Browndages are bandages with a twist. They differ from traditional wound dressings in that they come in different shades of brown to match your skin tone. When founders Rashid Mahdi and Intisar Bashir pitched on Shark Tank, they made a deal with Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, and Daymond John. As of 2023, Browndages is worth an estimated $500,000.
About the Founders
Rashid Mahdi and Intisar Bashir are a married couple residing in Columbus, Ohio. They are currently raising three children aged five, eight, and ten. Taking care of kids means looking after their bumps and bruises.
As they bought more bandages, they noticed the tanned hue of bandages didn’t match the complexion of their kids. Bashir realized that not everyone agrees with what brands would advertise as nude bandages. Because she comes from a family of entrepreneurs, Bashir was inspired to solve this issue.
Founding the Company
The Ohio natives launched Browndages in 2018. At first, Intisar and Rashid only made bandages for adults but later expanded to kids. Their children preferred personalized styles with princesses and superheroes.
So, they made adjustments to the product line. With the help of an artist, they designed bandages with characters to appeal more to kids. While running the business, Rashid worked in logistics and Intisar in I.T. management.
Despite the brilliant idea, sales were initially slow until June 2020. This changed during the Black Lives Matter movement. Black-owned businesses saw a massive increase in sales. In that year alone, they made $135,000 in sales and had to wait four months to rebuild their inventory.
Shark Tank Appearance
Rashid and Intisar had high hopes for their venture and needed to raise capital to expand. They appeared on season 13 of the show, asking for $75,000 for a 7.5% equity stake.
The company’s message was well received but Robert thought the market was too competitive and would require too much money. Even grabbing a 1% share of the market would be challenging.
Kevin O’Leary was the first to make an offer of $75,000 for 15% with a licensing deal in mind. Lori found it difficult to match Mr. Wonderful’s deal and got Daymond and Mark Cuban to join her. The trio wanted to invest $100,000 for 30%.
Kevin’s offer was better for a change but the founders shook on a deal for 25% for $100,000 with Lori, Mark and John. The power of three Sharks cost them an extra 10% but at least they threw in a $75,000 line of credit. It was also nice to see Kevin congratulate them which is rare and he helped get them a better deal.
After Shark Tank
Like many companies with genuine intentions, Browndages got a lot of love from Shark Tank fans. According to CNBC, the business did $130,000 in sales six days after their episode aired on ABC.
This helped them develop more products like masks, pajamas, hats, tins, and elastic bandages. All of these are available to buy on Browndages.com and a selection of them are sold through Amazon. The bandages have an average rating of 4.7 stars from 58 reviews on their website.
Browndages’ authentic product has generated a lot of publicity on social media. Celebrities such as Lupita Nyong’o promoted the business on Twitter and the brand now has over 76,000 followers on Instagram.
Though the company hasn’t shared any recent sales figures, Browndages is worth an estimated $500,000. If Cuban can get the NBA Dallas Mavericks to wear and distribute the bandages it would drive massive sales. All three Sharks should bring something different to the table to help Browndages grow.
