Kula Cloth Shark Tank Rejection Video

Ok... so there's a story behind this video...

 I started a series on my personal instagram account called, 'The Pee Cloth Diaries' - where I am sharing stories of pre-Kula life experiences... and some of the untold stories of being an entrepreneur with a start up gear company.

When you start a company, people will often suggest that you apply for Shark Tank. Well... I did. And guess what? THEY CALLED ME!! That's right, Shark Tank actually called me and asked me to apply... I did an incredibly lengthy application process... followed by submission of a video. 

In retrospect, I realize that most folks applying to Shark Tank probably hired somebody to help them with their video... but I did my video completely by myself on my iPhone and with my good friend Marie... and then I edited it on iMovie on my phone.

The woman from Shark Tank EXPLICITLY told me that I needed to be VERY CHEERFUL and show my 'on air' personality in this video... but there was one small problem... I came down with the absolute WORST CASE of laryngitis that I've ever had (to date) in my entire life. It was awful... I could barely speak, let alone sound cheerful in a video. 

And so, as you imagine, Kula Cloth was rejected by Shark Tank. I recently watched my application video back for the first time in nearly 3 years and it brought me to tears - not because I wish we had been selected to go on Shark Tank... but because I'm SO INCREDIBLY PROUD of how far we've come *without* the help of Shark Tank or any investors... or anybody at all - except for ourselves. Having those things isn't bad at all - it just hasn't been Kula's story. Our story has been about putting service before sales... love before long hours...people before productivity... and dancing before days at work. It's not a traditional story of a start up company - and I love every bit of it so much.

As I watched this video, I laughed at the fact that I thought it was a good idea to have slow-mo shots of me fighting with toilet paper... and I cried listening to the hope and pride that is audible - even underneath my scratchy, hoarse voice. 

Every single day, I'm proud of what we do at Kula - I am proud of the people who work here and proud of how we interact with our customers and I'm proud that our work environment prioritizes kindness, compassion and love over external measures of success. It is a beautiful way to live and to grow a business, and I love it more and more every single day.

All of this to say - never give up on your dreams and trust that you are always exactly where you are supposed to be. You are loved, friends. Everything you've ever wanted and dreamed about is IN YOU - don't give that power to somebody else, ever. You have EVERYTHING inside of you right now.

Love,

Anastasia

Here's the video, for your viewing pleasure....