The challenges of teaching don't end with education. One of the lesser-talked-about aspects of this occupation is the considerable degree of organization and communication that comes with keeping track of the daily operations and student activities, all while keeping parents up-to-date on what's going on. Noticing a lapse in this system, entrepreneur Dave Vasen developed the innovative management platform BrightWheel, which managed to find itself on the hit reality series "Shark Tank."
Brightwheel
allows educators to efficiently tackle various day-to-day tasks, from managing curriculum and tracking attendance to communicating with parents and billing. Vasen came up with the idea soon after his own daughter entered preschool. Noticing how lackluster these institutions were at handling such business operations, Vasen employed his expertise from working on education initiatives at companies such as Cisco and Amazon to find a streamlined, one-way solution.
His notable know-how eventually landed him on "Shark Tank" Season 7, where similarly innovative companies such as the drone manufacturer xCraft and fitness app Sworkit were also featured. Vasen's pitch made a meaningful impression on the Sharks, who admired both the business itself and the work Vasen had put into growing the company. He walked away with a deal from two of the show's most reputable tech-centric investors, but not without some typical "Shark Tank" drama leading up to it.
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What Happened To Brightwheel On Shark Tank?
On top of Brightwheel being a less traditional company with little to compare to, Vasen also came seeking a gargantuan investment of $400,000 for 4% of his business. Nevertheless, the intrepid entrepreneur powered through, determined to prove that his idea had merit. The app and service at this point were available at no charge, although plans were being put in place to release a premium version to be paid for by school administrators. Prices would range from $40 to $200 a month, depending on the size of the institution and its staff.
The plan didn't seem too far-fetched, as Vasen informed the Sharks how the company grew from 10 schools using its services at its pilot launch in 2014 to 2,500 schools nationwide at the time of airing. The team had gone through a seed round of $2.2 million at an $8.2 million valuation. Vasen believed that having a Shark on board would elevate his company's value as they continued to scale, with projections of up to $20 million in the next three years.
The Sharks, many of whom agreed with Vasen's viewpoint, saw the potential Brightwheel brought to the table. Chris Sacca offered the most tantalizing offer, proposing $400,000 at 4.85%. Vasen agreed but asked if he'd be interested in teaming up with another Shark. Sacca didn't see the point before Mark Cuban argued that he didn't need to be convinced of his worth and that Sacca's name didn't hold much weight outside of Silicon Valley. Eventually, the two Sharks agreed to Vasen's counteroffer of giving $300,000 each for 6.67%.
Brightwheel After Shark Tank
Striking a deal with two titanic Sharks like Mark Cuban and Chris Sacca is no easy feat, proving that Brightwheel had plenty of potential. With its newfound resources and team members at hand, this potential was about to be realized. Brightwheel's "Shark Tank" debut occurred on April 29, 2016, appearing on the same episode as the fashion-centric social media platform FashionTap.
In the immediate aftermath, founder Dave Vasen shared with MarketBrief that the team had received widespread positive reception from viewers and schools alike. He also didn't hesitate to champion the efforts of his newfound investors, stating, "Mark is often the first investor to respond to my emails. Chris spent a couple of hours with us. They've both been really actively involved, and they're both passionate about what we're building." Later that year, Brightwheel acquired online childcare engagement tool MyChild for an undisclosed amount. Early 2017 would see Brightwheel close a $10 million Seed A funding round headed by GGV Capital that aided in team expansion and product development.
In 2018, the company appeared on a Season 9 "Shark Tank" update segment. In it, Vasen, Cuban, and Sacca struck a multi-million three-year deal with world-famous childcare provider Learning Care Group to use its technology across multiple locations. The newfound resources and success helped Brightwheel expand to over 25,000 global locations and reach $2 million in sales within months of launching its premium app.
Is Brightwheel Still In Business?
Brightwheel continues to operate and is recognized as a leading childcare management platform. Its services are available to preschools, daycares, in-home child care, Montessori schools, and even government programs. Users can sign up through the company's website, with options for admins, staff members, and parents to join. After filling out the needed information about yourself and classroom situation, Brightwheel will send over more specific information about pricing.
Once signed up, users can access the program on their desktop and mobile device through the accompanying Brightwheel app available on the iOS App and Google Play Store. There are too many features to list that are worth taking advantage of, ranging from daily logging of activities and classroom assignments to lesson planning and health checks. Parents can also keep up with their child's activities and overall progress by following their class on the app, where teachers can post pictures and photos.
Brightwheel has received largely positive reviews over the years. On the iOS App Store alone, it holds a near-perfect 4.9 out of 5-star rating average based on nearly 100,000 reviews. While some have expressed difficulty in making time to record class activities during especially hectic days, most have greatly appreciated the efficiency of its organization and communication capabilities.
What's Next For Brightwheeel?
It's easy to see why Chris Sacca and Mark Cuban saw such potential in Brightwheel. The company itself tackles a universal problem for early educators while also giving parents peace of mind, allowing the product to have a wide appeal. This, alongside its lack of major competitors when compared to other fields, has allowed Brightwheel to dominate its market and allow for room to expand upon its approach and philosophies.
Founder Dave Vasen has always touted his company as a feedback-first operation, where the concerns of educators are given utmost priority when deciding where to move forward. Diving deeper into this mindset at a 2023 Stanford event, Vasen said, "So coming in I think there are really different approaches ... when you look at education companies, there are a lot of folks that come and say, 'look we know better, we know how to solve your problems.' We took a very different approach, which is what are your pain points, what are the most challenging things? ... and how do we solve that?"
Keeping true to this ideology, Brightwheel has continued to release a "back-to-school roadmap" towards the start of every school year, detailing the company's next steps to improving and enhancing its services. Among its newest additions for 2025 are tuition agreements, easier form downloading and customization options, and even Spanish literacy curriculum kits, with additional features such as late fee automations and smoother staff engagement tracking tools slated to come soon.
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