Rollin Greens: Here's What Happened After Appearing On Shark Tank

Ryan "Chef Ko" and Lindsey Cunningham bonded over food when they first met and, by all accounts, it was love at first sight. What's more, Chef Ko's parents had owned an organic food truck in Boulder, Colorado called RollinGreens in the 1970s. So, when Chef Ko and Lindsey decided to strike out with their own vegan mobile food business in 2011, deciding on a name was the easiest part of the project! In 2016, they made the jump to retail with frozen versions of their two most popular menu items: Millet Tots and Cauliflower Wings. The tots were a hot seller, taking everything you love about the snack and replacing the "tater" with the nutritionally-packed ancient grain that is millet. There are a lot of potential mistakes standing between you and perfect frozen french fries, but the Cunninghams claimed that the Millet Tots came out crisp every time.

Despite some signals of success — RollinGreens had managed to partner with Target and Kroger and had more than doubled its 2018 sales of $320,000 to $700,000 in 2019 — the business was still losing money, which the Cunninghams attributed to the cost of explosive growth. The duo appeared on the May 2020 Season 11 season finale of "Shark Tank," in which the Cunninghams sought an investor who could make their plant-based dreams a reality.

The Cunninghams introduced the sharks to the health benefits of millet, then unveiled samples of both their tots and "wings," each of which was available in three flavors. You may have heard of flax seeds, which are a vegan egg substitute, but millet needs a bit more of an introduction to general audiences. The sharks unanimously agreed that the food tasted delicious. Right away, the discussion turned to costs. RollinGreens Millet Tots sold for $4.99 a box, and the Cauliflower Wings sold for $6.99 a bag. The sharks collectively cringed when Lindsey Cunningham said that, despite projected 2019 sales of $700,000, the company was expected to lose $300,000. She quickly followed that by saying RollinGreens was on track to make $5.5 million in 2020. The pair was asking for $500,000 in exchange for 10% equity in RollinGreens.

Lori Greiner proposed a joint deal with fellow shark Daniel Lubetzky, who was loath to jump on the wagon. The Cunninghams got argumentative with Lubetzky, causing Greiner to bow out as well. Mark Cuban clarified that margins were low, then stepped down. Kevin O'Leary took his doubts a step further, voicing the opinion that "something bad" was going to happen to RollinGreens. That left Robert Herjavec, who offered $500,000 in exchange for 20% equity. The Cunninghams shocked the panel by initially asking Greiner to jump back in (she declined), but ultimately shook hands with Herjavec.

Despite enthusiasm on both sides, the deal between the Cunninghams and Herjavec never closed. This happens sometimes on "Shark Tank," as was the case with honey wine company Bee D'Vine. Like Bee D'Vine, however, appearing on "Shark Tank" proved to be enough of a boon to RollinGreens even without an investor, thanks to the notorious "Shark Tank effect." In the year after airing on TV, company sales tripled to $2.1 million. QVC awarded RollinGreens its "best plant-based food" honors for its tots. Despite an expanding stable of retail partners and exponentially increasing sales, the Cunninghams refuted the sharks' advice to stay focused on what worked and tried something new ... in fact, they took the drastic step of retiring their original product offerings.

In 2021, RollinGreens unveiled shelf-stable vegan proteins called ME'EAT and CHIC'KEN. The protein packs were available for sale on RollinGreens's website, as well as in over 4,000 stores coast-to-coast, including Whole Foods, Sprouts, and King Soupers. Explaining the move to pivot away from the food truck favorites that helped make RollinGreens, the Cunninghams said that they were not just trying to make food that tasted delicious, but was also better for the planet. They maintained that the meat substitutes better fit their motto: "eat better, feel better, and do better."

Not only is RollinGreens still in business, but it has continued to push the envelope on cutting-edge vegan eats with its ME'EAT and CHIC'KEN rice bowls, which debuted in summer of 2024. Each shelf-stable bowl contains not only the meat substitute, but also rice and vegetables. For ME'EAT options, there is a Classic Chili Bowl (containing black beans and therefore taking a stand on the eternal "beans in chili" debate) and a Mexican Rice Bowl. In terms of CHIC'KEN, you can pick between Stir Fry Rice and Teriyaki Rice. All you have to do is add water and nuke the bowls. The "meat" in the bowls is made primarily of pea protein, and each bowl packs 23 grams of total protein.

RollinGreens continues with its mission to provide food that not only tastes good, but helps the planet as well. On its website, the company espouses commitments to "sustainability, conscientious water usage, animal welfare, supply chain transparency, harvest optimization, and so much more." Its products are nut-free and gluten-free, as well as being made without soy, fillers, wheat, or oils.

To date, RollinGreens boasts almost 30,000 followers on Instagram, where its bio brags about the company having been chosen as the Best New Product in 2024 by BrandSpark. Its website offers a generous assortment of both protein backs and bowls, with sample and variety packs available for those who can't make up their minds.

In a 2023 interview with Tasting Table, Lindsey Cunningham stated that RollinGreens would continue to branch out in every way possible, proving that the "Shark Tank" panel was wrong when they advised the Cunninghams to stay focused on proven successes. What RollinGreens focused on, Cunningham stated, was its basic values — "our core consumer and taste, clean ingredients, the versatility of our products of value as well" — while expanding beyond its roots in brick-and-mortar sales. "We consider ourselves experts in retail, but we're constantly evolving and growing," she noted. Cunningham promised that fresh products and fresh categories were coming for RollinGreens, while stopping short of naming exactly what those developments would entail.

Followers of the RollinGreens website and social media can find deals related to holidays and special events, as well as recipes that include the ME'EAT and CHIC'KEN products. Also on the website, RollinGreens has an inquiry form for food service packages, which was a business option that the sharks specifically warned the Cunninghams not to take. It's safe to predict that, in years to come, RollinGreens will continue beating the odds by tackling business on their own terms, which is exactly how they have managed to thrive thus far.

Static Media owns and operates Foodie and Tasting Table.