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Vegan fried chicken brand Atlas Monroe is opening a multi-million dollar facility in San Diego, California.
The company made headlines back in 2019 after appearing on ABC’s Shark Tank – where it turned down a hefty investment.
ABC’s Shark Tank
Founders Jonathan and Deborah Torres were offered $500,000 by entrepreneur Mark Cuban for a 30 percent stake in the company.
Then, Cuban teamed up with Shark Rohan Oza who, together, offered the duo $1 million for 100 percent of the business.
However, Deborah and Torres declined the offer and are now on track to become the world’s largest vegan fried chicken brand.
According to CNBC, Deborah said: “As soon as we get our facility, we will fulfill the orders and hit a million dollars immediately.
“We walked away from a million dollars, and we’re walking into $24 million. We know we have something really extraordinary in our hands.”
Multi-million dollar facility
Since then, Atlas Monroe is eyeing a second manufacturing plant and has exceeded $2 million in online sales. It now sells a range of vegan meat substitutes including deep-fried turkey, ribs, bacon, beef, and fried chicken.
However, Deborah, who’s now the sole owner of the company, has criticized Shark Tank for ‘unfairly representing’ her.
She told VegNews: “I was completely blindsided when it aired. And, had no idea the effect it would have on my life.
“I mean, imagine being a Black woman in America graduating high school at age 15, receiving your first degree at 17, all to be made to look like an idiot on national television for the sake of views… It was crushing, to say the least.”
You can order from Atlas Monroe here
