Yes, Bantam Bagels got a deal on Shark Tank, and for a while it was one of the show’s best exits. Elyse and Nick Oleksak, a married couple selling mini stuffed bagels from a shop in New York’s West Village, pitched in an episode that aired on January 9, 2015, and took $275,000 from Lori Greiner. The product reached Starbucks nationwide in 2016, and in October 2018 Lancaster Colony’s T. Marzetti Company bought the business for a $34 million base price plus a possible earnout. What most recaps leave out is in Lancaster Colony’s own filings. The earnout, valued at $8 million at closing, was written down to zero by March 2022, and the company “ultimately exited the Bantam business near the end of fiscal 2022,” taking about $24.8 million in restructuring and impairment charges. Bantam Bagels is no longer in business in October 2026, though Greiner’s website still describes it as sold in Starbucks and more than 16,000 stores.
The Bantam Bagels Shark Tank deal at a glance
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Episode | Season 6, Episode 13 (aired Jan. 9, 2015) |
| Pitched by | Elyse and Nick Oleksak |
| Ask | $275,000 for 11% (a $2.5 million valuation) |
| Offers | Barbara Corcoran 51%, Kevin O’Leary 50% with conditions, Lori Greiner 30% |
| Deal | $275,000 from Lori Greiner; Elyse countered at 25%. Final equity not published |
| Sale | T. Marzetti (Lancaster Colony), closed Oct. 19, 2018: $34M base plus an earnout |
| Earnout | Initial fair value $8.0M; written down to zero by March 31, 2022 |
| Status, Oct. 2026 | Closed. Lancaster Colony exited the business near the end of fiscal 2022 |
At the ask, $275,000 for 11% valued the company at $2.5 million. If the deal closed at 25%, it valued Bantam at $1.1 million. Our post-money valuation calculator does those sums.
What happened in the Tank
Food Republic’s account of the episode records the ask as $275,000 for 11%. Robert Herjavec and Mark Cuban went out (“They’re trying too many things,” Herjavec said). Barbara Corcoran offered $275,000 for 51%. Kevin O’Leary offered the same amount for 50%, on conditions: Nick had to quit his job, they had to lease a commercial kitchen, and they had to open a direct-to-consumer channel. Greiner offered $275,000 for 30%. Elyse countered at 25%, and Greiner answered, “I would if you decide right now with me.” Greiner won the deal. Entrepreneur’s 2018 account confirms the $275,000 investment; neither outlet publishes the final equity percentage.
Starbucks and the $34 million sale
The turning point was foodservice. Starbucks began selling Bantam Bagels nationwide in 2016, according to Food Dive, and Lancaster Colony’s acquisition release in October 2018 called that relationship “another positive that positions Bantam Bagels for future expansion.” The release, filed with the SEC, gives the terms: T. Marzetti acquired all the assets of Bantam Bagels, LLC on October 19, 2018, for “the base purchase price of $34 million,” plus “contingent consideration in the form of an additional earn-out payment that is tied to the future financial performance of the business.” It put Bantam’s annual net sales at about $20 million. The founders stayed on to run day-to-day operations and product development.
The earnout that paid nothing
The earnout is where the filings tell a different story from the headlines. Lancaster Colony’s annual report for fiscal 2023 says the sellers could receive an earn-out “based upon a pre-determined multiple of the defined adjusted EBITDA of Bantam for the twelve months ending December 31, 2023,” and that its initial fair value was $8.0 million. During fiscal 2022 the company cut that estimate by $3.5 million, “resulting in a zero balance at March 31, 2022.” Because the business was closed before the measurement year began, there was no EBITDA to pay a multiple on.
The same filing describes the exit:
- Restructuring and impairment charges of $24.8 million tied to “our decision to explore strategic alternatives and ultimately exit the Bantam business.”
- Impairment of $13.2 million to write off Bantam’s tradename, customer relationships and technology assets, part of that total.
- A $7.6 million impairment on Bantam’s property, plant and equipment, valued at agreed selling prices.
Lancaster Colony said it “ultimately exited the Bantam business near the end of fiscal 2022,” which for the company ended June 30, 2022. Food Republic dates the decision to May 2022 and says Starbucks had dropped the product because of pandemic pressure on its stores.
What the founders got, and what Greiner got
The base price was $34 million. Food Republic reports that Greiner’s investment “paid out about $8.5 million.” That is exactly 25% of $34 million, which suggests the figure is arithmetic on the deal terms rather than a disclosed payment; we found no source that confirms what she received. The founders have not disclosed their proceeds. The earnout, which would have added more, was worth nothing by the time it would have been measured.
Elyse Oleksak told Entrepreneur in 2024 that the sale was a response to cash pressure from growth: “We were going to die in the wake of our own success if we didn’t do something about it soon.” She also said, per that article, that by 2022 the couple had given up much of their decision-making authority and were not part of the conversations that led T. Marzetti to stop production. Entrepreneur reported that nearly 1,500 people signed a petition asking for the brand to return.
Is Bantam Bagels still in business?
No. The business was closed by its owner in 2022, and Food Republic reported in 2025 that the brand’s website was offline and its last Instagram post was from April 2022. Greiner’s own Shark Tank page, checked on October 28, 2026, still says Bantam Bagels is “sold in Starbucks nationwide and over 16,000 retail stores,” was “acquired by T. Marzetti,” and did “$40 Million in sales before the acquisition.” The first claim is out of date. In 2024 Elyse Oleksak self-published a memoir, A Shark Ate My Bagel, and Food Republic reports Nick started a construction and real estate company in Connecticut. There is no Bantam Bagels product to link.
What founders can take from it
First, an earnout is not money until it pays. Bantam’s was tied to a year that began after its new owner had shut the business down, and the buyer’s own accounts recorded it at zero. If you sell with an earnout, assume the base price is the deal. Second, selling usually means giving up control of the outcome. The founders stayed on, but the decision to close was made above them. Third, check an investor’s success list against the buyer’s filings. A company can be both a celebrated Shark Tank exit and a $24.8 million write-down. For a buyer that also closed a Shark Tank company within a few years, see Plated; for a sale that worked out differently, see Squatty Potty.
