Everything Legendary founders Duane “Myko” Cheers, Danita Claytor and Jumoke Jackson wanted to solve the problem of unappetizing plant based burgers. By creating a juicy chef crafted alternative with infused vegan cheese.
Their product is a premium plant based burger made with high quality hemp protein. A proprietary spice blend and gooey vegan cheese that melts from the inside. On the television series Shark Tank, they asked for $300,000 in exchange for 10% equity in their company.
The founders closed a deal with investor Mark Cuban. Who offered $300,000 for 22% equity shifting their strategy from frozen food to cloud kitchens. After their episode aired, the company generated $250,000 in online sales in just 24 hours. The business scaled from hand making 1,000 burgers a day in a home kitchen to producing 160,000 burgers per hour.
Securing distribution in over 1,500 grocery stores like Target and Publix. Fueled by an additional $6 million in Series A funding with backing from Mark Cuban, 301 Inc. General Mills’ venture capital arm and CircleUp Growth Partners. The company is now valued in the multi million dollar range. Projecting tens of millions in annual revenue.
Jackson, Jumoke Duane Myko, and Danita Claytor asked for a $300k investment in exchange for 10% equity in their company. This meant they valued their company at $3 million. They made a deal with Mark Cuban for $300k in exchange for 22% of their company. This new deal valued their company at about $1.36 million. After the show aired, Everything Legendary saw a big increase in website traffic, sales, and social media exposure. With an estimated 10% yearly growth rate (typical business growth), the current net worth of Everything Legendary is about $2 million.
Did Everything Legendary Get a Deal on Shark Tank?
Everything Legendary, an innovative plant based burger startup landed a deal on Shark Tank. Founders Jumoke Jackson, Danita Claytor and Duane “Myko” Cheers secured an investment from Mark Cuban who offered $300,000 for a 22% stake in the company.
The negotiation process began with the trio asking for $300,000 in exchange for 10% equity. The Sharks praised the burger’s incredible flavor and texture. Several had concerns regarding the company’s valuation and the competitive plant based food market. Kevin O’Leary felt the valuation was too high, and Barbara Corcoran bowed out because she was uncomfortable with the brand pricing its product 30% higher than competitors.
Daymond John also made a competing offer of $300,000 for 25% equity but wanted a royalty attached. Mark Cuban stepped in with an offer of $300,000 for a 22% stake dropping the founders to their final choice. They took Cuban’s offer, seeing his capability in accelerating growth and scaling companies.
The Sharks were interested because the product had a phenomenal meat like taste and unique infused vegan cheese that impressed everyone on the panel. The founders’ relentless hustle and natural ability to build a buzzworthy grassroots community. Without spending any money on formal customer acquisition spoke volumes about the business’s potential.
Shark(s) name
Offer & Demand
Counteroffer
Accepted?
Barbara Corcoran
Out
N/A
N/A
Lori Greiner
Out
N/A
N/A
Kevin O’Leary
Out
N/A
N/A
Daymond John
Out
N/A
N/A
Mark Cuban
$300,000 for 25% equity
$300,000 for 22% equity
Yes
Founders’ Backstory
Everything Legendary is a Black owned, plant based food company famous for its chef crafted, cheese stuffed vegan burgers. Founded to disrupt the vegan market with exceptional flavor. The founders’ mission is to provide healthier, great tasting food alternatives specifically for families and underserved communities facing diet related health issues.
The company was established in 2019 by three friends and Washington, D.C. area natives. Duane “Myko” Cheers was the Founder and CEO, who initially searched for plant based solutions for his mother’s health. Danita Claytor was the Co-Founder and President who joined forces to provide better meals for her own mother. Jumoke Jackson was the Co-Founder and Head Chef who brought the culinary expertise to create the company’s signature recipes.
The creation of Everything Legendary is a personal attempt rooted in family health battles. Duane Cheers’ mother was diagnosed with lupus while Danita Claytor’s mother battled cancer. When trying to support their mothers by feeding them plant based diets.
They were frustrated to find that existing vegan burgers on the market lacked flavor. They noticed that a percentage of the Black community followed plant based diets. But lacked access to exciting, delicious and healthy meat alternatives.
Everything Legendary Shark Tank Pitch
Everything Legendary, the premium plant based burger brand pitched their company seeking an investment of $300,000 for 10% equity. Their presentation which won over the Sharks started with personal stories of overcoming health challenges within their families. Shifting into an energetic demonstration of a delicious chef crafted meatless burger.
