Table of Contents
What Is GrooveBook?
GrooveBook offers a free photo book with photographs printed from your smartphone shipped once a month to you. You can print up to 100 photos from your smartphone and have them printed into the 4.5″ x 6.5″ book.
The GrooveBook app can turn 100 of your photos into a picture book, which can be downloaded later as a digital file.
You can access millions of photos on your smartphone with GrooveBook, a subscription service that costs $2.99 per month.
Groovebook reduces shipping expenses for book publishers by making books more flexible and lowering the cost of sending them. The design of GrooveBook is protected by a patent owned by the company’s founder.
| Company Name | GrooveBook |
| Entrepreneur | Brian Whiteman And Julie Whiteman |
| Product / Business | A photo album and photo book creator app. |
| Investment Asking For | $150,000 for 20% equity in GrooveBook |
| Final Deal | $150,000 for 80% equity in GrooveBook |
| Shark | Kevin O’Leary and Robert Herjavec |
| Episode | Season 5 Episode 13 |
| Business Status | Acquired & Discontinued |
| Website | Visit Website |
Who Is The Founder Of GrooveBook?
Brian Whiteman and his wife Julie Whiteman are the founders of GrooveBook, a service that prints up to 100 photos into a photo book or album. GrooveBook allows you to create graphically stunning picture books from your mobile phone’s images. You have to download the groove application.
Julie Whiteman’s cell phone was stolen, and with it, years and years of photographs were lost. What made her feel even worse was that she and her husband Brian ran a print company, and she could have easily printed out the “keepers” whenever she desired.
When Julie mistakenly lost photographs from her phone and could not recover them, she became the digital program she created.
It was people close to her that she had photographed for the album. They must be conserved and appreciated in their original form for future generations. Based on this premise, Brian created an application.
Brian’s photo album inspired Groovebook, which he created to cheer her up. Groovebook is a smartphone app where customers can print up to 100 photos and receive a physical photo album in the mail for $2.99 a month, including shipping and handling.
The technology built into the application will make millions of users able to cherish the memories they captured.
GrooveBook Before Shark Tank
Brian and Julie Whiteman, who already owned a successful commercial print company, were hoping to expand their business by offering a subscription service for the photo albums they produced.
Each month, customers may upload up to 100 photos from their mobile devices, and their memories will be saved in a bespoke photo book.
While the Whitemans could sell the photo books at a low cost since they were made in-house, they were forced to pay up to $4 in postage to transport books that were 5 7 inches in size.
Brian was up late one-night crunching figures and attempting to figure out a way to make their bespoke picture book subscription service a viable option for their customers.
Brian began pounding on a prototype with a pen, causing the book’s spine to be destroyed due to his anger. He got an epiphany when he was looking at the torn book. He was so excited that he awakened Julie and immediately burst into laughter at his finding.
Brian had discovered a cost-effective answer to their difficulty with photo book shipping and distribution. They could ship out books faster because the spine was grooved, which allowed the book to be more flexible and fit into smaller packaging.
The GrooveBook brand and process were successful, and their subscription service took off. They grew their customer base to 8,000 users in a very short time.
How Was The Shark Tank Pitch Of GrooveBook?
Brian and Julie approached the Shark Tank, requesting a $150,000 investment in exchange for a 20% stake in the Groovebook. Most people own a smartphone that can take better photos than any camera they’ve ever used. Everyone takes pictures of everything, from food to babies and dogs.
Our phones’ photo albums collect these images, supplanted with the latest photos taken in our lives and eventually forgotten. GrooveBook offers a way for people to reclaim and cherish memories cost-effectively.
You may view GrooveBook anytime by converting your digital images into a classic photo album. These photos are perforated and date-stamped along with the location, allowing for easy removal and sharing with friends and family.
You’ll receive a new GrooveBook with a new monthly cover as a subscriber. Moreover, you can obtain duplicates of your pictures to share with family and friends.
A Shark Tank panel of seasoned business professionals was initially surprised at the pricing point for Whiteman’s GrooveBook and their ability to sell the product for under $3 per book.
Brian’s groove design that night helped them reduce production and shipping expenses to $2.30 each by using their printing studios.
The print shop and GrooveBook production are inextricably linked, says Robert, expressing concern over the business strategy employed to market and sell GrooveBook.
