‘Shark Tank’ Contestant Breaks Down in Tears After $250K Offer For ‘Side Hustle’

Emotions were running high on ABC’s Shark Tank on Friday, November 8, after a contestant was offered a $250,000 investment for her “side hustle” clothing business.

The contestant in question was Ashley Sankar, a former U.S. Army logistics officer from Atlanta, Georgia. Ashley explained to the Sharks that she works 10 to 12 hours per day at her day job as senior program manager at Amazon and then another six to eight hours in the evenings on her Phoenix-based clothing startup NineteenTwenty.

Ashley runs the business with her husband, Zach Sankar, who appeared with her on Friday’s episode. The company sells garments like puffer jackets, windbreakers, and skirts that can be converted into functional items like tote bags, pillows, or blankets. According to the couple, they brought in $269,000 in annual revenue last year, and it could have been more if they could afford larger inventory purchases.

Mark Cuban poked holes in the couple’s finances and voiced his concerns about how competitive the apparel market is. However, fellow Sharks Kevin O’Leary and Robert Herjavec provided Ashley and Zach with an offer.

Disney/Christopher Willard

O’Leary offered $250,000 for 30% of the company and wanted Ashley to quit her day job and focus on the business full-time. Herjavec shot this proposal down, saying it was “crap and unfair” and noting, “I started my first business… I didn’t know if it was going to work. I had to work a full-time job for six months.”

Herjavec then offered the Sankars $250,000 for 25% of their company. After Herjavec declined Ashley’s counter offer of 20%, the Georgia native broke down in tears, saying, “I wish my mom would be able to see this.”

Fellow Shark Lori Greiner left her seat to give Ashley a hug while Zach explained how his wife’s mom passed away when she was just 8 years old.

Disney/Christopher Willard

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“Ashley and I, we’re high school sweethearts, and we’ve literally climbed to where we are now together,” Zach continued. “We started in retail, we moved into corporate roles, we’ve been ultimately scrappy, and so to be here is just a dream, honestly.”

A clearly emotional Herjavec responded, “I didn’t have a lot growing up, but I had a mom who believed in me no matter what. And that made me believe in me when nobody else in the world ever did. That’s why I’m sitting here. And you have that belief and you’ve got an incredible partner, you’re an incredible team, and you can build on that confidence and sit in this chair one day.”

In the end, Ashley and Zach accepted Herjavec’s initial offer, and he jumped out of his chair and celebrated with the couple. You can see a clip of the emotional moment here at DailyMail.com.