Erica Cohen and Lori Barbera were just your typical New York girls before their culinary business venture took off. Erica was a restaurateur, and Lori worked as an event planner. However, Erica had a head-start in the field, working directly as a founding partner of the first-ever The ONE Group’s many restaurants. That is where Erica’s love for food stemmed from.
So like any food connoisseur, she decided how she has been on the lookout for the quintessential, most perfect cheeseburger ever since she was a little girl. Having accomplished so much in her career, she was more than capable of creating her own flawless burger just the way she likes it.
This was the moment the idea of Baby’s Badass Burgers was born. However, at that time, Erica would have never thought that so many others would love her creation that she would become a country-wide sensation in months. Therefore, this presented a situation where she needed a more focused leadership and management personnel.
Throughout being on the lookout, she came across Lori. Being a celebrated event planner, she turned out to be the perfect fit for the role Erica wanted to fill. She offered Lori to join, and the duo has been inseparable ever since. While Erica manages daily operations, quality control, staffing, and franchise management, Lori is all things buzz from marketing to sales.
Baby’s Badass Burgers were doing fantastic in only a few years’ time. However, there’s only so much the girls could have pulled off on their own. So they decided to generate new ideas and seek funding elsewhere. That’s when they turned to Shark Tank. Their bright pink burger truck, along with the personality and charisma of the girls, not to forget the tasty burger was great.
They made their way to Shark Tank, showcasing how their gourmet burgers were capitalizing on the LA food truck scene and successfully selling delicious burgers using babes to attract the masses to go with the name and personality of their brand. They brought a proposal of $250,000 in exchange for a 30% stake of their business for the Shark Tank judges.
They continued how they were thinking of expansion and multiplying toward a brick-and-mortar store for dine-in experiences. With their total sales of three years going over $850,000 is when the judges rang their ears. However, the ladies didn’t have it for the judges suggesting the burger trucks were indeed the money-makers in this business model.
The New Yorker babe duo was adamant about shifting to a restaurant store, and all of the judges didn’t see how it was in their favor. They all were unanimous that a restaurant store would cost more money than they anticipated and is altogether a risk. In fact, Barbara Corcoran said that the girl was trying to get away from the hands-on model and was too desperate to do so.
In the end, negotiating or counter deals didn’t even come down. All of the judges bailed, and the girls left with no deal. However, despite the deal failing at Shark Tank, Erica and Lori didn’t give up and used the Shark Tank exposure to their advantage. They grew to include six more burger trucks to the Baby’s Badass Burgers name and spread across the country.
They also leveraged publicity from another reality TV show and went from catering only to LA to Houston, San Diego, Orange County, San Bernardino, and Ventura. As of March 2022, their annual revenue snatches a whopping $5 million, and the business has been growing and expanding ever since. You can read more about it on their website, Baby’s Badass Burgers.
Our Review of Baby’s Badass Burgers
Premium, cheesy, and not any of your next-door burger joints – Baby’s Badass Burgers are truly one of a kind. It doesn’t matter if it is the taste, personality of the brand, the brand owners, or the bright pink food truck that instantly uplifts your mood by the mere sight of it. We were fortunate to get the full LA burger truck experience by trying Baby’s Badass Burgers. We tried the Simply Original Beauty, the longest-running and the first burger they had when they first started Baby’s Badass Burgers. And it is safe to say that you are definitely missing out if you aren’t trying their gourmet burgers.
Pros of Baby’s Badass Burgers
- High-quality, gourmet burgers.
- They are sold through bright ink burger trucks across the country.
- Hot babes are hired as sellers to re-invent the brand’s personality.
- They are owned by culinary geniuses.
- A variety of options on the menu to suit all palates.
- Have vegan and vegetarian options too.
Cons of Baby’s Badass Burgers
- Their Houston food truck shut down.
- Many people may not like their vegan and vegetarian options for the lack of protein or imitation meat. They are simply selling buns, salad, and sauce.
Who Is Baby’s Badass Burgers For?
Baby’s Badass Burgers are primarily targeted toward burger lovers. They are meant for people who eat meat and like to explore new ways of having their burgers and don’t mind hot girls selling them. Baby’s Badass Burgers might have an all-pink personality, but it really doesn’t target only women. It welcomes almost anyone who is willing to try its burgers.
Are There Any Alternatives?
Grillaholics Stuffed Burger Press
Naturally, there are plenty of alternatives for their gourmet burgers. In fact, who says you only have to eat out to enjoy a quintessential gourmet burger? You can very much make some at home. All you need are the patty grill slate or stuffed presser, and you’re all set to make your own cheeseburger home.
Our Final Thoughts
Shark Tank might have been a low blow to the New York entrepreneurs, but nothing that killed their spirits to grow and expand their business. Today, their burgers retail country-wide, with people coming in from all places almost daily. Some come for taste, others try it the first time and get hooked, and overall there is no doubt that Baby’s Badass Burgers would never see bad days anytime in the future.