The pitch began with founders Duane “Myko” Cheers, Danita Claytor and Chef Jumoke Jackson explaining their motivations. The founders shared that one of their mothers was battling cancer while another suffered from lupus. This led them to a mission of creating healthier eating habits to empower the Black community. They detailed how difficult it was to make plant based meals that family members would want to eat. The presentation was framed as an exciting energetic “flavor revolution,” promising an alternative to boring diet foods.
The problem they presented was the lack of enjoyable plant based meat alternatives. They explained that many existing meatless burgers taste bland, dry or feel like they were made in a chemistry lab. For families dealing with health issues switching to a healthier diet is difficult when the food lacks flavor and texture. They argued that people want to make healthier lifestyle changes but conventional plant based options fail to deliver traditional mouth watering burger satisfaction.
To solve this Everything Legendary offers a chef crafted premium plant based burger. The product relies on high quality ingredients like hemp protein, coconut oil and pea protein.
Unlike mass market lab created alternatives their burger is created by a real chef. It features a proprietary spice blend to deliver a juicy flavorful meat experience. It is designed with pieces of vegan cheese infused into the meatless patty.
Everything Legendary operated with a hybrid model centered on online direct to consumer sales and pop up events. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic they pivoted to shipping frozen mail in boxes bringing in a healthy 53% average profit margin online. Following their appearance on the show they partnered with investor Mark Cuban.
Who suggested pivoting their focus to local cloud kitchens for direct delivery. This quickly evolved into a profitable retail and wholesale business model. Today, they sell their frozen patties to national supermarkets, supply large events through partnerships like Live Nation, and continue selling online.
The Sharks had positive reactions to the taste, with Kevin O’Leary even calling it the best plant based burger he had ever eaten. Several sharks were concerned about the high retail cost of their premium product and the logistics of the frozen food sector.
Lori, Barbara, and Kevin passed on the deal because of the high price point and the challenging frozen food supply chain. Cuban was attracted by the quality and the founders’ story. He proposed a pivot away from the traditional frozen grocery model.
He suggested they utilize cloud kitchens and local food delivery apps like UberEats/DoorDash, licensing the recipe to local chefs. He offered $300,000 for 25% equity. After a brief negotiation, the founders convinced Cuban to drop his equity demand down to 22%, and a deal was officially struck.
The pitch sparked widespread discussion among Shark Tank viewers and the plant based food community. Many Reddit and forum commenters praised the flavor and the inclusion of vegan cheese. Some community members pointed out the pricing made it a tough sell against mass market giants like Impossible Foods or Beyond Meat.
The founders, especially Duane Cheers, received praise from viewers for their energy, pitch clarity and ability to think quickly on their feet. The company experienced a post show sales boom. Everything Legendary successfully expanded its retail footprint into major grocery store chains and secured $6 million in Series A funding.
Why Some Sharks Said No
Several Sharks chose not to make an Everything Legendary deal for specific strategic reasons:
Tough Competition:
Sharks pointed out the growing saturated plant based meat market. The segment is dominated by established brands like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods. Investors were concerned about a small early stage grassroots company having the capacity to compete with these giants.
High Premium Pricing:
The company priced its products at 30% higher than competitor plant based burger brands.Some Sharks, like Barbara Corcoran, were uncomfortable with this pricing strategy. She felt that the high retail cost would limit mass market appeal and prevent the average consumer from choosing their patties.
Valuation and Company Equity:
The founders were asking for $300,000 for a 10% stake in the business. Sharks such as Kevin O’Leary believed this valuation was inflated and that the company had not yet established enough sales traction to justify such a number. Because of this disagreement on worth several Sharks opted out of the negotiation.
Scalability and Marketing Concerns:
The brand had barely spent any money on marketing relying solely on word of mouth growth. While scaling a premium food business requires major capital and supply chain logistics which some investors felt the team lacked the bandwidth to execute.
Where To Buy Everything Legendary Products and Product Features
Unlike many plant based meat products that are created in laboratories by scientists. Everything Legendary was crafted by a real chef, Jumoke Jackson.
The most distinctive feature of the patty is the infused vegan cheese that melts inside the burger as it cooks. The burgers use a blend of hemp protein, coconut oil, potato starch and beet extract to give it an authentic meat-like texture.
A standard patty contains around 250 calories and 15g of fat while packing 20g of protein. The patties are free of both GMOs and soy. Every online order and select packages come with their signature “Legend Sauce,” a special condiment designed to elevate the burger’s flavor profile.
