Where Is Eat Your Flowers From Shark Tank Today?
When Loria Stern pitched her edible flower desserts on Season 14, Episode 15 of "Shark Tank," she made a "flowery" presentation while treating the sharks to her unique and delicious cookies and crackers topped with flavorful flowers. Stern landed an offer from Kevin O'Leary that demanded more of a stake in her confectionary company than she proposed. However, Stern convinced Barbara Corcoran to nearly match her initial offer when Corcoran agreed to invest $250,000 in Stern's business for 15% of the company. The two made a deal to partner up on Eat Your Flowers — a delectable floral idea that all began when Stern pivoted from one of her passions to another.
Stern, an Ojai, California native, was an accomplished athlete before becoming a chef. At 12 years old, Stern was ranked as the number one tennis player in the U.S. in her age group. While a student-athlete at the University of Virginia, she competed in Division 1 tennis. Stern retired from tennis after a few appearances as a pro, but she kept company with professional tennis players by baking for them at a tennis club. Encouraged by that enjoyable experience, Stern went to work in food establishments to learn more about cooking. She then enrolled in a class to learn about edible plants and started topping her baked goods with them. Her beautiful cookies went viral, which prompted Vogue, Oprah, and The New York Times, among other notable publications, to feature Stern's gorgeous flowery desserts. This is what happened to the company after its appearance on "Shark Tank."
Eat Your Flowers found an investor on Shark Tank
Stern walked onto "Shark Tank" throwing flower petals before introducing her beautiful cookies, cakes, pies, and candy bars that were hand-decorated with edible flowers — the aesthetically pleasing and appetizing product of a business she called Eat Your Flowers. Stern asked for $250,000 in exchange for 12% of her company. However, Stern's success with her premium desserts led to questions about her need for a shark investor.
According to Stern, her business was "blooming." Her company's lifetime sales were $2.2 million. She revealed that it only costs $7.50 to make a box of her unique cookies, yet she was selling them for $50. An impressed Mark Cuban blurted out, "That's some proud cookies." When Stern added that she did all of her company's social media, underlining her self-sufficiency, Barbara Cocoran asked, "What are you looking for in a shark?" Stern responded, "I would love a mentor."
Won over by the premium price of Stern's desserts and her profits, O'Leary offered the $250,000 Stern asked for, but he demanded 25% of Stern's company — 13% more than Stern wanted. Cuban then gave Stern some wise advice. He said, "[Your] products are incidental. [...] The story has to be about you and building yourself to be the Martha Stewart of flowers." Stern's pitch ended up being enough to convince Corcoran to become Stern's business guide. Corcoran persuaded Stern to give her 15% of Eat Your Flowers in exchange for Stern's desired $250,000 investment.
Eat Your Flowers is doing extremely well
Stern's company has experienced continued success since her pitch on "Shark Tank." The day after Stern's appearance on the show, her Flower Pressed Cookies sold out, which portended the company's remarkable financial success with a current estimated valuation of $1.6 million. Although Stern went viral prior to appearing on "Shark Tank," her social media following seems to have grown as well. Her Instagram account now boasts over 250,000 followers. Business has gone so well that Eat Your Flowers has even expanded its offerings while maintaining premium prices for its desserts.
The company's official website lists boxes of a dozen edible flower cookies for just over $50 and cakes for $135. The company also sells Stern's cookbook, various pantry items such as cocktail cubes and flower salts, as well as hats, sweaters, T-shirts, and even online cooking classes. These digital courses include instructions on how to make edible pressed flowers and flower-pressed shortbread cookies. Eat Your Flowers also offers customized catering services starting at $4,000.
Eat Your Flowers has fewer than 10 employees, but the artisanal dessert company is still able to ship its products anywhere in the United States. Speaking of shipping, Eat Your Flowers' customers can even find Stern's cookbook on Amazon. Considering the cookbook's reviews on Amazon, as well as the raves online about Eat Your Flowers' desserts, the company's offerings seem to be worthwhile.
Customers love Eat Your Flowers
Out of 68 user ratings on Amazon, the Eat Your Flowers cookbook has a convincing 4.9 rating. The cookbook explains how to cook with edible flowers to create gorgeous baked goods, complete with flower charts and gorgeous pictures. Customers agree that the book delivers. One Amazon shopper highlighted that the book is particularly instructive. Alice Thomas commented, "This has been a great book to use in our pressed flower business. We can see what edible flowers to press for people to use in their wedding cakes!"
Another Amazon customer shared that the cookbook has great cooking directions for making edible flower dishes. Joe W. Patitucci said, "The recipes are amazing." Eat Your Flowers' desserts have satisfied customers as well. Their Original Flower Cookies have a five-star rating on Etsy based on over 40 reviews. During her appearance on "Shark Tank," Stern asserted that her treats were "so beautiful you don't want to eat them, but they're so delicious you can't resist." When it comes to her Original Flower Cookies, it seems that she was right. Etsy user Jordan affirmed, "They were almost too pretty to eat and then ate the whole batch in two days." Having experienced sustained success with her premium desserts and other varied products, what's next for the thriving Eat Your Flowers?
What's next for Eat Your Flowers?
Although you can always find edible flowers to use in your recipes if you know where to look, Eat Your Flowers seems to be the only business selling flower-pressed cookies. Without any real competition in this market, Eat Your Flowers' should be able to continue experiencing its amazing financial success while sustaining its premium dessert offerings. With Eat Your Flowers seemingly here to stay, loyal customers can find any updates from the company on its Facebook page, which includes announcements about sales, workshops, and classes.
Stern's ascension as an entrepreneur is a true testament to her work ethic, passion, and discipline. Most importantly, Stern took the time necessary to learn the profession of making baked goods, which led her to "Shark Tank" and beyond. She shared with VoyageLA, "[I] sacrificed immensely for my craft ... I would be heading into my bakery job that started at 10 p.m. This hard work, dedication, and belief in myself has undoubtedly shaped any sort of success that I have now."