Tate Koenig first appeared on season 12 of Shark Tank pitching his product, Cheese Chopper. Although Koenig didn’t get a deal, he didn’t give up. Tate returned in season 14 to share his latest venture, Pizza Pack. This time around, things went much better and he bagged a deal with Lori Greiner. As of 2023, Pizza Pack is worth $1 million.
Founders’ Background
Hailing from Portland, Oregon, Tate Koenig is a farmer and lumber broker. After graduating from Canby High School, he studied entrepreneurship and international business at Oregon State University.
During high school he worked as a mechanic at Hubbard Auto and Electric. In 2012, he became a lumber broker and worked for firms including Shelter Products Inc. and Bridgewell Resources. In early 2020, Tate created the Cheese Chopper, an all-in-one solution for storing, shredding, and slicing cheese.
Founding Pizza Pack
Cheese Chopper had decent success despite not getting a Shark investment. This inspired Tate to keep looking for new ideas. The next product he made was a solution to store leftover pizza.
The savvy entrepreneur noticed that when there was leftover pizza, people would just use the same box it came in and put it in the fridge. This is impractical as it uses too much space and it ruins the pizza’s quality.
Koenig created the Pizza Pack, a collapsible container that has divider trays and a lid with a vent. Upon releasing the product in 2022, he made $250,000 in sales within months.
Shark Tank Pitch
Not long after launching his second startup, Tate Koenig decided to return to Shark Tank. This time around, he knew his company was ready. He appeared on the premiere episode of season 14, seeking $100,000 for a 10% equity stake.
He was one of the first entrepreneurs to present in front of a live audience. This was the first time Shark Tank has used a live audience but the format didn’t work well for viewers. Hearing people cheering in the crowd every few minutes was interrupting the pitches. Nevertheless, Tate’s pitch went well considering the circumstances.
Both the Sharks and the audience members liked the product. Mark Cuban wanted to buy the entire company but Tate wanted $5 million. Cuban responded with a fair offer of $1.5 million. The founder rejected it and accepted Lori Greiner’s offer of $100,000 for 13%.
Update After Shark Tank
Pizza Pack’s episode aired on September 23, 2022, and the deal with Lori hasn’t closed yet. Currently, the product is available online at Amazon, Etsy, and Walmart. Pizza Pack can also be purchased on their website, Pizzapack.com.
Tate filed a patent to protect his idea but it hasn’t been granted yet. Since the product is relatively simple, knock-offs are expected to flood the market. The pizza storage container comes in eight colors and sells for $23.99. The company released new products such as mini food slicers, t-shirts, collapsible containers, and walnut coasters.
The pizza product has a 4.4 star rating from 2,813 reviews on Amazon. Pizza Pack makes around $250,000 in annual revenue and this should increase by at least 40% due to the publicity from Shark Tank. According to LinkedIn, Tate is still working as a lumber broker at Idaho Pacific Lumber Company. Only time will tell if he was right to turn down Cuban’s $1.5 million offer!
