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Cary entrepreneur to make a splash in ‘Shark Tank’ premier

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By Rick Smith, Local Tech Wire editor

CARY, N.C. – Kevin Flannery, an entrepreneur from Cary, will be swimming with sharks in his search for investor cash Sunday night.

Yes, reality shows are now entering the venture capital space. Question is, will Flannery survive the shark attacks and cash in like the Triangle’s Clay Aiken did on “American Idol”?

Founder of WiSpots, an 11-employee company that wants to put wireless web pads and provide related services in medical waiting rooms, Flannery is among a handful of would-be millionaires picked to go one-on-five with potential investors on the premier episode of “Shark Tank.”

“It is exciting,” Flannery told Local Tech Wire. But he’s also very limited in what he can say about what happened due to contractual agreements with ABC and the show’s producers. Suffice it to say that not even Flannery knows all that will be shown when the heavily promoted show launches at 9 p.m.

After submitting an application to be considered for the show, Flannery endured several rounds of review before making it on the set for the show. His one concern was not being nervous but how he would be treated. Flannery has made pitches to rooms full of investors before, so he wasn’t nervous about dealing with the sharks. Rather, he was unsure about the show editing process.

“I told them I don’t want to be comic relief,” Flannery said. “I have my reputation, my whole life invested in this company – my house, my kids’ education fund, my 401-K, credit cards.

“What I can say is that we were one of a handful of finalists who were selected out of thousands who applied,” he explained. “I do encourage anyone who has a dream and a vision to try to get on the show. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

“The show is a great story for the American people about good people who are out there trying to build a future.”

ABC has been promoting the program for months, teaming up with Executive Producer Mark Burnett of “Survivor” fame. ABC hypes the show with terms like “ruthless investors” and “sink their teeth into.”

Video clips at ABC’s web site play up the sharks from their dapper appearances to bundles of cash on the desk in front of them to pained reactions, smirks and laughs as they hear the entrepreneurs’ investment pitches.

Similar to Donald Trump bellowing “You’re fired,” Shark Tank discards will get the “I’m out” treatment. (That’s what the sharks will say when they decide not to nibble any further on an entrepreneur’s idea, according to ABC.)

What happens if the sharks are interested in making a deal? Then Flannery and others might be offered a term sheet. There could even be an on-air bidding war.

The sharks are:

• Barbara Corcoran, a real estate mogul from New York who turned a $1,000 loan from her boyfriend into a multi-billion dollar business. She also wrote “If You Don’t Have Big Breasts, Put Ribbons on Your Pigtails.” How’s that for a business advice book title?

• Kevin Harrington is chief executive officer of TVGoods.com and a pioneer on the infomercial industry. He raised more than $17 million in venture capital for his latest venture.

• Robert Herjavec, a son of immigrants from Croatia, leads the Herjavec Group, an IT and infrastructure integration firm in Canada. He went from waiting tables to founding tech firms worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

• Daymond John, the “Godfather of Urban Fashion,” who launched FUBU (For Us, By Us) with $100,000 that he and his mother raised by mortgaging their home.

• Kevin O’Leary, chairman of the mutual fund company he launched (O’Leary Funds), made his millions after launching a software company in his basement.

So did one or more of the sharks bite on Flannery’s idea?

He’s not saying.

But after getting nationwide TV exposure, Flannery may be tempting other sharks soon. Even if he doesn’t strike a deal with a shark, Flannery believes the exposure from Shark Tank could prove invaluable.

“Our hurdle is that what we do is so new, so cutting edge that people say they have never seen it before. We need to get in front of doctors and practice managers, media buyers and the public” he said.

“Now, we have an opportunity for millions of people to see our solution.”

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