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An entrepreneur from Manheim, Pennsylvania, hopes his chicken coop creation built by Amish craftsmen will meet all those backyard needs on an all-new episode of "Shark Tank" airing FRIDAY, JAN. 28 (8:00-9:01 p.m. EST), on ABC.
This promotional photo submitted by OverEZ Chicken Coop owner and CEO Chet Beiler shows one of the company's coops, which are sold in ready-to-assemble kits. Beiler, a Lancaster County native, recently pitched his company on the ABC television show Shark Tank, hoping one of the show's celebrity investors would help him with an expansion into the European market. The episode airs Jan. 28.
Chet Beiler votes at his precinct when the polls open. He's challenging U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker for the Republican nomination in the 11th Congressional District. Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Chet Beiler votes at his precinct when the polls open. He's challenging U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker for the Republican nomination in the 11th Congressional District. Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Chet Beiler votes at his precinct when the polls open. He's challenging U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker for the Republican nomination in the 11th Congressional District. Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Chet Beiler meets with LNP's editorial board May 7, 2018.
An entrepreneur from Manheim, Pennsylvania, hopes his chicken coop creation built by Amish craftsmen will meet all those backyard needs on an all-new episode of "Shark Tank" airing FRIDAY, JAN. 28 (8:00-9:01 p.m. EST), on ABC.
This promotional photo submitted by OverEZ Chicken Coop owner and CEO Chet Beiler shows one of the company's coops, which are sold in ready-to-assemble kits. Beiler, a Lancaster County native, recently pitched his company on the ABC television show Shark Tank, hoping one of the show's celebrity investors would help him with an expansion into the European market. The episode airs Jan. 28.
Chet Beiler votes at his precinct when the polls open. He's challenging U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker for the Republican nomination in the 11th Congressional District. Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Chet Beiler votes at his precinct when the polls open. He's challenging U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker for the Republican nomination in the 11th Congressional District. Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Chet Beiler votes at his precinct when the polls open. He's challenging U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker for the Republican nomination in the 11th Congressional District. Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Chet Beiler meets with LNP's editorial board May 7, 2018.
Chet Beiler, a Lancaster County entrepreneur who previously ran for Congress, pitched an expansion of his Gap chicken coop company to a group of celebrity investors Friday night on "Shark Tank."
Beiler, 58, of Penn Township, the last entrepreneur to be featured on the ABC competition show Friday night, received offers from two investors but let them slip away and went home empty handed.
Beiler entered the “Shark Tank” stage in black clothing, smiling, with a chicken in his arms.
"Sharks, I'm Chet Beiler from Lancaster, Pennsylvania,” he said to investors Kevin O’Leary, Daymond John, Lori Greiner, Robert Herjavec, and Mark Cuban. “My company is OverEZ Chicken Coop. And this is my pal Chuckles."
That got a chuckle from Greiner.
Beiler said he developed OverEZ Chicken Coop because America is crazy for backyard chickens right now, families want more sustainable living and self-reliance, and they love having fresh organic eggs every day.
He showcased one of his company’s coops with live feeding chickens — including Chuckles. His presentation also included an accelerated video demonstrating the coop’s assembly, and he added that his company offers them in four different sizes to can accommodate between five and 20 chickens.
"America is so cuckoo for these coops that we can hardly keep up with the demand,” Beiler said. “We're chickens running around with our heads cut off. Sorry, Chuckles."
That earned a laugh from several of the investors.
"Sharks, I need a partner so I can finally stop having all my eggs in one basket," he said in conclusion.
After Beiler finished his presentation, he offered the investors 4% of OverEZ Chicken Coops for an investment of $1 million, which drew a collective "Woah" from several investors and an outburst of laughter from Herjavec.
Beiler said his company is worth the investment because its intellectual property is locked down, its cash register is ringing, and it’s only just begun.
"We're on a path to become the category king for backyard chickens in America, and with your help maybe," said Beiler pointing to Herjavec, who is from Europe, "or anybody else who's interested, we will expand to Europe, where the interest in backyard chickens is even stronger than in the United States."
Herjavec responded, "Chet, you're one crazy chicken."
Beiler provided each investor with a golden egg with a mini brochure inside each that provided quick facts about the company.
Beiler said OverEZ Chicken Coop this week surpassed $21 million in sales over the life of the company, which prompted another collective "Woah" from several of the investors. Year-to-date as of the recording of the show, Beiler said, the company, of which he is full owner, made $9 million in sales and $1.35 million in profit.
He noted that, due to supply-chain issues, the soaring price of lumber and having been unprepared for the demand of his product during the COVID-19 pandemic, the company’s profit was less than expected. He said he came to “Shark Tank” to make more money for inventory.
Although Beiler provided his business's data, a few of the investors said he left out important details about his product and showed a lack of clarity and consistency in some of his responses to their questions.
"My fear with going into business with you is it is going to take me longer than the life span of a chicken to find out the details of your business," said Herjavec said.
Herjavec and Greiner both dropped out of the offer partly for those reasons.
Cuban dropped out of the offer, saying Beiler's talk about doing business in Europe seemed to be purposed to impress the investors but didn't seem to be projected out.
Although, O’Leary said he thought Beiler's pitch was "wandery," he made him an offer for $1 million as a loan at 11.5% interest for a 4% stake in the company.
"That's an offer,” O’Leary said. “At least you can peck on that one."
John also gave Beiler an offer to peck on: $1 million for a 25% stake in the company.
However, Beiler was still focused on gaining Herjavec as an investor, which seemed to confuse O'Leary and John.
"Chet, I asked you not to entertain him — which you're a grown man, you can do whatever you want — but you have two offers on the table, and you just keep getting distracted," John said. "I just got to say that I think that's exactly what it's going to be in business with you. I like you, but I'm out."
The deal from O'Leary was still on the table, and Beiler accepted it, saying, "We have a deal."
But Beiler quickly shifted the focus back to his aspirations for the European market and getting Herjavec to invest and be a part of it.
Frustrated, O'Leary withdrew his offer and encouraged Beiler to leave. Beiler tried to reiterate that he accepted O'Leary's offer, but by then it was too late.
"Well, it looked like I had a shark, but then he swam away," Beiler said afterward.
Beiler bought OverEZ Chicken Coop in 2020 as part of a growth strategy for his 33-year-old, Manheim-based outdoor structures business, Amish Country Gazebos.
Already, OverEZ has expanded beyond a 70,000-square-foot facility on Hostetter Road in Manheim to an additional 75,000-square-foot space in Dublin, Georgia, he said. All told, he said, the operation supports about 100 employees.
He’s expressed interest in expanding his business to include a facility in the Czech Republic to serve the European market.
OverEZ’s website markets the coops — which range in price from about $1,200 to about $3,500 — as easy to ship, assemble and move.
A former chairman of the Lancaster County Republican Committee, Beiler ran a pair of unsuccessful primary election campaigns against U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker. Earlier this month, Beiler said his political aspirations are on hold.
“For now, my focus is on business,” he said.
[Click here to learn more about Beiler and his business.]
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