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Proving she’s anything but wet behind the ears, Cassidy Crowley jumps into entrepreneurial waters with her invention The Baby Toon, which made its debut on the ABC show Shark Tank. <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n It’s not every day that inventors receive substantial financial backing to bring their projects to life. For a lucky handful, however, reality television has made it possible to obtain monetary support and business expertise from industry titans.<\/p>\n One such entrepreneur is 12-year-old Cassidy Crowley, who debuted her The Baby Toon invention on season 11 of ABC’s Shark Tank<\/em>. Back in September 2019, Cassidy struck a momentous deal with investor Lori Greiner, but The Baby Toon journey actually started way before that.<\/p>\n The Baby Toon inventor Cassidy Crowley (front left) gets support from her family: mom Lori, dad Will, and sisters Emily and Lei. PHOTO COURTESY LORI CROWLEY <\/strong> Like all great inventions, the best ideas come from addressing a pertinent problem. For Cassidy, that came when she was a first-grader at ‘\u0100ina Haina Elementary School entering the local district science fair. With the goal of finding and addressing an issue, a then-7-year-old Cassidy looked around her home for a problem waiting to be solved, and finally discovered one in an everyday activity for her family: feeding younger sister Emily.<\/p>\n \u201cShe would always play with her spoon, and my mom (Lori) was scared she might accidentally poke or stab her throat,\u201d Cassidy recalls.<\/p>\n Thus sparked her journey to create a baby-friendly feeder that eliminated the long, sharp design of a traditional spoon.<\/p>\n Cassidy Crowley got to sit in Shark Tank<\/em> judge Kevin O’Leary’s chair when she auditioned for the show. PHOTO COURTESY AMERICAN BROADCASTING COMPANIES INC. <\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n To say The Baby Toon was a hit would be an understatement. Teachers and judges lauded the concept, encouraging her to move forward with it. With help from Collin Kobayashi of 3D Innovations, Cassidy was able to bring her science fair prototype to life and The Baby Toon was born. The product features soft FDA-grade silicone and is perfect for feedings and teething. Cassidy’s initial innovative \u2014 and adorable \u2014 elephant design makes for easy holding and the short neck prevents the entire spoon from contacting the back of a baby’s throat.<\/p>\n \u201cSiblings can also lend a hand,\u201d she adds. \u201cThe Baby Toon is an excellent way for older siblings to feed their younger siblings, or even a good way for babies to start using a spoon at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n Cassidy works on The Baby Toon prototype. PHOTO COURTESY LORI CROWLEY <\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n Products and patent in hand, Cassidy auditioned for Shark Tank<\/em> in January 2019, and is one of the youngest in the show’s history to present her idea to business moguls who then choose to invest (or not) in budding entrepreneurial projects.<\/p>\n The show is called Shark Tank<\/em> for a reason, as the apprehension, fear and anxiety is palpable on the faces of adults who pitch their ideas to the likes of Greiner, Mark Cuban, Kevin O’Leary, Robert Herjavec and guest shark Daniel Lubetzky.<\/p>\n Samples of The Baby Toon<\/p><\/div>\n For the young entrepreneur, though, the experience was wonderful. \u201cI thought it was crazy I was going to walk through the double doors that so many successful people have gone through before,\u201d she recalls. \u201cOnce I was in the tank, I did my pitch, and I was just honest with them about who I was and how passionate I was about The Baby Toon.\u201d<\/p>\n That’s not to say she wasn’t nervous, though. After her presentation, the sharks started bowing out one by one, but not because of lack of belief or Cassidy’s business acumen. In fact, when the youngster was explaining her patented product’s durometer, the sharks shared puzzled looks.<\/p>\n \u201cYou had to change what?\u201d Cuban mused.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat’s a durometer?\u201d<\/p>\n Herjavec followed up.<\/p>\n On national television, Cassidy proved she knew her stuff. The Baby Toon’s design features a lower durometer of silicone, which makes it more flexible and easier on a baby’s gums.<\/p>\n In the end, Lubetzky, who was beyond impressed, didn’t feel he could help Cassidy in the baby product realm, an industry he has no experience in. O’Leary noted he didn’t feel she was ready to quit elementary school to take The Baby Toon full time and politely declined. Not one to let anything dampen her sunny personality, Cassidy simply replied, \u201cI can go straight to college,\u201d which prompted a round of laughter from the sharks.<\/p>\n Greiner, however, saw the potential and growth The Baby Toon could achieve and offered Cassidy exactly what she asked for: $50,000 for a 50 percent stake in the company.<\/p>\n \u201cI have to be along with this journey,\u201d stated the Queen of QVC.<\/p>\n Thanks to Greiner, who helped Cassidy land a licensing deal with the Munchkin brand, The Baby Toon is now in over 4,000 retail stores and grew to include two more designs (an alligator and koala have joined the elephant’s \u2018ohana).<\/p>\n Cassidy remains a kid at heart and recently started her Christmas break from school. She plans on enjoying every minute of it in the ocean.<\/p>\n \u201cI love surfing,\u201d she shares, noting a couple of her favorite spots are at Ala Moana Courts and Kawaiku\u2018i Beach Park.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/hawaii.carpentermediagroup.com\/midweekhawaii\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/img_5498.jpg\")
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