Honey Bunchies: Here's What Happened After Shark Tank

Kendra Bennett's emotional pitch on the April 14 episode of Shark Tank this year was Top Gun-themed, in honor of her father, Ed Payne, a F-4 Phantom fighter pilot during the Vietnam War. The roots of the energy bar date back to the veteran's need for a more nutritional snack after too much candy and soda caused him to become hyperglycemic. Ed's wife, Jennifer, who he nicknamed Honey Bunchies, came up with the original recipe, but Ed recreated it to start the business in 2010. The bars are a gluten-free, dairy-free, and allergy-free product made of 42% honey.

Kendra wore her father's old fighter pilot jacket to pitch the product, giving the Sharks — Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, Daymond John, Barbara Corcoran, and Kevin O'Leary — tasty samples, as well as the lowdown on the family-owned company's finances. Honey Bunchies had already garnered $300,000 in sales in 2023 and was projecting more than half a million dollars by the end of the year. The really interesting aspect of the pitch was a multi-million dollar forecast for 2024 based on retail opportunities at 7-Eleven stores, although the exact number of stores had yet to be determined.

Kendra Bennett was seeking $200,000 for 10% of the Longmont, Colorado-based company, but faced a tough audience in the Sharks, who seemed put off by the $22,000 projected profit on $519,000 in forecasted sales for 2023, and skeptical of Honey Bunchies' two to four million dollars in estimated sales for 2024. The Sharks also seemed skeptical about the 7-Eleven deal since being approved for in-store sales is not the same as having one's products sold in thousands of individual stores.

Not surprisingly, all five Sharks passed on a potential deal. It wasn't just the numbers that scared them off; it was also, according to Mark Cuban, the fierce competitiveness in the energy and nutritional bar categories. Even the company's profit margin per bar — each bar costs 81 cents to produce, and sells for $2.99 — was not enough to convince the Sharks that this was not a deal any of them wanted to make.

It was not what Bennett wanted to hear. At one point, she even asked Kevin O'Leary to make her an offer. He declined. Barbara Corcoran, meanwhile, cautioned that the entrepreneur was being overly optimistic and that expecting over two million in sales during the following year was likely not realistic.

The Sharks may not have responded favorably to the veteran and woman-owned company, but viewers sure did. The Honey Bunchies website was flooded with activity — nearly 10,000 visitors — and orders for the snack bars spiked as a consequence, The Denver Post reported.

That's not why the Sharks may regret their decision, however. Rather, it's the company's rapidly growing portfolio of retail outlets for its honey and coconut-almond or peanut-pecan-filled bars. The Denver Post noted that Honey Bunchies are now sold in over 1,200 outlets, including chains such as Whole Foods and 7-Eleven. Since the show aired, Kroger has also started selling the company's products.

That deal was announced in June, two months after the Sharks passed, and assured that the honey-based bars would be sold by the supermarket giant in at least 20 U.S. states. According to NOSH, the Kroger deal was helped by the success of the products at King Soopers, a regional supermarket chain owned by Kroger that has sold Honey Bunchies bars since 2016.

Honey Bunchies is not only still in business, it's thriving. However, it isn't called Honey Bunchies anymore. The company has rebranded as Bon Bee Honey. The name change was actually announced before the "Shark Tank" episode even aired. On April 9, Bon Bee Honey shared the new moniker via Facebook, with its owners explaining that "we wanted to make sure that we had a trademark that would grow with us."

Likely, the name change was made for sales purposes and perhaps was even suggested by one of the company's growing list of retail partners. In any case, the name change happened as the company's profile and sales outlets were rapidly expanding. In retrospect, the Sharks may have been right to question the potential of the 7-Eleven deal. At present, Bon Bee Honey bars are available at less than a dozen 7-Eleven stores in the greater Dallas, Texas, area.

But like the trial run at King Soopers stores that ultimately led to a deal with parent company Kroger, the Dallas outlets are a trial run that could lead to greater exposure at up to 1,000 7-Eleven stores nationwide, the Denver Business Journal reports. It all depends on how well the honey-flavored snack bars sell.

Bon Bee Honey has come a long way in the past few years, progressing from door-to-door sales in the Colorado area to retail partnerships with major supermarket and convenience store outlets like Whole Foods, Kroger, and 7-Eleven. The family behind the business may have been disappointed by the response of Sharks during the recently aired episode on which now Chief Marketing Officer Kendra Bennett pitched the company's business potential, but the Sharks have been wrong before. Vastly increased revenue could soon be a reality for Bon Bee Honey if additional 7-Eleven and Kroger stores welcome its products, and the Shark Tank appearance has already boosted online sales. 

The company is taking proactive steps to increase its profile on social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, and is continuing to promote online sales with subscriptions and "hero discounts," which give preferential pricing to those like Ed Payne, who served in our nation's military. Teachers and first responders are also eligible. Based on customer reviews — 99% of which on the site are five stars — the honey bars have found an eager audience.

"It's unfortunate we didn't get a deal on 'Shark Tank,' but I'm a very firm believer that everything happens the way it's supposed to," Bennett reflected via the Denver Business Journal. "We still own 100% of our company, and it was really cool having the opportunity to present to the Sharks. The experience was amazing."

In 2024, the brand continued to branch out and celebrated its availability in Sprouts Farmers Market locations and other local grocers.