The premise of "Shark Tank," which was inspired by a Japanese program, quickly found an audience after its 2009 debut. After 12 seasons, some of the sharks' products are already household brands. Many businesspeople wish to have the support of one of the heavyweights who appear to possess the Midas touch, whether their product serves to fulfill a need or is simply a pleasant reward.

However, merely exchanging a handshake does not signify that the transaction is complete. Michael Tseng's Plate Topper made an appearance in episode 10 of Season 4. His presentation demonstrated how people are tired of fiddling with plastic wrap, aluminum foil, and mismatched storage containers. He came up with a Plate topper to combat this situation. Any plate might become a container with the help of the Plate Topper's silicone seal.

The idea appeared to be positioned for "As Shown on TV" success because of both the ease of use and the reusability aspect. Even though a product is brilliant, the person who created it may not possess the screen presence to turn a straightforward solution into a household name, Plate Topper was one such case. This blog article will go over the specifics of Plate Topper, its creator, the Shark Tank pitch, and what ultimately happened to the company.

What is the Plate Topper?

Plate Topper is a spherical plate with a sealable lid on top. The item has a fantastic suction grip that secures it to dishes. You can also rapidly reheat your food with it since the Plate Topper is microwave safe. Michael Tseng developed the device to keep food enclosed in an airtight atmosphere while preserving its freshness and preventing spills.

Throughout storage or transportation, Plate Topper fits tightly over plates and bowls of various sizes, retaining steam inside and preventing spills onto counters or dining tables. Plate Topper additionally functions to prevent spoilage for longer periods of time than conventional techniques, resulting in less food being thrown away in homes around the nation.

By effectively removing the silicon rim, Michael demonstrated how simple it is to retrieve the lead. The original Plate Topper, the mini Plate Topper, and the smallest Plate Topper were the four different designs that were offered at the time of his presentation. While the "cake topper" is for cakes, the "Plate Topper tall" is a little bigger. The dishwasher-safe topper has a handle and is made for easy storage.

Now that we have an idea of what the Plate Topper does, let's take a look at the man who made the nifty device.

The Founder of Plate Topper: Michael Tseng

Plate Topper was founded by Michael Tseng. Before the invention, he had already made a name for himself in academia, earning degrees in electrical and biochemical engineering as well as medicine. Michael Tseng received his electrical and biological engineering degree from Princeton University and his medical degree from California-San Francisco.

He had the inspiration for Plate Topper right before he was going to start his medical business. Michael came up with the concept of a plastic topper while traveling from his hometown university. He first came up with the idea for a suction plate, which he later combined with the concept of a microwave plate.

Michael told the sharks that although he had the idea seven years prior, he had only started the business this prior year. Tseng was motivated to create the kitchenware after seeing how many consumers struggled with conventional food storage containers. He observed how often the lids were lost or misplaced.  In addition, there would be a mess from spilled food in the microwave. He intended to use Plate Topper to combat this specific problem.

Now that we know a bit about the founder, let's take a deep dive into his pitch on the Tank.

Plate Topper Shark Tank Pitch

Michael Tseng secured a patent for the Plate Topper to protect his creative property and stop others from using it. Before making its debut on Shark Tank, Plate Topper had previously been showcased on QVC and Walmart, highlighting its superior quality. On Shark Tank, Michael Tseng asked for a $90,000 investment in return for a 5% equity stake in Plate Topper. Michael used the annoyance of plastic lids constantly vanishing from jars and saran wrap turning into an uncomfortable mess to showcase the solution.

The topper is ideal for circular dishes and can be utilized on the kitchen counter, according to the founder.  The toppers can be piled on top of one another to save space in storage and are safe to use in microwaves. Michael believes he needs the Sharks to help him get his products into two of the biggest shops in the nation. The Sharks then started inquiring about the business' highest sales over the previous 12 months. Michael replies that preorders had brought in $1 million; he claims to have made the amount in the previous four months alone.

Michael made the longest pitch on the program by remaining still for almost two hours. After a long breath, Michael ran out of options and Lori ultimately grants him $90,000 for 8% equity. The offer was ultimately accepted by Michal. Finally, Lori Greiner consented to contribute $90,000 in exchange for 8% of Plate Topper. Michael left with a deal that was almost exactly what he had asked for. Unfortunately,  Lori ultimately left the company as a result of Michael's refusal to sign an agreement that would have given her a year of decision-making control over the business.

What happened to Plate Topper After its Shark Tank AppearanSce?

After the episode's premiere broadcast, Plate Topper sales significantly increased. Every time it was re-aired, it had a similar increase in popularity. Plate Toppers gained popularity, and sales considerably climbed. However, this was not sufficient to keep the unstable business afloat. The Plate Topper website, Amazon, and Walmart.com no longer carry Plate Topper, and the Plate Topper pages on social media have been inactive for months.

