"There's no real valuation" - Shark Tank investor Rashaun Williams analyses the BAM pitch while Kevin opts out

Shark Tank season 16 episode 14 saw a pitch from BAM Buckwheat Milk which is owned by Paige Hansen. She came on the show seeking $250,000 for 10% of the company. However, things went south for the entrepreneur when the sharks tasted the product and were not fond of the taste.

Her main business goal was to care of Earth and rejuvenate the soul left astray because of bad agricultural habits. She claimed:

"Sharks, soil is a very precious resource. But intensive, monoculture farming is depleting it, stripping its nutrients and biodiversity along the way."

Paige aims to solve this problem by increasing demand for crops that are good for soil health and improve their condition naturally. She has found the solution in Buckwheat, which she clarifies is a seed, not wheat.

She says that the crop can "regenerates even the most ravaged soil" and thus, is also loved by farmers around the country. Its qualities include suppressing weeds, preventing erosion, and attracting beneficial pollinators.

Thus, to increase the demand for the same, Paige has introduced a company called BAM Buckwheat Milk that serves "organic, gluten-free, dairy-free" options to users who care about the soil and the environment.

Later when the negotiations began on Shark Tank, Rashaun tried hard to make sense of it all. Mark was skeptical about how well this product would do in the market because of it being high cost and not as good in taste. When talking about the valuation, Rashaun, who is a Venture Capitalist, said:

"A $2.5 million cap on a convertible note is not a valuation. That's where the note caps at and then it converts from debt to equity in the future. So there's no real valuation... You borrowed money that converts. Got it. There's no priced round."

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Shark Tank investor Rashaun Williams opts out of investing in BAM Buckwheat Milk along with the other sharks

While presenting Buckwheat Milk to the investors on Shark Tank, Paige had three SKUs which were the "Original, Hint of Vanilla, and Extra Creamy." She claimed that the taste is a bit earthy and it could be eaten in a smoothie, a vegan chocolate pudding or an iced coffee.

However, when Shark Tank investor Mark Cuban tasted it, he had a strong reaction against the taste and said that it was not made for him. Even Lori, Daymond, and Kevin made comments about the taste but none of them liked it enough in the first taste test itself.

Soon enough, the numbers started rolling and Paige revealed that the gluten-free market in America is currently priced at $2.9 billion and 43% of US households purchase plant-based milk regularly. The company is relatively new as Paige has just entered the market and her lifetime sales are $50,000.

She says she has just entered the retail market where it costs her to make the bottles for $2.94 landed per bottle and she sells it to her distributor for $4.95. They then retail it for approximately 8 to 10 US dollars.

Soon, Shark Tank's Kevin opted out because he didn't like the taste of the product. As for Mark, he opted out claiming that Paige needs to build a community that cares about the environment and soil because that will be hard to explain at retail, and Lori and Daymond followed suit.

Rashaun said that he has invested in a lot of beverage deals but likes to be the "accelerant, not the spark." Because there wasn't enough spark for him in this company, he decided to opt out as well. Thus, Paige with her BAM Buckwheat Milk walked out with no deals.

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Shark Tank season 16 episodes can be watched on on ABC at 8 PM Eastern Time every Friday. They are later available to watch on Hulu.