Normal disposable diapers are made of materials that may not be comfortable for babies. Kudos diapers were designed so that the part touching the baby’s skin is all cotton. Founder Amrita Saigal, pitched her product on Shark Tank and got a deal with Mark Cuban and Gwyneth Paltrow. Kudos is now worth an estimated $6 million.
Amrita Saigal’s Background
Amrita Saigal grew up in India, but moved with her family to LA. She studied mechanical engineering at MIT and later got an MBA from Harvard Business School. A highly impressive education!
Fresh out of college she worked as a mechanical design engineer at Project & Gamble. In 2010, she started her first business venture, founding Saathi, a sustainable sanitary pad made from banana trees. Four years later, Amrita was hired by Google as a manufacturing operations manager.
Founding Kudos Diapers
Amrita is passionate about combining sustainability and elegance. That’s how she was able to make her eco-friendly sanitary pad company a success. As she entered her thirties, Saigal recognized another problem that many women face: taking care of their children’s diapers.
Traditional diapers use a lot of plastic materials, and she wanted to change that with innovative engineering. Amrita developed a diaper that was made from 100% cotton to maximize comfort and reduce skin irritation.
Getting a supplier was a challenge but once she found one, Kudos launched in 2021. The company follows a direct-to-consumer model and sells monthly subscriptions.
Getting on Shark Tank
Due to its use of cotton, Amrita Saigal’s creation became the first and only disposable baby diaper brand to receive the Cotton Natural Seal from Cotton Inc.
This recognition helped Kudos raise a stunning $3.2 million at $12.5 million valuation from investors including April Underwood, XFund, SV Angel, Alpha Bridge Ventures, and Underscore. The Sharks typically don’t like it when companies raise money as potentially their equity could be diluted in the future.
The founder got approached by Shark Tank producers and bagged herself a spot on episode 10 of season 14. Amrita delivered a strong pitch and impressed with annual sales of $850,000.
After Shark Tank
Once the episode aired, Kudos saw a huge spike in orders! They were expecting to make $4.5 million in revenue for 2023 and should be profitable. There’s no evidence to confirm if the deal with Cuban and Paltrow has closed. Cuban hasn’t listed the company on his website.
In personal news, she had another baby and found out she would be on Shark Tank when her daughter Avni was born. It’s common for businesses to pitch in front of the Sharks but don’t get picked to air. Sometimes this can delay deals because the Sharks themselves want to know if the episode will air.
The sustainable diaper brand is only available on their website, MyKudos.com. But as the company is looking to scale they may expand into retail. The business hasn’t had any trouble attracting media attention and has already featured on Forbes, Fast Company and the Boston Globe.
The diapers have an average rating of 4.9 stars from 14 votes on ThingTesting.com. Amrita’s company has a bright future and is worth an estimated $6 million. The Boston-based business is thriving and now has seven employees. Currently. Amrita is looking to hire a social media manager.
