Plastic bags and glass containers are common ways to store leftover food in the freezer, but these things are not made for this problem. That’s why you often have food waste. To avoid this, Jake and Michelle Sendowski created the Souper Cubes portioned silicone trays and got a deal with Lori Greiner on Shark Tank. As of 2024, Souper Cubes is worth $8 million.
The Founders
Jake and Michelle Sendowski hail from Los Angeles. Both of them have master’s degrees and PhDs in their respective fields. Jake is an electrical engineering graduate from Caltech and his wife graduated from UCLA.
Jake started his career as a researcher at Intel Security and was later promoted to product manager. After two years, he worked for Vectra AI as a senior product manager.
Initially, Michelle was a staff member at UC Berkeley and became a teacher at Mastery Charter Schools. She went on to work at Stanford University, Seeds of Peace, and UCLA.
Founding Souper Cubes
While the two were still dating, Michelle craved for a more organized way to store soup. She used ice cube trays, but the portions were not big enough. Then, Jake suggested they make their own trays.
In 2017, Souper Cubes were introduced to the market. They were blue silicone freezing trays with fitted lids and the founders created four different portion sizes.
The married couple used their own money to fund the startup and worked with various partners to get distribution. The products became available in all Sur La Table and Williams-Sonoma US locations. With this, they made $940,000 in revenue for 2019.
Shark Tank Pitch
Although the company was on track to hit the $3 million mark in 2021, Jake and Michelle still wanted help making big decisions. The producers of Shark Tank reached out and the couple agreed to apply. They appeared on season 12, asking for $400,000 in return for 5% equity.
All the Sharks liked the product, but their interest was heightened when the entrepreneurs began talking about sales. Shortly a fight broke out among the Sharks for a piece of the business. Cuban also loved the name of the business.
Kevin O’Leary was the first to make an offer, but Barbara Corcoran challenged him to a duel. However, the two were silenced when Lori Greiner pulled out her “golden ticket,” which she only gives out once per season. Lori offered $400,000 for 5%, and the deal was accepted.
Sales After Shark Tank
Souper Cubes made a whopping $938,000 in revenue 24 hours after its Shark Tank episode aired. The company had to stop taking orders as inventory sold out before the latest shipment arrived at the warehouse.
The silicone trays can be purchased online on Amazon and SouperCubes.com. They’re now available in stores, including Sur La Table, Bed Bath & Beyond, Williams-Sonoma, and Crate & Barrel. Improving retail sales is key to driving growth as they rely heavily on Amazon for a majority of their revenue.
Souper Cubes is thriving and has worldwide distribution. Recently they released more options and sizes to cater to customer demand. Souper Cubes have a breast milk freezing tray, cookie tray and stoneware baking dish. The patents are still pending, so hopefully, other companies won’t create knock-off versions.
Its annual revenue is around $3 million, and lifetime sales are $14 million according to SharkTankRecap.com. As a result, the company is worth an estimated $8 million. Once again, Lori has invested in another big winner and is one of the most successful investors on the show.
