28th, the sisters behind the popular Lulu Bang sauce will pitch their line of exotic sauces to the likes of business tycoons Mark Cuban and Lori Greiner, hoping for an investment.
There’s a trend here that we shouldn’t ignore.
In 2015, we saw Philly-area innovators bring Scrub Daddy, Scholly, and Zoom Interiors to more than 8 million viewers. More recently, PiperWai and Fitly made pitches to the sharks, too.
“Shark Tank keeps selecting dynamic and diverse companies from our ecosystem to compete on the national stage because Philly knows how to incubate top talent,” says Archna Sahay, the city’s director of entrepreneurial investment.
“We are often cited for our cheesesteaks or water ice — both great things — but Philadelphia’s true competitive advantage is her citizens. Our best assets are our people,” Sahay says, nodding to the city’s ability to retain close to half of its student population and the growing population of millennials and immigrants in the city overall.