The founders Duane Myko Cheers, Danita Claytor and Jumoke Jackson pitched their burger on Season 12 of Shark Tank. They highlighted the story that the company was created as a healthy flavorful tribute to their mothers. Who were battling health issues like lupus and cancer.
The Sharks were blown away by the taste, specifically the infused cheese feature. They secured a $300,000 investment deal with billionaire Mark Cuban. Sparking a surge of more than $250,000 in website sales in the first 24 hours following the broadcast.
Following its expansion, Everything Legendary has established a widespread footprint across the United States. The products are carried in thousands of grocery retailers nationwide including Target, Publix, Kroger, Safeway, Giant and Acme. You can purchase variety packs and ground meat via the Everything Legendary Store. Select items like their plant based ground are available online through Everything Legendary on Amazon.
Pricing varies based on package size and whether you are buying online or in-store. Direct-to-consumer online boxes such as an 8-pack of burgers are priced around $74.95. Larger 16-pack options often go for $119.95 with promotional discounts available. Individual two-pack boxes of burgers at retailers like Target retail for around $6.99, while the plant based ground meat goes for $9.99.
What Happened To Everything Legendary After Shark Tank?
The Shark Tank effect was immediate. The company generated $250,000 in online sales within 24 hours of its television debut.
Four months after the broadcast the founders reported $1.7 million in revenue and they were on track for an estimated $10 million in annual sales.
The startup moved out of a home kitchen and into high volume contract packing. By 2022, their plant based burgers were stocked in 1,500 grocery stores including retailers like Target, Publix and Meijer.
In February 2022, the company successfully closed a $6 million Series A funding round led by CircleUp Growth Partners, with participation from General Mills’ 301 Inc. and Mark Cuban.
The company brought on celebrity board members like Russell Simmons and partnered with Live Nation to feature their burgers at large scale entertainment and music festivals.
Alongside their cheese infused burgers, the company released “Dragon Wyngz,” a plant based chicken nugget product.
The company’s active social media accounts which were utilized for marketing have not been updated since May 2024. Their frozen meat products were still available in select U.S. grocery stores in late 2024. The total stopping of their online store and social media promotions indicates a significant operational pullback rather than explosive growth.
Conclusion
Everything Legendary burst onto the scene in 2021, pitching their flavor packed, plant based burgers to the Sharks and securing a $300,000 investment from Mark Cuban. The company rode this momentum into national retail expansion and multi million dollar funding rounds. Only to fade from the public eye in recent years.
The Shark Tank journey for founders Duane Cheers, Danita Claytor and Chef Jumoke Jackson began with a mission to create a tastier, healthier vegan burger to support their mothers’ health journeys. Their energetic pitch resulted in one of the most famous moments on the show, and the media exposure was transformative. Within 24 hours of the episode airing, the company sold $250,000 worth of burgers online.
The exposure proved to be a powerful catalyst for growth. Following their appearance Everything Legendary secured a co packer capable of producing up to 400,000 burgers a day and landed distribution in hundreds of major grocery stores.
By 2022 they closed a $6 million Series A funding round backed by General Mills’ venture capital arm 301 INC and CircleUp Growth Partners. Their retail footprint expanded to over 1,500 stores nationwide. Spanning chains like Target, Publix, Kroger and Safeway. They also secured exciting marketing opportunities including a 2022 partnership with Live Nation to serve their products at summer concerts and festivals.
The company’s trajectory has leveled off. Despite early success and an update segment on Shark Tank the company’s online store and once active social media presence went silent starting in mid 2024. Chef Jumoke Jackson has since departed the company to pursue solo ventures. While the products can still be found in select supermarkets. Public updates and product line expansions have ceased.
Looking ahead, the future of Everything Legendary remains at a critical crossroads. The brand has the foundational assets including proven, chef crafted recipes, recognizable branding and past backing from Mark Cuban and General Mills.
Moving forward, the company could be acquired by a larger food tech or consumer packaged goods (CPG) conglomerate seeking to strengthen its plant based portfolio. It could undergo a complete brand revamp and supply chain overhaul to re-enter the direct to consumer market. It could license their proprietary recipes and legendary sauces for third party food service distribution.
Hey there! I’m Fatima Shoaib, a passionate content writer who believes in creative solutions. Reading enthusiast and storyteller, dedicated and eager to apply my skills to a fast-paced environment and make a positive impact in the industry.Currently focusing on current business projects and goals, I aim to stay passionate about driving results in the business sector. This connection that I felt towards business was because of Shark Talent. I am always exploring to binge into new episodes of Shark Tank. Read more About me.
