Did HavenLock Go Out of Business? Shark Tank Update
When Alex Bertelli and Clay Banks walked onto the Shark Tank soundstage in Season 10, they had a simple goal: prove that a standard deadbolt is dangerously inadequate for home security.
To demonstrate, Bertelli planned to effortlessly kick down a standard door, and then show how their floor-anchored wedge lock, HavenLock, could stop an intruder cold.
Instead, millions of viewers watched as the standard door stubbornly refused to break, forcing Bertelli to launch into a full-body dropkick while the billionaire investors erupted in uncontrollable laughter.
The Bottom Line (Executive Summary)
For readers looking for immediate answers on where the Nashville-based security company stands today:
- No deal was made: All five Sharks passed, citing steep product pricing, narrow profit margins, and heavy corporate debt.
- The B2B Pivot: Shrugging off the public embarrassment, the founders refocused on commercial safety, specifically engineering “Haven Lockdown” units for school and office active-shooter defense.
- Acquired and Scaling: In 2023, a venture capital firm successfully acquired an equity stake in HavenLock, injecting fresh capital and allowing co-founder Clay Banks to exit. The company is thriving, holding a Department of Homeland Security SAFETY Act Designation.
What is HavenLock?
HavenLock is an alternative door security system that anchors directly to the floor at the base of the door, rather than relying on the traditional door frame and deadbolt.
By utilizing the floor’s structural integrity, the wedge-shaped barricade absorbs the kinetic force of a break-in, making it significantly harder to breach than a standard lock.
| Business Overview | Details |
| Industry | Smart Home Security & Commercial Safety |
| Founder(s) | Alex Bertelli and Clay Banks |
| Core Product | Floor-anchored locking wedges (Mech, Connect, and Lockdown) |
| Retail Price | $180 (Mechanical) to $340 (Bluetooth Connect) |
| Target Audience | Homeowners, Schools, and Commercial Enterprises |
The Founders Behind HavenLock
The idea for HavenLock was born from a mix of elite military experience and localized civilian anxiety. Alex Bertelli, an Army combat veteran, spent over a decade with the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, deploying nine times to conflict zones globally.
During his military career in the Middle East, he witnessed how locals secured their compounds using floor-based barricades, realizing the geometric strength of bracing a door from the bottom rather than the side.
When Bertelli returned to civilian life, his Nashville neighborhood experienced a rash of aggressive break-ins. Traditional deadbolts proved practically useless against a simple boot kick to the door frame.
Determined to build a civilian lock with military-grade resilience, he partnered with his friend Clay Banks, a seasoned entrepreneur with a sharp eye for startup scaling and marketing.
Together, they founded HavenLock in 2014. Using military-grade steel, nylon, and industrial-strength polycarbonates, they engineered a wedge system that lies flat to allow the door to open inward, but pops up to block the door when activated.
By the time they landed their spot on Shark Tank, they had raised over $1 million from outside investors but were carrying $500,000 in debt.
HavenLock’s Shark Tank Pitch & Deal
Alex and Clay appeared on Season 10, Episode 18 of Shark Tank, asking for $500,000 in exchange for a 6% equity stake. This bold ask placed HavenLock’s valuation at an ambitious $8.33 million.
The pitch immediately spiraled into a comedic spectacle that ABC later featured on their “Greatest of All Time Special” under the “Greatest Pitch Fails” category. Bertelli, attempting to show the weakness of a standard lock, repeatedly kicked the prop door. It wouldn’t budge.
Exhausted and visibly strained, he finally had to hit the door with a flying dropkick to get it open. The Sharks, Mark Cuban, Kevin O’Leary, Barbara Corcoran, Lori Greiner, and Daymond John, were already laughing before the financial cross-examination even began.
Once the laughter died down, the numbers presented a serious problem. The mechanical version cost $70 to produce and retailed for $180, while the Bluetooth version retailed for $340.
The company had generated $250,000 in direct-to-consumer sales, but the high production costs and existing debt made the Sharks highly skeptical.
Kevin O’Leary was the first to exit, expressing intense doubt about the company’s ability to scale manufacturing profitably.
Mark Cuban quickly followed, stating the math simply did not make sense for the valuation they were demanding.
Barbara Corcoran and Lori Greiner also bowed out, citing the long road to profitability and early-stage hurdles.
Daymond John lingered, noting the potential of their product in the commercial space, but admitted the amount of equity he would need to make the risk worthwhile would be insulting to the founders.
| Pitch Details | Facts & Figures |
| Season/Episode | Season 10, Episode 18 (2019) |
| Initial Ask | $500,000 |
| Equity Offered | 6% |
| Implied Valuation | $8.33 Million |
| Sharks Present | Mark Cuban, Kevin O’Leary, Barbara Corcoran, Lori Greiner, Daymond John |
| Final On-Air Deal | No Deal |
Did the HavenLock Deal Actually Close?
