Most of us like fun parties and events for entertainment and recreation. However, waiting in lines for such events for hours can be really frustrating. And it gets even more disappointing if the seats get full before you could go in.
To avoid such a scenario, a young entrepreneur of 27, presented his innovative idea of EZ VIP. And it got praise from all the sharks. But did the EZ VIP land a deal on Shark Tank? What is it doing after the Shark Tank? Also, what’s the net worth of EZ VIP in 2024 after Shark Tank?
Let’s find out.
Pronounced Easy VIP, EZ VIP is an online booking system that makes reservations for high-end VIP events and parties easier at exclusive clubs. As an added bonus, you could choose the table at which you would like to receive bottle service.
After you make a reservation for a table, you will not be “dragged” and you will not be asked to pay extra to maintain your seat.
Moreover, the customers who attend the city’s hottest nightlife spots can avoid long lines and be treated like celebrities.
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Company Name | EZ VIP |
Founder | Alashe Nelson |
Product | Online booking system for VIP events and Parties |
Investment Seeking | $150K for 15% Stake |
Final Deal | $150K + “A” List Artists for 30% Stake |
Shark | Mark Cuban and Daymond John |
Business Status | Out of Business |
Website | https://www.ezvip.com |
Alashe Nelson is the founder of EZ VIP. The young entrepreneur from Miami, Florida founded EZ VIP in 2011. His goal was to make life easier for people who belong to high society.
He was the son of Queen Joyce Clarence, who founded the Queen Joyce Housewives Club. The club was founded in 1975. And over the years, the club has grown to include thousands of members.
Having worked alongside his mother in her concierge business, “Concierge with a Smile,” he has built his concierge experience from the ground up.
Having grown up with his mother as a leader, Alashe always aspired to follow in her footsteps. However, after seeing her succeed without him, he went out and started his own business to prove his worth without becoming dependent on his mother’s business.
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Alashe Nelson suffered social rejection even as a very young child. Having to wait in lines at the club was tiring, and he always feared not getting into the best clubs. Due to that, he lost his reputation, which threatened his relationship with the girl he was dating.
His immediate response was to develop a strategy to prevent such a situation from happening to anyone else.
Afterward, he came up with the idea of creating a website where clients could see a list of upcoming events in the city and purchase tickets in advance. He gave it the name EZ VIP.
Alashe started the EZ VIP service in Miami, which is known worldwide for its active nightlife market. He collaborated with the restaurant owners in the area. The goal was to find a business partner who could help him expand his company and increase its value.
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To pitch his idea of EZ VIP on Shark Tank, Alashe Nelson walked in with a gorgeous woman. The first part of his pitch was an introduction, followed by his request for $150,000 in exchange for a 15% stake in his company.
Throughout the presentation, he explained the difficulties individuals face when trying to enter clubs due to large crowds.
He explained his story of not being able to get into an incredibly popular club event for himself and how others are facing a similar problem. He then presented EZ VIP as an alternative, an online service that allows users to find out what’s going on in their area and book a table there via the website.
He says the company generated $250,000 in revenue in Miami alone. Robert Herjavec got very impressed with the stat.
Barbara Carcoran, however, kept herself out saying that she can’t even relate to such life and also claimed that she has lost an appeal in the nightlife scene.
Daymond John decided to partner up with Robert acknowledging his acumen in technology and asked for a 45% stake in the company for $150,000. As a counteroffer, Nelson proposed 18% for $150,000, which was only a 3% increase on his original offer.
Daymond and Robert both considered the counteroffer insulting since it was just a slight adjustment in the original offer and nowhere close to the deal they presented.
But Daymond didn’t back out. He decided to go low on the equity stake from 40% to 30% if he receives an answer immediately.
The Mr. Wonderful Kevin O’Leary also decided to join in and make an offer. He offered $150,000 for 25% equity in the company. Robert Herjavec then decided to partner up with Kevin on his deal.
Daymond John, who was still interested in business, revised his offer and went down to 30% in exchange for $150,000 partnering with Mark Cuban. Robert Herjavec tried to woo Nelson out of the deal considering it to be the worst deal.
After Daymond’s offer, Kevin O’Leary went further down to 20%. Even on this updated offer, Robert was still interested in partnering up with Kevin.
Nelson acknowledged the 10% difference between the deals and the technical strengths and financial backing he could get while taking Kevin and Robert’s offer. But he decided to take Daymond and Mark’s offer anyway although it wasn’t as lucrative as Kevin and Robert’s. He valued Daymond and Mark more believing they could help him with the branding. And he finally accepted their deal of $150,000 for 30% equity.
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Due to the Shark Tank effect, EZ VIP’s services increased dramatically after the show. Website traffic increased to an unprecedented level.
Fulfilling the promise made on the deal, Mark and Daymond brought “A-list” artist AKA Pitbull into the company to feature as the face of the company.
But it didn’t perform well as expected. As more traffic started to come, the website started malfunctioning. It received several negative reviews as many people furiously complained that they didn’t get anything in return despite booking their seats at the events. EZ VIP also failed to expand its services to other cities since things were not going as anticipated.
Several of the owner’s social media accounts including Instagram and Twitter have been deactivated since 2014.
The company collaborated with WanTickets later on. WanTicket is a ticketing platform in North America that appears to be an additional entry point for certain Miami and Las Vegas events.
However, EZ VIP and Wantickets did not have a good relationship. Wantickets did not seem to lead to EzVIP, and neither EzVip’s website nor social media accounts mentioned Wantickets.
There is no way for us to know what is taking place at this location. You may have encountered this page while negotiations were underway; if so, it reminds you of how things might have been. A simple answer to that question is hard to come by.
Unless Daymond has another trick up his sleeve, the Shark Tank’s EZVIP can be considered a failure.
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When the company appeared on Shark Tank, it was valued at $5 million. However, the company shut down its operations in late 2014 and early 2015. So, the valuation and net worth of EZ VIP in 2023 is yet to be known.
As a new business venture, EZ VIP succeeded in making a significant impact on the market. Moreover, the services it offered were unheard of. Even at present, there are no alternatives to EZ VIP on the market, nor are there any competitors to it.
The Shark Tank’s EZ VIP service is currently out of business. The company halted its operations in late 2014 and early 2015.
After the airing of the show, their website received a huge amount of traffic and bookings for VIP events. However, due to the malfunctioning of their website, they could deliver the service as was expected of them. It received rants and negative reviews from unhappy customers, to whom they failed to deliver their services.
They also failed to expand their services to other cities, which was previously planned.
Due to their inability to deliver the service as promised, many people started canceling their bookings. And when people started canceling events, they suffered a great loss, resulting in their businesses eventually closing down.
As per the recent report, EZ VIP’s founder Alashe Nelson’s net worth is $11 million despite shutting down his company’s operations in 2015.
The company was valued at $5 million when it appeared on Shark Tank. As of late 2014 and early 2015, the company ceased its operations. Therefore, EZ VIP’s valuation and net worth in 2022 are unknown.