Copyright Parade
Kevin O’Leary, Shark Tank star and venture capitalist, knows that in the 17 seasons of the hit ABC reality series, he has garnered a reputation for being more tough than tender, despite his “Mr. Wonderful” moniker. Impeccably dressed in a designer suit and sporting a high-end watch on each wrist, O’Leary says that his blunt demeanor on the five-time Emmy Award-winning reality series is a result of early life lessons from his late mom, Georgette. “I prefer to tell the truth; it’s so much easier that way,” O’Leary explained to Parade. “My mother told me early on, ‘If you always tell the truth, you will never have to remember what you said,’ and so I carried that forward.” 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade’s Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 Among his prosperous business investments are Snarky Tea and Basepaws. Known for his negotiation skills and varied interests, including wine, high-end watches, and travel, on Shark Tank, O’Leary has invested in everything from tech startups to family products. “Not everybody likes my approach, and I don’t care. It’s important in business to explain that it’s just my opinion, but if I think it’s a loser, I am going to tell you why. I am not going to invest in it if I think it’s a dog, so come back with something else,” O’Leary said. This advice was shared during the first-ever Clover x Shark Tank Summit in Las Vegas, where he was joined by Mark Cuban, Barbara Corcoran, Daymond John, Robert Herjavec, Daniel Lubetzky and several guest Sharks, as well as the owners of several Shark Tank companies. Related: Meet the New Generation of ‘Shark Tank’ Sharks — And Find Out What They Learned from Mark Cuban (Exclusive) “The whole thing is, when I see entrepreneurs three years into a deal and it’s not working, I say, ‘Not only are you wasting your valuable resource of money, you’re wasting your time.’ It is clear to me that you only have so many years, so why are you doing this stupid thing? It’s begging to be taken behind the barn and shot.” He strongly believes that entrepreneurs pitching to The Sharks need to understand that “the universe is giving you messages, it’s slapping you and you’re not listening.” He hopes that they will take his well-intentioned reality check. “You just have to deal with it, and if you can’t deal with it, you don’t understand the entrepreneurial journey. You have to accept failure and measure it and understand what you did wrong or why it didn’t work, and then get on with something else.” One surprise that onlookers have when looking at O’Leary’s investments is how “eclectic” his portfolio is, including paying $12.9 million with two other partners for a basketball trading card, considered to be the most expensive sports card ever purchased. He also invests in and wears high-end watches, in the same way he buys a work of art created by Andy Warhol. “I think it surprised a lot of investors, and then I went and bought even more of them. So, it’s something I’m getting into now, it’s called a hobby.” In keeping with his appreciation for watches, O’Leary had 24 watches made for all of the founders of the pilot shoot. They were inscribed on the back, “One idea can change your life forever,” which he believes is the essence of Shark Tank. Related: Barbara Corcoran Reveals How Her Mom Helped Her Face Husband’s ‘Extremely Difficult’ Alzheimer’s Battle (Exclusive) “It’s that platform where you can take that journey on, and use the advantage of having hundreds of millions of people see you in syndication and have very low customer acquisition costs, and tell your story. It’s a platform of storytelling, that’s what I’ve realized, and I’m proud to be part of this big family that makes it happen.” Sharing his business and investment advice at a national conference like the Clover x Shark Tank Summit is something near and dear to O’Leary’s heart. “I am proud of what we have built after 17 years of the Shark Tank journey. We have an iconic global platform that celebrates the American dream, and the series is on TV in over 50 countries,” he said. “So, wherever I go in the world today, I’ve learned that our number one export in America is not technology or energy, it’s the American dream and creating jobs. I’m an ambassador for that, and wherever I go, I understand that people want and pursue that dream everywhere in the world.” An avid philanthropist, O’Leary said he changed his approach and treats his good works as an investment. The strategy he calls “five for five” is that he and his wife pick five causes – medicine, education, and the arts – and get involved. “We want to do this in a meaningful way, so we can understand the impact our gift is giving. After five years, we review this and, sometimes, with one of them, we will stay for another five years, depending on what they achieved and whether we feel good about it or not. It’s the way I do it now, I ask for results, I say, ‘Okay, we gave you this money, what did you do with it?’ which I think is a reasonable request.’ ” Related: Robert Herjavec Shares How His Mom Inspired His Life-Changing ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Journey (Exclusive) When he is not making investment deals on Shark Tank or working as a diligent entrepreneur, O’Leary can often be found in the kitchen or traveling to Paris, his favorite travel destination. Once there, he frequently creates French delicacies. “I make a fantastic crème brûlée, a scrumptious omelet, and my escargot is the best in the world. I have a major persona on QVC as Chef Wonderful. I do videos with cakes, cheeses, and chocolates. I go around the world finding all kinds of interesting things to bring back to QVC.” His most recent endeavor is a series called Chocolates of the World, which involves gathering unique chocolates and putting them in one basket, something that he wholeheartedly enjoys. While many children and adults grapple with dyslexia (like O’Leary) or other learning disabilities, O’Leary does not believe it should stop them. “I’ve always said to people with dyslexia that it shouldn’t hold you back. The guy who started JetBlue Airlines had a vicious case of dyslexia. I believe that dyslexia should be treated as a superpower because it forces you to get very focused on the things you can do well, and maybe it’s reading and math that you get stuck on. It may help you focus in ways that others can’t.” He believes that everyone has a “weakness” and instead of allowing it to hold you back, you have to learn to compensate. People with ADD and all kinds of other issues can use it to make them strong. I have certainly seen this within successful entrepreneurs. I think that’s the nature of life, you just have to deal with it, and don’t let it set you back, and I believe that good things will happen.” When asked what the entrepreneurship journey has been like, he responds, “It’s not a destination, it’s a journey, and it very often ends in heartbreak. It’s hard; not all of our deals work, that’s just the nature of venture capital. It’s very hard to tell someone that their deal’s going to die, and they do die.” He adds that “investment deals come and go, but every once and a while, on Shark Tank, we create huge businesses and thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions in sales. It’s a wonderful experience to be part of something like that and show that one good idea can change your life forever. That’s how it works.” Shark Tank airs Wednesdays on ABC at 10 p.m. ET/9 c and streams the next day on Hulu. Previous seasons stream on ABC and Hulu.