Because HavenLock walked off the stage without an offer, there was no post-show due diligence process to navigate. The founders had to return to Nashville and rely entirely on the exposure the broadcast provided.
Often called the “Shark Tank Effect,” airing on national television, even during a disastrous pitch, creates an immediate spike in website traffic and consumer interest.
Alex and Clay leveraged this exact momentum. They processed a surge of orders for their residential models and utilized the feedback they received from the Sharks, particularly the brief discussion regarding commercial and school security. This feedback would completely alter the trajectory of their business.
HavenLock After Shark Tank: The Update
Instead of letting a pitch-fail define their brand, the founders leaned into the joke. They recognized that while the television presentation failed, the engineering behind the lock was undeniably sound.
The most significant pivot occurred shortly after the tragedy in Parkland, Florida. Bertelli and Banks shifted a massive portion of their research and development away from the crowded smart-home consumer market and into the B2B commercial sector. They developed the Haven Lockdown, a heavy-duty system specifically designed for classrooms and office buildings.
Unlike the floor model, the Lockdown system can be installed at the top or base of a commercial door, networked through a central hub, and activated instantly by a teacher or administrator via a Bluetooth fob.
This pivot saved the company. By 2021, HavenLock secured a partnership with Terminix to distribute their residential locks, but their commercial arm was winning major institutional contracts.
Over 100 schools in Arkansas integrated the Haven Lockdown system, establishing a blueprint for district-wide sales across the United States.
In 2023, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security officially granted the Haven Lockdown system a SAFETY Act Designation, formally recognizing its effectiveness in active shooter defense protocols. That same year, HavenLock attracted the attention of institutional investors.
According to an interview with Clay Banks, the company underwent a successful equity acquisition by a venture capital firm in 2023. The buyout allowed Banks to exit the company on profitable terms to focus on a new venture, Glorilight, while Bertelli remained at the helm as CEO.
Today, the company operates primarily as a commercial defense contractor for school districts, though they continue to sell their residential lines (Haven Mech, Haven Connect) direct-to-consumer and through select specialty distributors.
They also run the “HAVEN Guardian Angel Program,” a corporate social responsibility initiative where commercial clients can “buy a lock, give a lock” to a local school or daycare facility.
What is the Net Worth and Valuation of HavenLock?
Estimating private company valuations requires analyzing their funding rounds and revenue multipliers. On Shark Tank in 2019, the founders asked for a valuation of $8.33 million based purely on projections and initial traction.
By 2021, verified reports showed HavenLock hitting $4 million in annual revenue, which then scaled up to roughly $4.5 million leading into 2023. The company raised a reported $4.81 million through Veteran Ventures Capital prior to their buyout.
In the hardware and security sector, hardware-as-a-service (HaaS) and commercial contracts usually trade at a 2x to 3x revenue multiple. Based on their pre-acquisition revenue of $4.5 million and their proprietary Homeland Security designation, industry estimates place HavenLock’s valuation between $10 Million and $14 Million.
The exact terms of the 2023 venture capital acquisition remain private, but the deal provided substantial payouts to early investors and the founding team.
Is HavenLock Still in Business?
Yes. HavenLock is highly operational and growing. Despite the rocky national television debut, the company has outlasted many of its Shark Tank peers. They operate out of their headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee, and employ a workforce heavily composed of military veterans. The business is currently backed by venture capital and operates as a prominent vendor in the school safety sector.
Where to Buy HavenLock
If you are a homeowner looking to purchase the Haven Mech or Haven Connect, the most reliable inventory is located directly on their official website. Following their pivot toward commercial security, they reduced their footprint in big-box retail stores like Lowe’s and Home Depot.
For school administrators and corporate security directors looking to install the Haven Lockdown system, purchases are handled directly through their B2B enterprise team to ensure compliance with local fire codes and network integrations.
Top HavenLock Alternatives in the Market
While HavenLock pioneered the smart-wedge design, the home security market is notoriously competitive. Based on market data, their primary competitors focus heavily on traditional deadbolt automation rather than floor-anchored barricades.
- August Smart Lock: The market leader in retrofitting existing deadbolts. August locks allow users to keep their existing keys while adding Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities.
- Lockly: Known for their biometric scanners and rotating digital keypads, Lockly provides high-end commercial and residential hardware.
- Nightlock: For consumers explicitly looking for a floor-anchored barricade without the electronic components, Nightlock offers a manual drop-in plate that physically bars the door from opening inward.
HavenLock remains unique in its specific intersection of mechanical floor-bracing combined with Bluetooth mesh networking, particularly in the educational sector where rapid, remote lockdowns are a matter of life and death.
