What Happened To GoVerre After Shark Tank?
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In a 2017 Forbes interview, Regan Kelaher revealed that the idea for her and Shannon Zappala's portable, 17-ounce wine glasses came about when the two friends were at an outdoor concert with their families. "We were pouring wine into plastic cups, and one of my kids knocked mine over," Kelaher said. "This sounds cheesy, but we thought, there has to be a better way to do this." The friends began discussing possible alternatives and eventually developed GoVerre, a portable wine glass with a sippy lid. A combination of the words "go" and "verre" (the French word for glass), the cup enabled them to take wine on the go without worrying about spills.
Despite both women working full-time jobs and being parents, the two began building GoVerre. When this balancing act became too overwhelming, they quit their jobs and devoted all their time to creating their new company, using Zappala's house as their home base for storing and selling their product.
Kelaher and Zappala faced the possibility of failure right out of the gate when their first Kickstarter campaign flopped. With the success of their second campaign, however, their confidence grew. After GoVerre was featured on Oprah.com, they knew they had a great product. The "Shark Tank" investors agreed, and during GoVerre's 2017 appearance on the show, four of the five Sharks wanted to invest, three of whom teamed up against Kevin "Mr. Wonderful" O'Leary.
The entrepreneurs made a deal with three Sharks
On "Shark Tank," Regan Kelaher and Shannon Zappala championed wine as the perfect beverage for just about anywhere. "Wine at the park, wine on a picnic, wine at a pitch meeting with investors," Zappala said during their Season 8, Episode 22 appearance. Despite their love for the drink, they explained that they hated pouring wine into wobbly plastic cups, as these altered the drinking experience and the wine's taste.
They then presented their product to the Sharks: a white, stemless, extra-thick wine glass with a textured silicone sleeve and a white, drink-through lid. They asked for $200,000 in exchange for 13% of GoVerre, putting the company's valuation at $1.5 million. Each glass cost $5.50 to make but sold for $24. That year, they had already sold $384,000 in glasses, with a net profit of $134,000.
After acknowledging to Kevin O'Leary that they weren't keeping any profits but were putting them back into their business, he sarcastically called the venture a hobby. Despite his derisive comment, he offered them $200,000 for 33.3 % while also telling them that he's "so valuable in this business, it's ridiculous." While Kelaher and Zappala hesitated to respond, Robert Herjavec told them he loved the product and wanted to make a deal with them — along with Mark Cuban and Lori Greiner. The entrepreneurs excitedly agreed to give up 33.3% of GoVerre in exchange for the help of not one but three Sharks.
GoVerre began offering additional products
Following its T.V. appearance, GoVerre became one of the most popular alcohol products pitched on "Shark Tank." During the show's Season 10 update, Shannon Zappala revealed, "In just a week ... we had over $400,000 in sales. We sold out immediately and had to make an emergency order just to keep up with demand." They had so many orders, in fact, that they had to move operations from Zappala's home to a warehouse. Even though the space was 1,500 square feet, Regan Kelahar surmised they would soon have to start looking for something bigger. When Mark Cuban offered the use of a fulfillment center to relieve some of this pressure, they agreed. "We're still going to keep our current warehouse for specialty orders, but for our mass retailers, we're going to be using Mark's fulfillment center," Kelaher determined.
GoVerre flourished, making $2 million in sales in the year after its "Shark Tank" appearance. Zappala and Kelaher could finally keep the money they made — more than $473,000 — instead of funneling it back into their business.
While GoVerre's portable stemless wine glasses are still its core product, its lineup now includes more types of glassware. In August 2019, portable champagne flutes became part of its repertoire, but unlike its other offerings, these didn't have lids. In July 2020, the company released portable cocktail glasses, and a year later, portable charcuterie plates joined the product list. Customers could also purchase GoVerre-branded bottle stoppers and corkscrews.
Competing brand Govino sued GoVerre in 2017
Unfortunately, not everything was rosy after "Shark Tank." Less than a week after GoVerre's episode aired, Shannon Zappala and Regan Kelaher were sued for trademark infringement. The $200,000 from their deal with the Sharks ended up covering the costs of the lawsuit. "We settled it [the lawsuit] favorably in our favor after, I think, it was 676 days and just a ton of money," Kelahar said in a 2022 episode of the Female Startup Club podcast. "So that was a big blow to our business, but we survived, and we're doing well."
The plaintiff was a company called Govino that also sold portable, shatterproof wine glasses and had been in business since 2008. The company claimed that Zappala visited Govino in 2010 and asked about its products and trademarks, meaning she was aware of a similar product when she and Kelaher began creating their line of portable glassware. The case was resolved just before it was set to go to trial in 2019.
After two years immersed in the lawsuit, Kelaher and Zappala were understandably relieved when it was over. "We were ready to go as soon as we could," Zappala told the podcast. "We've onboarded a brand-new P.R. team, which has been amazing. They've been really helpful at getting our brand out there." Matters further improved for the pair in 2019, when they were nominated for San Diego's Entrepreneur of the Year award.
Some customers have complained about leaky GoVerre lids
Initially, most of GoVerre's products were sold wholesale, but that changed when online shopping increased during the pandemic. "We've really focused more on our website," Regan Kelaher told the Female Startup Club podcast. "Email marketing, and really heavily focusing on our social media, and Facebook and Instagram ads, and trying to drive those customers," she explained. "Because we don't have the sales from our stores right now."
GoVerre's Amazon reviews are mostly positive; its standard cup is rated 4.5 out of 5 stars. "So perfect for outdoor fun and very durable," one reviewer wrote. Some complaints, however, call out this supposed durability, as well as the spill-proof lid. "...I dropped this cup on laminate flooring and it shattered immediately," said one annoyed customer. "I do not recommend pouring wine in and then putting it even on a side pocket of a bag/tote. It leaks a lot," commented another.
GoVerre frequently offers sales on its social media pages, such as random BOGO or 50% off deals. In 2023, it gave customers 25% off for Father's Day, Memorial Day, Easter, and Valentine's Day. It also frequently posts articles that mention its products and, in an Instagram video, teased the appearance of GoVerre's glasses in the series "Below Deck." Its Facebook and Instagram are also filled with pictures of Kelaher, Zappala, and others enjoying wine in GoVerre glasses.
GoVerre is sold out on its website
GoVerre's competition has only grown since its appearance on "Shark Tank." An Amazon search reveals hundreds of different portable wine glasses, some of which look very similar to GoVerre's offerings. Even so, most products from these rival brands are made of stainless steel, ceramic, plastic, polycarbonate, or acrylic material; few are made of glass, which is one of GoVerre's selling points. (Worth noting, though, is that any lidded to-go cup will prohibit the wine's interaction with the air; as experts note, this may affect wine's taste.)
There are indications, however, that GoVerre may be experiencing issues. The company's last Facebook and Instagram posts were made on August 23, 2023, after which the pages fell silent. Also, while Shannon Zappala's LinkedIn still claims she's with GoVerre, Regan Kelaher's LinkedIn indicates that she left the company in October 2022 to work as a senior project manager for a company called Optum. She seemingly left this role in November 2023.
GoVerre's website shows that the product is sold in specialty stores all across the U.S. The brand also has a page on Amazon and sells products through its online store. It's unknown if any of the physical stores that carry the brand's products are experiencing stock issues, but Amazon lists all products as currently unavailable, and the online store says all products are sold out and to check back soon. Additionally, the page encouraging customers to join GoVerre's email list is currently unavailable.