In 2018, Michael obtained a patent for a bowl topper, a roughly comparable device to Plate Topper but for bowls. As of 2023, the Plate Topper website is no longer accessible, indicating that the company has shut down. On their website, there are only two pages: team and contact information. The best option to find out more about this business or one of its products is to get in touch with them. Prestagon is the only business Michael is presently working on, according to his LinkedIn profile, so presumably, they haven't altered their website. Regrettably, Plate Toppers won't be coming back anytime soon.

For more than 10 years, customers have been struggling to find their company's Facebook page, and Amazon has not been able to provide the merchandise. Neither Walmart nor QVC  carries these products in their stores. Despite the existence of old YouTube infomercials praising the inventive kitchen solution, it seems the inventor may have doomed the business. However, a quick Amazon search reveals the existence of similar goods online. The brilliant concept appears to have been recreated and remarketed by other businesses at this point.

Have a business idea in mind? Here's how you too can get started

Step 1: 🛒Setup your Ecommerce Store

For the second half of 2022, retail eCommerce sales in the US alone totaled about $257 billion. This is an increase of 2.7% compared to the previous quarter. The most effective marketing tool you will ever have is your eCommerce website.

1. For instance, with effective SEO, your eCommerce marketplace will show up in the top SERP results. Additionally, social media platforms will give you a venue to interact with and gain your clients' confidence through ratings and feedback.
2. So where do you start? If you take a quick look at the Shark Tank contestants, you’ll get a straightforward solution- Shopify! This article highlights Shopify’s stronghold on the eCommerce sector, with 11 out of 13 brands choosing Shopify as their preferred platform to sell. Moreover, several popular Shark Tank brands like Bombas, Buttercloth, and more sell their products on Shopify.

Step 2: 💌 Start Sending Newsletters

Global email user numbers were projected to reach 4.3 billion in 2022. In 2025, this number is projected to increase to 4.6 billion, accounting for more than half of the projected global population.

Additionally, this Forbes article highlighted the impact email marketing had in the lives of successful Shark Tank contestants.

They found that email is the preferred medium for communication for 72 percent of buyers over any other platform. You can access an incredible customer base through email, and the best way to do it for your business is to invest in a solution that helps you create captivating content. If you’re looking for solutions to try out, these are among the best in the email marketing industry:

1) Awesome Send

Awesome Send is designed to empower ecommerce firms to attract and retain consumers, with a plethora of high-converting emails templates. Awesome Send also offers a robust Shopify integration that helps you connect information between your online store and email strategy seamlessly. Awesome Send's solution is accessible to all at a $39 flat with all features for users worldwide.

2) GetResponse

Get Response includes a good amount of tools that can boost your sales, like sales tracking, empty cart campaigns, and integrations with marketplaces like Magento and Shopify. GetResponse Free offers a free plan. But it has a monthly email send cap of 2500 newsletters for individuals with fewer than 500 subscribers. However, if you want to use capabilities like marketing automation or e-commerce features, things can get pricey very quickly.

Step 3: ⚡Grow your audience on social media

According to the most recent social media figures, there will be 4.59 billion social media users globally in 2022, and this number will only increase over the following several years (Statista, 2022). That currently represents around 57.5% of the world's population. Social media is the cornerstone of every successful marketing campaign in current times.

A wonderful example of an organization that has built its brand on the foundation of an effective social media approach is Grace & Lace from Shark Tank Season 5. When the entrepreneurs initially entered the tank, they asserted that their DTC site accounted for 90% of their more than $800k in revenues and that they hadn't yet spent a single penny on marketing. The business's socks profited from having over 34k incredibly engaged Facebook followers on top of being a popular pin on Pinterest.

Social media is about interacting and engaging; it's about establishing and sustaining relationships and using those interactions to promote your professional aspirations. And having genuine conversations is the sole strategy to do that.

You must be willing to pay attention, genuinely listen to what your community has to say and create consistent, high-quality content. So how can you do that with several competitors vying for the same success? Invest in a social media management platform!

1)    Awesome Social

With Awesome Social, your go-to social media scheduler, you can publish to all platforms simultaneously, share your content ideas with your team, manage numerous accounts from a single window, and seamlessly organize social media posts. Awesome Social is ideal for people seeking straightforward social media management features and offers four flexible pricing plans that start at $16 which you can choose from according to your unique needs.

2)    Sprout Social

Sprout Social is another great social media management app, however it functions more like a suite of tools for managing social media. You can manage your social media scheduling, inbox, mentions, and analytics with this web and mobile application. Sprout Social is a strong, comprehensive solution with a tonne of capabilities for the sophisticated social media marketer. However, its $249 introductory price may not be ideal for small businesses or independent owners who cannot make full use of its complex capabilities.