TC brothers busy after 'Shark Tank' appearance

Nov. 23—TRAVERSE CITY — Black Friday is the name given to the first Friday after Thanksgiving.

Traditionally the busiest shopping day of the year, the retail origins of Black Friday are that "after an entire year of operating at a loss (in the red) stores would supposedly earn a profit (went into the black) on the day after Thanksgiving, because holiday shoppers blew so much money on discounted merchandise," according to History.com.

This busiest of all shopping days came a week early for a 10-year-old Traverse City company.

When Croatian-Canadian businessman Robert Herjavec agreed to invest in ActionGlow on the ABC show "Shark Tank" that aired Nov. 18, it immediately became Black Friday for the company brothers Dakota and Garret Porter formed in 2012.

"We doubled our sales from 2021 on one night alone," said Dakota Porter, the 27-year-old founder and CEO of ActionGlow.

"Now it's like a firehose and it's not turning off," Garret Porter, the 24-year-old founder and COO added on Monday afternoon. "We're trying to keep up with every email and questions, but every time we answer one, another five pop up."

ActionGlow — an aftermarket LED lighting system for sports equipment — told the five potential investors on the long-running reality show "Shark Tank" that ActionGlow went into the fourth quarter of 2022 with about $130,000 in sales, more than half in the last two years alone.

That included $32,000 in sales in 2021 and $22,000 in the first nine months of 2022. The Porters told the five potential investors that 40-50% of its sales typically came in the fourth quarter of a year.

That isn't true anymore.

It also didn't take long for ActionGlow to receive an order Friday night. The Porters appearance on the ABC show wasn't even over yet. It has just started.

"Our first order came within the first minute," Dakota Porter said of the ActionGlow segment, which began at about 8:40 p.m. on Friday night. "Within the doors opening on Shark Tank, within the first 60 seconds we already had two orders. I don't know how people even navigated through the website that quickly."

By the time the Porters accepted an investment offer of $200,000 from Herjavec on the big screen at the City Opera House, the brothers were monitoring website activity on the small screens of their phones.

"We saw the entire eastern side of the U.S. light up like a Christmas tree," Dakota Porter said. "Every dot was a person on the website."

Taped on Sept. 9 in Los Angeles, the Porters watched the show with hundreds of family, friends and supporters at a private party at the City Opera House. The Porters reported about 150 people attended the Friday night watch party. More were invited, but the weather kept some glued to the television instead of the big screen on the stage.

The Porters said a lot of people are still watching the episode on Hulu and other streaming options.

Dakota and Garret Porter said it was important to throw a party for all the people that have been behind the company since it was founded when the brothers were 16 and 13 years old, respectively. That was especially true for their parents, Cristina and Dane Porter, who were right there to see it all unfold.

"They were a huge, huge part of our success," said Dakota Porter, who said the brothers almost didn't apply for a fourth time on the show. "It was great sharing it with them and sharing the while experience with them. The whole place was filled with supporters and people that have supported us from the very beginning."

"I'm so excited for them," Venture North Executive Director Laura Galbraith said after the airing at the Opera House. "They've worked so hard."

"It's so amazing to see the support they have in the community and from 'Shark Tank.'"

ActionGlow also had support the brothers weren't aware of at the time. At dinner on Saturday after the show aired, the brothers were recognized by staff at Mode's Bum Steer in downtown Traverse City, who had watched the episode the day before.

When Herjavec agreed to invest $200,000 for 30% of ActionGlow, the future of the company changed forever and Dakota Porter said the brothers have spent a lot of time since keeping up with everything while their phones and "social media accounts were blowing up." Throw in a couple of colds and wavering voices to the mix.

"It's not a great time to be under the weather," Garret Porter said. "I'm just trying to power through and keep up."

Now ActionGlow has to keep up in other ways

ActionGlow is an aftermarket LED lighting system for sports equipment. Now with color-changing capabilities, ActionGlow offers eight different systems for equipment on snow (snowboards and skis), water (wakesurf, wakeboard, surfboard, stand-up paddleboard and kayak) and land (bicycle and longboard).

Prices range from $62 for a longboard to $154 for a SUP or kayak. The $117 snowboard system is ActionGlow's best seller.

The Porters are waiting for some components to arrive from manufacturers, which includes some parts from overseas companies. ActionGlow also works with local companies like Z-Mask Assemblies and Grand Traverse Tool. ActionGlow works with Northwood Printers in Traverse City to print instructions and thank you cards for purchasers.

The additional orders since "Shark Tank" will keep the brothers busy assembling next month, as much as meetings and questions are keeping the duo hopping now.

"Our goal is to fulfill every order we got and every order we're going to get by mid-December to be ready to ship by mid-December to be ready for delivery by Christmas," Garret Porter said.

The brothers went on "Shark Tank" seeking a $200,000 investment for 15% of ActionGlow.

Four of the five sharks — Barbara Corcoran, Kevin O'Leary, Lori Greiner and Mark Cuban — had already passed on a chance to invest $200,000 for a 15 percent stake in the Traverse City company.

It was all down to Herjavec, who offered the $200,000 for a 30% stake. After two counter offers from the brothers for 20 and 25% of the company, Herjavec held firm and the Porters chomped at the choice.

ActionGlow — and the Porters — were forever altered in the process.

"We've had quite the response since 'Shark Tank,'" Dakota Porter said. "We're dealing with that right now. We didn't know what to expect since being on the show. It's been an everlasting experience being on the show."