Erica Barrett of Decatur, Georgia is the founder of Southern Culture Artisan Foods, a breakfast food company that makes flavored, organic pancake and waffle mix. She pitched her business on Shark Tank in 2014. On the show, Barrett accepted a $100,000 investment from New York Shark Barbara Corcoran in exchange for 38 percent equity. (Barrett went into the Tank seeking $100k for 25 percent.) After the show aired, Barrett revealed “we didn’t close a deal after,” and said, “we really needed more money to grow our business.”
Not sealing the deal with Corcoran hasn’t stopped Barrett from selling Southern Culture Foods. Since Shark Tank, Southern Culture Artisan Foods expanded its product line to include syrup, bacon rub, grits, and fried chicken mix, and launched a monthly subscription called The Breakfast Club (a box of 6 products). In September 2016, Barrett told Total Food Service that she’s launching a catering business in Atlanta, is working on a restaurant concept in Harlem and rolling out Southern Culture Catering New York. [27 Favorite ‘Shark Tank’ Products at Amazon — New List]
