If you’re a fan of the outdoors, insect repellent, sunscreen, and anti-itch balms are products you should be using. However, they usually contain ingredients that are harmful to the user and the environment. Powell pitched her business on Shark Tank and got a deal with Barbara Corcoran and Tony Xu. Kinfield was once worth $4 million but the company closed down in March 2026.
Nichole Powell
Nichole Powell is from San Francisco and graduated with a degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.
After graduation, Powell worked as a marketing associate for Intuit in 2014. Two years later, she founded Who Goes Wear, a lifestyle brand. The brand wasn’t a success and Nichole returned to work for Modern Citizen as the Head of Business Development.
Founding Kinfield
Growing up, Powell loved doing outdoor activities but noticed that normal skincare products haven’t changed in years.
Her mosquito repellent had a chemical compound called DEET, which no one wanted to use because of its negative effects on the planet. She traveled around the world to develop a bug repellent that works without DEET.
After making her first product, Kinfield launched in 2018 and they raised a seed round of $2.1 million from six investors. Her DEET-free repellent was a massive hit as it was sold out three times.
Pitching on Shark Tank
Nichole Powell appeared on season 14 and was seeking to raise $250,000 for a 5% equity stake. The product had great margins and a bidding war broke out.
Of course, Mr Wonderful wanted a royalty deal but Barbara and Tony won with a straight equity deal. Luckily, Tony Xu was on the show instead of Daymond John. Sometimes he gets angry when companies have raised money beforehand.
How Kinfield is Performing Now
Kinfield stayed in business after Shark Tank and continued expanding for several years. Post-show updates indicate that the deal with Barbara Corcoran and Tony Xu closed. By mid-2024 the company had reportedly grown to around $4 million in annual revenue.
The brand broadened its lineup well beyond its original bug spray. Later coverage says Kinfield added products such as biodegradable repellent wipes, recovery items, mineral sunscreens, anti-chafe balm, pH-balancing deodorant, and hydrating face masks.
Retail expansion was another major part of it’s growth. Kinfield’s store locator listed stockists such as Credo, goop, Anthropologie, Grove Collaborative, and Free People, showing that the brand had moved well beyond a direct-to-consumer business. They also had partnerships and pop-up activity with retailers including Madewell.
Kinfield kept building out its brand credentials in the clean beauty space. Retail listings described the products as vegan, Leaping Bunny certified, and Made Safe for People + Planet certified, while the business continued positioning itself as an eco-conscious outdoor essentials brand.
Even so, the business later ran into tougher conditions. In March 2023, founder Nichole Powell spoke publicly about how the Silicon Valley Bank collapse briefly froze their assets and forced the team to think about survival. That challenge came before the company’s eventual shutdown.
Kinfield closed in March 2026 as reported by fashionista.com. Founder Nichole Powell said the business environment had been too challenging over the previous couple of years and that she could not find a path forward to keep operations running. Kinfield’s official website now confirms that the company has closed.
