Putting a baby to sleep is one of the hardest tasks for a parent. After having enough of it, mom of four, Tara Williams created weighted blankets and sleeping sacks to calm infants down. To solve this problem, she launched Dreamland Baby and got a deal with Lori Greiner on Shark Tank. As of 2024, Dreamland Baby is worth $10 million.
Tara Williams’ Background
Hailing from Danville, California, Tara Williams is a finance graduate from Bentley University. Tara earned her bachelor’s degree in 2009 and studied SEO and Social Media Marketing at Stanford University in 2019.
Back in 2008, she was a marketing intern at Smith & Nephew, a medical equipment manufacturer. The company later promoted her to an endoscopy sales representative.
After three years, Williams left to join Beacon Endoscopic as a national sales trainer, In 2013, she was hired as a specialty sales representative by AbbVie. Three years later, Bioprint AM recruited her as a senior market development manager.
Founding Dreamland Baby
In early days, Tara coped well as a working mother. She didn’t have much trouble raising her first three children as they mostly slept well. However, it all changed with her fourth baby, Luke.
Putting Luke to sleep was challenging, and during an act of desperation, she placed a heavy blanket on him in bed. It calmed him down, and the idea for Dreamland Baby was born. Tara’s mother-in-law helped her sew the first version of the product.
They created a tiny weighted sleeping bag that’s clinically proven to boost relaxation for infants via deep touch stimulation. To help get the business running, the aspiring entrepreneur started a Kickstarter campaign in 2019, raising $24,541 in just 72 hours.
Pitch on Shark Tank
Despite a successful fundraising campaign, Tara’s startup was still relatively small. That’s why she was happy to receive an invitation to appear on Shark Tank in 2020. During the show’s season 11 finale, Williams asked for $100,000 for 10% equity.
She came in with a unique invention, which fascinated the Sharks. However, the Sharks were concerned when they found out that a majority of the revenue came from Kickstarter.
They indicated that Dreamland Baby was too small and wasn’t investable yet. All hope seemed lost until Lori Greiner offered $100,000 for 22.5% and the deal was done. Lori believed the product could sell well on QVC.
Sales After Shark Tank
Tara Williams was excited to sign an agreement with Lori Greiner, but according to SharkTankBlog.com the deal never closed. Even with this setback, the founder persisted and is still running the business today.
Her company focuses on a direct-to-customer business model through its website, DreamlandBabyCo.com. Although they had positive reviews on Amazon, they reduced inventory on the platform for a while because of knock-off products.
After overcoming many hurdles, Dreamland Baby is now hugely successful. The product is available to buy in retail stores such as Target, Nordstrom, and Bloomingdales. In late 2021, they announced reaching $10 million in lifetime sales and in 2022, they were on track to make $25 million in annual revenue.
The company launched a second product in 2019, the Dream Weighted Sleep Swaddle. It has an integrated inner swaddle wing for security and comfort. Currently, Dreamland Baby is valued at around $10 million. The valuation has quadrupled since appearing on Shark Tank.
