Three years ago, Australian entrepreneur and then-HR manager Lori Phegan just wanted to blow off some steam from her day job by leveraging material she’d gathered from 20 years in human resources and turning her workplace frustrations into pithy, tongue-in-cheek slogans.
But it was only meant to be a creative outlet – a way to have a laugh, vent and share inappropriate humour with other mothers – until one of her products went viral.
A mug with the words ‘I’m not feeling very talky today. Off you f*ck” took the internet by storm, racking up nearly 10 million views virtually overnight.
If you displayed a gift made by entrepreneur Lori Phegan in the workplace, you’d raise an eyebrow or two.
In fact some of her “inappropriate gifts” might even get you into trouble with HR .
But Phegan herself was an HR manager for 20 years and the frustration of dealing with people on a daily basis gave her a business idea that would help her escape her HR career.
“I'd be at work, and all the times I'd be smiling at people saying, ‘I understand’. And then I'd go home and somehow have to get some of this frustration out. So I'd put it on a mug,” she said.
An Australian entrepreneur who scored a $250,000 deal when she appeared on TV show Shark Tank has revealed that winning isn't a guarantee to becoming a millionaire.
Lorena Phegan appeared on season four of the show in May 2018 where she pitched her business The Inappropriate Gift Co and received offers from all of the 'shark' investors.
It seems so straightforward: come up with a business idea, appear on Shark Tank — and watch yourself become a millionaire overnight.
But it turns out the reality of an appearance on the hit show is far removed from that glamorous fantasy.
Just ask Lori Phegan who made her Shark Tank debut a year ago.
The mum-of-two pitched her business, The Inappropriate Gift Co — which sells hilarious, swear word-laden novelty products like mugs, stationery and cards — and received offers from all of the sharks during the season four premiere last May.
Shop this cheeky gift collection, find the perfect gift for anyone with a sense of inappropriate humour!
Warning though, do not click through to the website IF YOU’RE EASILY OFFENDED!
Life is too short for boring gifts. theinappropriategiftco.com
Yes we do find inappropriate products amusing... so does our best mate Christian. Check out him checking them out. Follow him on YouTube or Facebook as he is such a talented and very funny guy that makes us feel normal, more importantly he is the nicest guy in the universe.
What a crazy ride from my first video audition for Shark Tank to the airing of our episode. Episode 1 Series 4.
I wasn't sure whether the Sharks would have an inappropriate sense of humour but they all did, I created a feeding frenzy!! For any of you that have bought our products, followed our socials and or shared our website - THANK YOU
So happy I chose this awesome business woman! Not only is she a genuinely nice lady, her work ethic is amazing as is her mentoring and coaching.
The other contestant to walk away with a deal on Tuesday night's episode was NSW mum Lori Phegan, who came in seeking $100,000 for 10 per cent of her controversial gifting business, The Inappropriate Gift Company.
"The idea for the Gift Co. came after a particularly stressful week at work as an HR manager. I thought, there must be more fun to life than this," she said.
Since launching a basic website in November 2016, the company has sold nearly 24,000 products to more than 9000 customers in 36 countries, making $470,000 revenue. Ms Phegan said the goal was "to be the global home of inappropriate gifts".
Impressed by the pitch and her solid sales figures, Steve offered $100,000 for 20 per cent, Janine offered $100,000 for 18 per cent, while Andrew and Naomi both offered $100,000 for 15 per cent.
Naomi swooped in with a last-minute offer of $100,000 for 15 per cent, plus another $100,000 for another 10 per cent if she could double the business within 12 months - and Ms Phegan took the deal.
"We wanted Naomi because it's an obvious choice because she's in the gifting business," she said. "I'm so happy."
Lorena Phegan's gift business really took off when she posted a photograph of one of the mugs she sold on Facebook.
It was a mug emblazoned with "I'm not feeling very talkative today, off you f-ck."
"It got 9 million views and so many orders came in they crashed my website," Phegan says. "That's when I thought the idea had legs."
