Mr. Wonderful may have started as some gentle ribbing from fellow shark Barbara Corcoran, but Kevin O’Leary has wholeheartedly embraced the nickname. He even named his holding company, through which he manages all of his “Shark Tank” investments, Something Wonderful.
For O’Leary, Mr. Wonderful is an exercise in personal branding, and he has infused it with a certain amount of lore. “The reason they call me Mr. Wonderful is because I have the most creativity in structuring deals,” O’Leary told Forbes, conveniently leaving out the anecdote about Corcoran. He then went in for the kill, embracing his status as the big bad shark. “The other sharks are very boring. It’s the same thing over and over again: $100,000 for 10% equity. How boring! And how uncreative! That’s why they learn from me. They’re very lucky up there.”
Still, it’s clear that Mr. Wonderful is mostly a marketing facade or fewer “Shark Tank” contestants would be willing to make a deal with him. When Wicked Good Cupcakes founders Tracey Noonan and Danielle Desroches teamed up with O’Leary, they were worried about his reputation. Behind the scenes, however, they called him “an angel in disguise” as well as “a tremendous mentor” while speaking to Business Insider. Insofar as business partners go, it sounds pretty wonderful.
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