Investors investing in one of their ventures must be confident that both will succeed. GrooveBook’s low prices and costs were attributed to the couple’s earlier investment in professional printing equipment.
They believed they could continue serving all of their consumers in both businesses. Julie told the Sharks that Brian became inspired to create the groove concept when thrashing a prototype late at night.
Mark used the phrase “value proposition” to describe the groove, and GrooveBook would possess a unique position in the market if the patent were granted. Mark explained that GrooveBook offered value by acting as an intermediary between its users and existing photo compilation sites like Shutterfly.
Brian and Julie would gain significantly more profits from GrooveBook’s licensing agreement by becoming a one-time photo services provider to other businesses.
Mark offers the couple $150,000 in exchange for the company’s rights to license. The subscription service will stay the same, but Mark will be able to make one-time applications.
Daymond and Robert felt uneasy about the two aspects of the firm is so closely linked, and they withdrew. Kevin offered to buy the entire company for $750,000. Julie and Brian took their business very seriously.
The couple appeared to be uneasy with this thought. Their business was their livelihood, and they desired to continue doing so and reap the benefits.
Brian was enraged when he stated that the company was worth $6 million, the price they would have to sell out. The judges were astounded. Kevin, normally done at this point, attempted to re-establish order.
His goal was to determine whether the couple was interested in selling out and retaining majority ownership. The Whitemans did not come to the Tank to be acquired by the Sharks and were equally opposed to selling their licensing rights.
Kevin’s bid was countered by Lori’s offer of $375,000 for 50% of the company. When Robert saw Lori’s offer, he changed his mind immediately. While Mark and Kevin met in the corridor, Lori applied pressure on Brian and Julie.
Brian was not going to negotiate a deal while the two judges who had originally proposed one were still in the room.
Based on Mark’s proposal, Kevin and Mark revised their plan. Because Brian and Julie are enthusiastic about GrooveBook, the Sharks decided a licensing agreement would be more appropriate.
Their initial payment to Whiteman was $150,000 and 20% of the license proceeds. Robert put a wrench in the works as they were closing close on the transaction by making a good argument.
Licenses would allow GrooveBook buyers to purchase the exact product without subscribing to a subscription service, impacting subscriber numbers over time.
Brian and Julie were forced to make a choice. Two proposals were made: a half licensing agreement and a 50% stock stake.
Brain left the stage with Julie in his arms after the licensing agreement was signed, and they celebrated their new partnership together. Kevin states, “They are still madly in love.”
Final Deal: Mark Cuban and Kevin O’Leary agreed to invest $150,000 for 80% equity in GrooveBook.
What Happened To GrooveBook After Shark Tank?
GrooveBook subscription numbers skyrocketed after the shark tank appearance and rapidly surpassed $500,000 in annual revenue.
Following their appearance in the shark tank, they received an enormous response and planned to return several times. The next year, Groovebook increased its subscriber base to 500,000 and surpassed a profit of $4 million.
The duo’s efforts were rewarded when they received over $14.5 million from Shutterfly, which they demonstrated on Shark Tank episode 620. The couple promptly accepts the bargain, dubbed the biggest in shark tank history!!
GrooveBook service is available for $2.99 per month and has been available on Google Play and Apple App Stores for quite some time.
GrooveBook Shark Tank Update
The sales of GrooveBook skyrocketed after Julian and Brian’s appearance on Shark Tank. The founders of GrooveBook were able to capitalize on the traffic boost and generated three times higher sales in just 5 days of their appearance on Shark Tank.
Shutterfly acquired Groovebook for $14.5 million in November 2014. The acquisition of GrooveBook by Shutterfly made GrooveBook an enormous Shark Tank success story.
As of 2022, Shutterfly has discontinued the GrooveBook app. While Groovebook services are ending, you can find many photo book options and offers at Shutterfly.
Is GrooveBook Still In Business?
GrooveBook Subscriptions increased to 500,000 following Shark Tank, and the Whitemans earned $4,000,000 annually.
Shutterfly acquired the GrooveBook for $14.5 million in just 11 months. Julie and Brian retained their positions as consultants.
Shutterfly has discontinued GrooveBook as of 2022.
What Is the Net Worth of GrooveBook?
The valuation of GrooveBook was $750,000 when it appeared on Shark Tank. The net worth of GrooveBook was $14.5 Million when Shutterfly acquired it. However, Shutterfly has discontinued GrooveBook as of 2022.
