You might have seen the Mella Pet Care thermometer at the Digital Animal Summit, the VMX Pet Pitch Competition or the VetPartners midyear meeting. More recently, you had a chance to see Mella co-founder Ben Seidman on TV’s “Shark Tank,” where he and his two colleagues agreed to sell a small piece of the company to investor Mark Cuban.
The show was a coming-of-age moment for a 5-year-old company whose flagship product, a smart thermometer that comes in veterinary and pet owner versions, nearly sold out in the weeks after the episode’s airing.
Seidman, co-founder Anya Babbitt and chief of staff Daniella Morgan-Pascualvaca cast Mella into the tank last summer, induced a bite from Cuban ($250,000 for a 6% stake), and spent the pre-broadcast period running the company and closing the deal. (The final terms were not disclosed.)
For young companies, national exposure is an instant win. The experience is even better when they achieve buy-in from a big-name investor like Cuban.
“When the opportunity was presented to us, we said, ‘This is a great way to get in front of millions of people and introduce our products,’” Seidman said. “We always wanted to surround ourselves with the most amazing advisers and investors. They can help you leapfrog a lot of mistakes you’re going to make.”
With a partner in Cuban, Mella is pitching to veterinarians the PIMS-integrated Mella Pro thermometer for $159 and a $349 scale designed to calculate a patient’s weight, body fat percentage and body condition score. Pet owners can choose from the $59 Mella Home thermometer and $149 scale (body fat mat not included). On the horizon are other data-emitting products: a pulse oximeter, a smart bowl scale and a universal microchip reader.
“Our big goal is to have these devices in the home,” Seidman said. “We want to get the data that’s captured in the home into the hands of the vet.”
Seidman is happy to have Cuban and the billionaire’s team in his side pocket.
“Mark sees where the future is going, not only in the veterinary space but the human space as well,” Mella’s co-founder said. “Mark is super responsive to emails in five minutes or less. He always finishes his emails by saying, ‘Ask me any questions.’”