Kevin Hart makes deals on ‘Shark Tank’: ‘Closing that big financial gap between my culture and mainstream America’
Kevin Hart is officially a shark — temporarily, at least.
The True Story actor appeared on ABC’s Shark Tank on Friday, Jan. 7 to fill in for Daymond John and Robert Herjavec. On the show, he jokingly sparred with entrepreneur Kevin O’Leary, who called the Jumanji star a “rookie” in the shark tank. Hart quipped back, “The beauty in business is knowledge. What you need to gain is knowledge based off of those who have opened doors for you. Kevin has opened amazing doors. But guess what? You get older. And as you get older, you start to slip up here and there. And what is my job? My job is to pick up here.”
Hart, who explained that he launched his own company HartBeat Productions so he would no longer just be a “work for hire” as a comedian and actor, has recently created HartBeat Ventures, which he said on the show is “all about financial inclusion.” The company has thus far invested with Fabletics, Beyond Meat, Therabody, Liquid IV, and more. The Philadelphia native’s goal is to help build wealth in the same kinds of communities in which he was raised.
“As HartBeat Ventures grows, you’ll see a real initiative in closing that big financial gap between my culture and mainstream America,” Hart shared. “My success will ultimately help close the gap.”
One of the items that Hart was enthused by? Snactiv, a chopstick-like device for not getting your hands dirty when you are eating.
“I think this is an amazing product, I love the idea, and the fun behind it,” Hart shared on the show. “As a personality, I think that the idea behind marketing behind this product — that’s what I do really well.”
Hart teamed up with fellow shark Lori Greiner to invest a combined $200,000 in the product, with a shared 20% of equity.
Later in the episode, he teamed with Mark Cuban to invest in the entertainment company Black Sands, which seeks to shine a spotlight on Black history.
