Ever wondered why socks always seem to disappear? Throx solves this everyday mystery by selling socks in sets of three, ensuring you always have a spare. Founder Edwin Heaven’s novel idea is solving a simple issue as the average person loses 15 socks every year! He pitched the idea on Shark Tank but wasn’t able to get a deal. Fast forward to 2025 and Throx is worth an estimated $2 million.
The Creative Mind Behind Throx
Edwin Heaven is a creative mind from San Francisco. Not much is known about his educational background because he grew up in a movie theater. As a kid, he spent a lot of time watching comedy classics and cartoons.
Growing up he was inspired to become an artist and started as an author, mostly known for writing the critically acclaimed book “The World’s Most Handsome Man.” Heaven was hired as a screenwriter for Stan Lee’s Howard the Duck.
Eventually, he became a film director, with his most notable work being “The Organist.” Outside of film and writing, Edwin worked in the branding department of eGroups, a startup that Yahoo acquired for $500 million.
A Simple Idea with a Twist
Like many people, one of Edwin’s most frustrating problems was losing a sock. One day, he finally wanted to do something about it and had an idea about selling socks in pairs of three.
In 2003, he manufactured the first batch of his socks and cleverly named it Throx. He packaged them in threes and sold them for the price of one. At the beginning, he did a lot of online and direct sales
It became popular with young people, but profits weren’t as strong as the founder had hoped. Six years after opening its doors, Throx made $38,000 in revenue in 2009 and was struggling to build momentum.
Throx’s Shark Tank Pitch and Reaction
In 2009, Edwin appeared on the first season of Shark Tank, seeking $50,000 for 25% equity. Dressed in a suit, he delivered a quirky pitch that amused the Sharks but didn’t convince them.
With only $38,000 in sales that year, the numbers didn’t excite investors. Additionally, the product couldn’t be patented, making it vulnerable to copycats
The Sharks believed the novelty items would struggle to get repeat orders and the larger players in the market could crush the business if it gained any market share. All the Sharks dropped out and Edwin went home empty-handed. Despite not getting a deal, it’s one of the most memorable pitches on Shark Tank.
After Shark Tank
Despite the criticism, Edwin didn’t give up and continued running the business. Back then Shark Tank wasn’t a household name and didn’t pull in the same kind of viewing figures it does now. Initially the coverage from the show didn’t help the company.
As the episode is memorable for the founder’s quirkiness, it got a lot of syndication over the last decade which has helped drive sales. Although Throx never cracked retail, the socks are selling well on their website, Throx.com. It’s also available to buy on Amazon.com and the socks sell for $16 – $20 depending on the design.
Throx has just one 5-star rating on Amazon so it might not be a big seller on the platform. Throx makes an estimated $500,000 in annual revenue and is worth around $2 million. Edwin remains active in the film industry and still lives in San Francisco.
While Throx may not have revolutionized the sock industry, it remains a unique and profitable niche business. Edwin Heaven’s quirky idea proves that even simple solutions can carve out their own space in the market.
