onewith swim on Shark Tank: Part 2 | Getting to LA & Pitching in the Tank!

I LOVED what Sarah from Curie did to document her Shark Tank experience..a series of blog posts breaking down her journey! I am going to take a page out of her book and do the same. Make sure you check out Sarah's Shark Tank blog posts here, and shop Curie's products, while you're at it. (I love their Armpit Detox Mask). 

ICYMI: I'm Hayley; me and my brand of patent-pending swimsuits that fit like underwear®️ were on Shark Tank on January 24, 2025. But ahead of any major milestone such as our better-than-seamless swimsuits landing in the Tank, there is always a story.

Part 1 of the story, a blog post entitled Getting on the Show, can be read here. 

Now, the big moment...taping day/being in the Shark Tank! (and the days before it).

For those who don't know, we are based in Connecticut. Shark Tank tapes in LA, so we flew from JFK to LAX several days in advance of the taping. I wanted to get out to California with enough time to breathe, do more prep, and, importantly, adjust to Pacific Time (which proved to be very difficult for me, as an already early riser) ☠️

I brought my mom with me; she has been with me through it all, including all of my gigs/influencer work as a teen...so having her with me to fly to LA for Shark Tank felt very full circle. I want to take the time to thank my mom for her unwavering support and for being so available for me to help me, calm my nerves, and practice with me when we were in California. I couldn't have done it without her. 

In between long hours of prep work, doing a virtual run-through with producers, and so, so, so many flashcards containing our all-important numbers, my mom and I managed to sneak in a bit of Los Angeles sightseeing. I had been before, but it was my mom's first time! We hit up the Hollywood sign, of course. I also made sure to grab a Hailey Bieber Erewhon smoothie (when in LA, right?!)

me and my smoothie after a long day of prep work that started at 2:30am 🤪

if you squint you'll see the Hollywood sign - we didn't have time to go to Grififth Observatory for a proper viewing, so this would have to do ☠️ 

The day before we taped, I finally met my models in person! There was so much logistical prepping and fittings that preceded the taping. Caroline, Alecia, and Charvelle were so patient and amazing. When I met them in person, we also did our first run-through of my pitch and their all-important reveal moment. 

After a few run-throughs, we nailed it, and I felt like we were in a good place to head to the Tank. We only got a chance to rehearse once on-set in my dressing room, so I am so happy we had this time ahead of taping to get it down.

I can't stress this enough: if you are prepping for Shark Tank and reading/watching the content other Shark Tank alums have put out/created to prep (as I VERY much did)...get you some great models for the Tank, if you need models/actors for your pitch. The three models I worked with — in addition to being total pros — were also just incredibly grounding and comforting to me. I could not bring anyone with me to set aside from my models, so they were my source of moral support. They hyped me up so much and were just generally ALL great vibes to be around.

Anyway, I did not get the time window of my taping until the night before taping, and waiting for that felt like an eternity. Once I had my time, I texted the models that we were locked in, ordered another Hailey Bieber Erewhon smoothie (lol) and did hours of more flashcards and mock Q&A prep in our hotel room. 

The morning of taping, the nerves were incredibly real. The nerves really started to materialize the day before, but the feeling of knowing that my Tank moment was only hours away overloaded my nervous system.

I woke up, did more flashcards, and did my hair and makeup in the hotel room. I arrived at the pick-up area to be brought to Sony Studios with ample time to spare so that my mom and I could do — you guessed it — more flashcards before my final send-off to the studio. My mom wanted to take pictures of me (as moms are want to do), but I physically couldn't smile; a grimace of anxiety, part in jest and mostly in transparency, was all I could emote.

I mean, can you tell I felt like I was gonna pass out? 

When I got to Sony Studios, I met the producers I had been working with for months IRL for the first time, which was awesome. I got settled into my dressing room, and was visited by a flurry of production staff before getting that one practice run in with my models, and finally changing into my Tank outfit to head to set. It was hours of waiting, which didn't help my nerves; I was listening to my frequencies, doing EFT tapping, practicing visualization, and of course...do I need to say it at this point? Doing more flashcard prep. 

Eventually, it was time to head to tape...we walked over to the stage, and the models and I got some last-minute hair/makeup/wardrobe touchups. The models were positioned in the Tank so that they'd be there when I walked out, and then, finally, I was queued up behind the infamous doors that lead to the hallway with sharks swimming on screens...which, of course, leads to the Tank.

Sidebar: I can not say enough good things about everyone on set I encountered that day. I told everyone, and I mean everyone, how nervous I was, and even the extended camera crew helped calm me and take deep breaths. I can't stress enough how much they did not need to do this; Shark Tank is a part of their every day, I was just one girl and one pitch in a series of dozens that season. I'll never forget the time and attention and care the crew of the show showed me that day. No doubt, it helped me prime me with a baseline good feeling to walk into the Tank. I am so grateful for that piece of the experience in particular; I am tearing up just thinking about it. It meant the world to me. 

I digress...I was standing at my mark, behind the doors, when a crew member hit me with an "ok ready? 8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1...". As the doors opened, the most miraculous thing occurred; the worry just melted away. I locked in, and told myself this was it. I had prepared for this for months, tirelessly, this was my moment, I would take everything as it comes, and I was going to shine bright in the Tank. 

I walked into the Tank, hit my mark, scanned and locked eyes with all 5 Sharks, and began my pitch. I knew that if I could get through my pitch flawlessly, it would tee me up with the confidence I needed to nail Q&A. By virtue of practicing my pitch ~40,000 times and listening to myself do it on tape another ~50,000 times, I nailed it. I was so scared of stumbling on my words, which I am apt to do at times, but I did not. This was HUGE in allowing me to take a big breath after finishing the pitch, and confidently queuing myself up for the questions immediately to follow. 

I'll refer to this CT Insider article to sum up the tone of the Q&A and Sharks' sentiments. Wanna see the full thing? Watch it on Hulu 😉 Season 16, Episode 9: