What happened when Famous Amos went on ‘Shark Tank?’

Wally Amos, the man behind the cookie brand Famous Amos, started selling his cookies in Los Angeles in the 1970s. His business was a huge success, and his sales reached a million dollars by the second year of operations. By the ‘80s, however, sales dwindled and a financially-struggling Amos was left with no choice but to sell his business.

Shawn Amos, Wally’s son, said that his father wasn’t a savvy businessman. “He was an amazing marketer and had great promotional instincts. But he made a lot of bad decisions,” Shawn shared. Amos may have lost the brand that he built, but he still loved baking cookies. In 2016 at 80 years old, Amos went on Shark Tank to pitch his new cookie venture to the sharks in hopes of getting an investment.

Wally Amos’ Cookie Kahuna

Amos appeared on season 8, episode 3 of Shark Tank where he faced potential investors Barbara Corcoran, Lori Greiner, Mark Cuban, Robert Herjavec, and Kevin O’Leary. Upon his entrance, the sharks immediately recognized the Famous Amos founder. Amos asked the investors for $50,000 in exchange for 20% equity in his business, the Cookie Kahuna.

The sharks tasted samples of the Cookie Kahuna, and everyone agreed that the product tasted good. When Amos formally introduced himself as the founder of Famous Amos, Cuban called him a “legend.” As investors, though, the five sharks wanted to know what happened to Amos and his famous cookies. Admittedly, Amos said that he wasn’t a good businessman and didn’t focus on how much money he made. Instead, he just wanted to make his cookies and, in his words, “have a good time.” Eventually, he had to sell percentages of his business until he was left with no equity. 

Amos started the Cookie Kahuna more than a year before he appeared in Shark Tank, and he had the products in Costco stores in Hawaii, where he lived. Having his products sold in retail stores was a success in itself, but his profit margins were “bad” as the sharks pointed out. Taking into consideration all the expenses, Herjavec noted that Amos’ profit was less than 20%, which isn’t ideal in the food industry. When asked why he went back to selling cookies after losing Famous Amos, Amos answered that he “loves cookies” and believed that he could make Cookie Kahuna as successful as Famous Amos.

O’Leary opted out, as he said Amos faced big challenges and the business wasn’t investable. Greiner opted out as well. Herjavec was the third to say he wasn’t investing because of the high production cost and low profit margin. Corcoran also passed on the opportunity but “with great respect.” Lastly, Cuban said he learned a lot about business from Famous Amos — both the good and the bad — but he was already in the cookie business and it would be a conflict of interest to invest in Cookie Kahuna. Amos took the sharks’ rejections with grace and exited with a smile on his face.

What happened to Cookie Kahuna after Shark Tank?

Despite leaving Shark Tank without a deal, Amos said in an interview with Business2Community that his appearance on the show boosted sales, and he got what he wanted from the experience. “I needed exposure more than money to create awareness, which would create more sales,” he stated.

Unfortunately, Amos’ business went south a couple of years after Shark Tank because of a “not-so-good business arrangement.” In 2018, the Famous Amos founder started another cookie business in Charlotte, which he swore was his last cookie company. Amos died of complications related to dementia in August 2024 at 88 years old.