Kent Yoshimura and Ryan Chen are the founders of Neuro gum and are looking for $750,000 in exchange for 5% of their company in this EXCLUSIVE preview of the April 10 episode of Shark Tank. They present their Neuro gum and Neuro mints, which are “clean, balanced energy” that can be taken anytime, anywhere. “Each piece contains as much caffeine as a cup of coffee,” Ryan says. There’s no sugar or GMO in the gum and mints. Neuro is also vegan!
Kent opened up about the genesis of Neuro. He was an athlete in college and his training was “extremely difficult.” He was mixing supplements in his own room. He met Ryan in Japanese class and they became best friends. Ryan also talked about the accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down.
“In 2009, I was 19 and I got into a really bad snowboarding accident,” he tells the Sharks. “Doctors told me I would never walk again. I spent the next 2 years and 15 surgeries in the hospital. I think that was definitely the lowest point in my life. Fortunately, I had the best friends and family in the world that helped me get back to where I wanted to be. Kent and I just wanted to live more. We wanted to do everything that life had to offer, and that was really the catalyst to start Neuro gum.” The Sharks are moved by Ryan’s incredible story.
The synopsis fo the April 10 episode reads: “An entrepreneur from Madison, Wisconsin, asks the Sharks for a lot of cheddar, hoping he hasn’t bitten off more than he can chew, as he goes all-in on his state’s staple food. Can best friends from Los Angeles, California, convince the Sharks to invest in their energy product which keeps people awake and alert on the go? Moms from Evanston, Illinois, try to sell the Sharks on the business of slime with their play-driven environment for kids. Finally, a family of entrepreneurs from Okarche, Oklahoma, pitch their garden product designed to keep homes pest-free without risking harm to those inside.” Shark Tank season 11 airs Fridays at 8 p.m. on ABC.