Orland couple head to ‘Shark Tank;’ cannabis shops change hands
Couple makes pitch on ‘Shark Tank’
Patty and Andy Watne, an Orland Park couple who invented a shower gadget to keep hair from going down the drain, will make an appearance Friday night on ABC’s “Shark Tank” reality show.
“We call it the HairyGrabster,” said Patty Watne. “I knew right away it was a ‘Shark Tank’ gadget.”
The device suctions to the wall and when someone, particularly with longer hair, washes their hair, they swipe their hands over the gadget and it has bristles that snag the hair off the hand and holds it until it can be thrown away.
“We wanted something to keep the walls cleaner and to keep hair from going down the drain,” Patty Watne said.
So the Watnes went to work.
The process had some ups and downs, but eventually, they found a company in China that could make it exactly like they wanted.
They mostly sell it online, but the gadget has started being offered at local salons.
“I had started taking samples to salons when the world shut down,” she said.
Despite that, business has started to take off.
“We have sold a few thousand,” Watne said. The gadget retails for $9.95 and they offer free shipping.
“If it’s local, I’ll just drop it off,” she said. She said “Shark Tank” normally holds casting calls for inventors to make their pitch, but with the pandemic they started taking applications online.
“I filled out an application in April 2020,” she said. The show called and they filmed their appearance last fall in Las Vegas.
She said she can’t reveal any details until after the show airs, but did offer some of their preparation for their pitch.
“I did a lot of research on the sharks,” she said. “I wanted to make sure it was relatable to them.”
She said that instead of handing the HairyGrabster to the show’s judges, they were already in front of them when the pitch started, thus avoiding any need for close contact.
“The pitch is scripted,” she said. “But then the Q&A starts.”
Their episode will air at 7 p.m. Friday night on ABC.
Curaleaf takes over 2 Windy City Cannabis shops
Massachusetts-based Curaleaf will assume ownership of two south suburban Windy City Cannabis locations next week as part of its $830 million acquisition of Chicago-based Grassroots last summer.
Windy City Cannabis dispensaries in Justice and Worth will have a new name starting April 1 now that the deal has been approved by state regulators. Curaleaf also is taking possession of a Windy City shop in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.
Curaleaf plans to open a 10th location later this year in Westmont, which would be its final Illinois shop. That move is pending state approval.
Windy City will retain ownership of its cannabis shops in Posen and Homewood along with a shop in Litchfield. The company plans to open three new shops this year, in Highwood, Carpentersville and Macomb.
Windy City opened its south suburban locations after medical cannabis shops were allowed to open in Illinois in 2016.
Maribis of Chicago, a company owned by Summit lawyer Laurel Dineff, operates a dispensary on Archer Avenue in Chicago. It also operates a cultivation center called Bedford Grow in Bedford Park.
Ascend Wellness Holdings, which acquired Midway Dispensary at 5648 S. Archer Ave. near Midway Airport in December, will open its second local location in the former Pier 1 store at 9820 S. Ridgeland Ave. in Chicago Ridge.
Chicago Ridge Mayor Chuck Tokar said the dispensary is set to open by the end of March.
Recreational sales of cannabis became legal at the beginning of 2020 and all local dispensaries now sell both medical and recreational versions of cannabis.
Middle Eastern restaurant closes
Simple Taste, a Middle Eastern restaurant at 12246 S. Harlem Ave. in Palos Heights, closed recently. No reason for the closing was given.