Company:The Mad Optimist

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Short description: American manufacturing company


The Mad Optimist
FormerlySoapy Soap Company
TypePrivately held company
IndustryCosmetics and personal care manufacturing
FoundedApril 19, 2012; 12 years ago (2012-04-19) in Bloomington, Indiana, United States
Founders
  • Mohammed M. Mahdi (CEO)
  • Mohammed A. Mahdi (COO)
  • Anthony Duncan (CMO)
Headquarters
Terre Haute, Indiana
,
United States
Area served
Worldwide
Products
  • Bar Soaps
  • Bath Soaks
  • Body Sprays
  • Lip Balms
Brands
  • Bloomington Label Tech
  • Design My Soap
  • Sabun
  • The Mad Optimist
Services
  • Contract manufacturing
  • Custom formulation
  • Private labeling
Websitewww.themadoptimist.com

The Mad Optimist is an American manufacturer of organic soaps and personal care products. The company allows customers to choose ingredients going into their products as well as the product's price.

The company was originally founded in Bloomington, Indiana in 2012 under the name Soapy Soap Company.[1] by two brothers, Mohammed M. and Mohammed A. Mahdi, and Anthony Duncan.[2][3][4][5]

The company claims their products does not contain synthetic fragrance, dyes, artificial preservatives, parabens, or phthalates. They are ought to be vegan, halal, cruelty-free, and gluten-free.[2]

History

In April 2012, The Mad Optimist created the brand Sabun[6][7]

In mid 2016, the company created the brand DesignMySoap.com which offered customized personal care products.[8][5]

The company was part of the 2017 cohort of Cincinnati, OH based startup accelerator, The Brandery.[9][10][5]

In 2018 the company partnered with global brand design agency LPK who helped it rebrand as The Mad Optimist.[11][5][12][13]

The company gained notoriety when it was featured on May 15, 2020, on ABC's Shark Tank, Season 11 Finale Episode 24.[14][15][12] Shark and billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban offered to invest $60,000 for 20% equity stake in their business.[16][17]

Awards

  • Transform Awards North America 2019-Best visual identity from the FMCG sector: Silver – The Mad Optimist[18]
  • Indiana Small Business Development Center (ISBDC): 2014 EDGE Award Winner for the category of Established Business. Awarded June 19, 2015.[19]

References

  1. Donaldson, Zoe. "How Three Guys Started a Vegan Soap Company". HARPO, INC.. https://www.oprah.com/inspiration/o-magazine-soapy-soap-company-vegan-soap. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 Pizzo, Rosie Piga. "Soapy Soap Company: Making Very ‘Friendly’ Soap | Bloom Magazine". Blooomington Magazine, Inc.. https://www.magbloom.com/2013/09/soapy-soap-company-making-very-friendly-soap/. 
  3. Heyn, Beth (May 15, 2020). "The Mad Optimist on ‘Shark Tank’: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know". https://heavy.com/entertainment/2020/05/the-mad-optimist-shark-tank/. 
  4. Salihah, Umm. "Entrepreneur Interview: Soapy Soap Company and DesignMySoap.com". http://www.happymuslimah.com/2017/08/entrepreneur-interview-soapy-soap.html. 
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Hayleigh, Colombo (2019-06-05). "Bloomington soap makers call themselves 'equality extremists'". Indianapolis Business Journal. https://www.ibj.com/articles/74064-bloomington-soap-makers-call-themselves-equality-extremists. 
  6. Turner, Tracy Zollinger. "Latest Soapy Soap Endeavor Lets Customers Design Their Own Soap | Bloom Magazine". Blooomington Magazine, Inc.. https://www.magbloom.com/2017/05/latest-soapy-soap-endeavor-lets-customers-design-their-own-soap/. 
  7. Christian, Kurt (2016-11-25). "Soapy Soap Co. may be the smallest small business on Small Business Saturday.". The Herald Times. 
  8. "Soapy Soap Innovating Online Soap-Making Studio". Inside INdiana Business. IBJ Media. 2017-07-21. https://www.insideindianabusiness.com/videos/soapy-soap-innovating-online-soap-making-studio. 
  9. Mimica, Tanja (3 September 2017). "The Brandery Accelerator announces its 2017 cohort" (in en). HuffPost News (The Huffington Post). https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-brandery-accelerator-announces-its-2017-cohort_b_59ac4960e4b0c50640cd6052. 
  10. Kevin, Eigelbach (1 September 2017). "Design your own vegan soap bar" (in en). WCPO 9 Cincinnati. Scripps Media, Inc. https://www.wcpo.com/news/insider/at-soapy-soaps-website-you-can-design-your-very-own-animal-friendly-vegan-soap-bars. 
  11. Casey, Linda (2 October 2018). "CXO Series: Optimistic About Change". BXP Magazine (ST Media Group) (7): p. 12. https://www.bxpmagazine.com/cxo-series-optimistic-about-change/. 
  12. 12.0 12.1 Lindquist, David. "Indiana soap company gets chance to clean up on 'Shark Tank' season finale". https://www.indystar.com/story/entertainment/arts/2020/05/14/indiana-soap-company-mad-optimist-appears-shark-tank-abc/3106296001/. 
  13. Ned, Kalina. "Sustainable Customized Body Care" (in en). Trend Hunter Inc.. https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/customized-body-care1. 
  14. Locke, Taylor (2020-04-18). "'Shark Tank': Why Mark Cuban invested in a vegan company with pay-what-you-can pricing that the other Sharks hated" (in en). CNBC (NBC Universal). https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/18/shark-tank-mark-cuban-invested-in-mission-focused-vegan-soap-company.html. 
  15. "Brandery alum to pitch their company on 'Shark Tank'" (Press release). May 11, 2020 – via WCPO-TV.
  16. "‘Shark Tank’ Season 11 Finale: Kevin slams The Mad Optimist's business idea but fans say 'it's dope' | MEAWW". https://meaww.com/shark-tank-season-11-episode-24-finale-mad-optimist-soaps-kevin-oleary-fan-mark-cuban-third-hell. 
  17. Po, Di (29 July 2020). "Season 11 Episode 24 – All Your Favorite Shark Tank products". https://topsharktank.com/season-11-episode-24/#MadOptimist. 
  18. "Transform Awards North America 2019". https://www.transformmagazine.net/awards/north-america/the-winners/. Retrieved 15 November 2019. 
  19. "2014 EDGE Award Winner for the category of Established Business.". ISBDC. http://www.isbdc.org/2014-edge-winners/.