‘“Beyond the Tank” shows people the good, the bad, the ugly.’
Beyond the Tankis back with its sophomore season and its got bite.
Wonderful) checking in on entrepreneurs and their respective businesses after theyve appeared on the original investment show.
Credit: Michael Desmond/ABC
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: What can viewers expect from season 2 ofBeyond the Tank?
ROBERT HERJAVEC:The one thing we know is people love it.
We did a short season of three episodes and ABC bought more right away.
Its the hard truth and the gritty reality of running a business.
So season 2 is similar to those first three episodes?
Yeah, we learned [that] people really love the format.
Its going to be very similar, but lots of drama.
Running a business is a soap opera on steroids.
Are the stakes played up at all for television?
No, not at all.
Do you have any input on what businesses makes it ontoBeyond the Tank?
In that case, do you have a strategy?
If theres a business of yours that needs more exposure, will you push for it?
What else is going on that viewers arent privy to?
Its more of the same.
What makes you say yes to a business opportunity in the first place?
What makes you want to stick with it and see it through?
It completely depends on the situation.
People dont realize, we know nothing about these businesses before they come out.
Sometimes you invest in an entrepreneur and sometimes you invest in the idea.
How manyShark Tank-related projects are you working on right now?
We all have teams of people that work on this stuff.
All in all I think were at about 35.
What have been some of your favorites?
[Weve got] Tipsy Elves.
We have an amazing deal with Happy Feet, which are the slipper people.
The thing we all learn is the measure of success changes over the years.
What is your success rate?
I think we all have a different philosophy.
My philosophy is Im deeply invested financially and emotionally to the people who we take on.
Weve had a great success rate.
We think weve averaged about 12 percent return across all the investments.
Weve never fully lost our capital.
We have some that are in trouble, but we think we can turn them around.
Its an ongoing process.
All the sharks have reputations, and yours is that youre a nice shark.
What do you think of that?
I am a nice shark.
A version of this story appeared inEntertainment Weeklyissue #1381/1382.
