Rob Gronkowski once helped brother Chris land a Shark Tank deal at $1 million valuation with MLB legend Alex RodriguezÂ
Although his personality is larger than life, former NFL tight Rob Gronkowski is just one-fifth of the "Gronk Brothers". All five brothers took their journeys through sports and their careers. Back in 2017, Chris Gronkowski appeared on season nine of ABC's "Shark Tank".
On the show, entrepreneurs present their business ventures to the 'sharks' in hopes of getting one of them to invest in their company. Chris brought his product the "Ice Shaker" on the show. The product was a new, innovative take on the typical plastic shaker bottles that nearly everyone takes to the gym or on a workout with them.
The difference with Chris Gronkowski's shaker is that it was stainless steel and kept your bottle cold for hours, unlike the other options. After explaining his product, he invited his four brothers out onto the stage. After playing a game of flip-cup against the sharks, Chris got into negotiating.
While many of the sharks suggested that Chris utilize his well-known last name, he named his own reasons for not doing so. He said that while he knew that having Rob market the Ice Shaker would bring in sales, he wanted to take a different approach.
After many attempts to get him to rename it the "Gronk Shaker" by other sharks, Chris Gronkowski closed on a deal with former MLB player Alex Rodriguez and Dallas Mavericks' owner Mark Cuban. The two invested a combined $150,000 deal for a 15% stake in the company.
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Rodriguez not only has a connection to Major League Baseball but also is a gym investor and promised to bring the Ice shaker into those venues. Cuban also said that he would supply the Mavericks with the product.
Did Rob Gronkowski invest in the "Ice Shaker"?
When Chris Gronkowski brought his Ice Shaker product into the Shark Tank, he said that he had made $80,000 in sales that year. He made $3 million in sales, the following year after his investment with Cuban and Rodriguez
And, while Chris didn't officially rename the plroduct with his famous last name, Rob did get involved in the business. A few years after he appeared on "Shark Tank" Rob bought out Alex Rodriguez's stake in the company. He then created his own line of the Ice Shaker cup with all of them being "Gronk" themed. which of course garnered even more attention.
The "Ice Shaker" bottle is also now sold in 140 different bottles and in The Vitamin Shoppe, Lifetime Fitness and GNC Stores.