Cassandra Ayala, the owner of Virginia Beach vegan junk food restaurant, The Bumbling Bee, and its sister location in Boulder, Colorado, invested her life savings into her businesses. Despite the challenges brought on by the pandemic, Ayala and her daughters, who also committed fully to the family business, saw an opportunity to bring their vegan comfort food nationwide. Ayala applied to “Shark Tank,” and her application was successful. The episode, where Ayala and her daughter India try to convince the “sharks” to invest in their business, will soon air on ABC. Despite staffing shortages and the uncertainty of the outcome, Ayala is optimistic and excited about the opportunity.

Introduction

From THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT By

The Bumbling Bee’s Journey

Cassandra Ayala was in the Charlotte airport when she got the call.

It was March 2020, and the pandemic was on the cusp of shutting down restaurants all over the country. Ayala was in full crisis mode — traveling between two locations of her family’s vegan junk food restaurant, The Bumbling Bee. The original is in Virginia Beach, while the other is in Boulder, Colorado.

“He said, ‘This is so and so from ‘Shark Tank’,” Ayala remembered. “And I’m like, ‘Sir, you are fantastic.’”

Preparation and Challenges

The previous fall, her entire family had just gone into business together. Ayala, a food truck entrepreneur many times over, had converted all her other businesses to The Bumbling Bee. The restaurant essentially translates the entire state fair into vegan form: dramatically overstuffed vegan Beyond burgers, crazy milkshakes, seitan gyros and vegan Coney dogs.

Ayala sank her life savings into the new restaurants. Her daughters — Olivia, Alexandria and India — also went in “150%,” quitting their jobs to work full time on the family business.

Opportunity and Resilience

On a whim in December 2019, Ayala also filled out an online form to apply for an appearance on “Shark Tank.” With the right investor, she thought, they could take their vegan comfort food nationwide.

So when the phone call from “Shark Tank” came, it mattered. It gave them all something to look forward to, in a world that had suddenly begun to contract around them.

Appearance on Shark Tank

The tape was apparently convincing enough for Mark Cuban and the rest of the sharks. In an episode filmed last summer, Cassandra and her daughter India made their pitch. The episode will air at 8 p.m. this Friday on ABC.

On the show, they’ll trying to convince any of five potential investors to sink money into helping them expand The Bumbling Bee beyond its current two restaurants, plus two food trucks named Dixie and Daisy.

Final Thoughts

Ayala can’t say what will happen on the show, or whether anyone offered to invest in their business — other than to say it will be “tons of fun with The Bumbling Bee.”

She still hasn’t seen the edited show, she said. And restaurant staffing has been so short this spring that she may not be able to watch it in real-time.

Question & Answer

1. How did Cassandra Ayala and her daughters invest in their family business?

Cassandra Ayala invested her life savings into her businesses, and her daughters Olivia, Alexandria, and India also quit their jobs to work full time on the family business.

2. What opportunity did Cassandra Ayala see in expanding her vegan comfort food restaurant?

Cassandra Ayala saw an opportunity to bring their vegan comfort food nationwide by applying to “Shark Tank” and convincing investors to help them expand.

3. When will the episode featuring Cassandra Ayala and her daughter India on “Shark Tank” air?

The episode featuring Cassandra Ayala and her daughter India on “Shark Tank” will air at 8 p.m. this Friday on ABC.