So, you’re standing in the grocery aisle, scanning the plant-based section for that creamy, slightly spicy Ne Chèvre or the Smoky Bourbon dip that used to be everywhere. You can't find it. Honestly, it’s because the brand basically vanished. If you followed heidi ho shark tank back in the day, you remember the hype. It was one of those rare moments where a vegan product didn't just survive the tank—it thrived. At least, for a while.
Heidi Lovig, a Cordon Bleu-trained chef with more energy than a double espresso, walked into the 100th episode of Shark Tank in 2014. She wasn't just selling "fake cheese." She was selling a lifestyle. She walked out with a deal from Lori Greiner, and for a few years, it looked like Heidi Ho was going to be the Scrub Daddy of the vegan world.
But if you look for it today in 2026, you're going to come up empty-handed.
The Pitch That Made Lori Greiner Jump
When Heidi pitched heidi ho shark tank producers and eventually the Sharks, she hit a nerve. Most vegan cheese at the time tasted like flavored plastic or damp cardboard. Heidi’s was different. It was made from nuts, seeds, and vegetables. It was "clean label" before that was even a massive buzzword.
She asked for $125,000 for 20% of her company.
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Kevin O’Leary, true to form, was skeptical. He loves his wine and real brie, and he didn't think a "cheeze" made of chia seeds could compete. But Lori saw something else. She saw a passionate founder and a product that tasted legitimately good. She offered the full $125,000 but wanted 30%. Heidi didn't even hesitate. She took the deal in what was, at the time, the fastest deal in the show's history.
The Shark Tank Effect and Explosive Growth
The aftermath was wild. Within four months of the episode airing, Heidi Ho’s sales skyrocketed from $140,000 to over $750,000. That’s the "Shark Tank bump" in full effect. Suddenly, those little tubs were in over 500 Whole Foods locations across the country. They were even popping up in Costco.
Heidi had to move from a tiny 900-square-foot kitchen to a massive 6,000-square-foot warehouse in Portland. It was the dream, right? She was hiring people, scaling up, and even secured more funding from Blue Horizon, a Swiss firm that specializes in plant-based investments. By 2015, they were producing 10,000 tubs a week.
But scaling a fresh food business is a nightmare. You’ve got expiration dates, cold-chain shipping costs, and the constant pressure from retailers to lower your prices while your ingredients—organic cashews and veggies—stay expensive.
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Why Heidi Ho Isn't on Shelves Anymore
By 2018, things started feeling a bit... quiet. Customers on Reddit were complaining that they couldn't find the Black Lava salt flavor anymore. Some store owners whispered about unpaid bills and delivery delays.
Then came 2020.
The pandemic was brutal for small food brands. While big-box brands could command space on the shelves, smaller, "niche" products like vegan cheese dips got pushed aside. Supply chains broke. In August 2020, Heidi posted a 10th-anniversary message on Instagram, admitting that the company was hitting a "challenging low." That was the last time the brand really spoke to the public.
The Official "Out of Business" Status
It’s official now. According to Pitchbook and public filings, Heidi Ho officially went out of business on November 20, 2022. The website is dead. The social media accounts are ghost towns.
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So, what happened to the chef herself?
Heidi Lovig didn't just sit around. She’s an entrepreneur through and through. In 2021, she actually pivoted away from the food industry entirely. She started a company called Red Rug Realty, LLC, focusing on real estate and short-term rentals. It’s a huge shift from making vegan queso, but she seems to have traded the high-stress world of grocery retail for the world of property management.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Failure
People love to say that heidi ho shark tank failed because the product wasn't good. That’s just not true. People loved the taste. The real issue was likely the "middle-man" squeeze.
When you sell to Whole Foods and Costco, they take a huge cut. If your production costs are high and your shelf life is short, your margins disappear. You can have millions in revenue—Heidi Ho reportedly had around $8 million in lifetime sales—and still not be profitable enough to survive a global supply chain crisis.
Key Lessons from the Heidi Ho Story
- Fast deals don't guarantee long-term survival. Even with Lori Greiner’s "Queen of QVC" magic, the grocery industry is a different beast entirely.
- The "Shark Tank" bump is a double-edged sword. Scaling from a 1-gallon batch to a 20-gallon batch sounds great, but it requires massive capital and infrastructure that many founders aren't ready for.
- Pandemic pressures were the final straw. Many brands that were already leaning on thin margins couldn't survive the 2020-2022 period.
If you’re looking for a similar vibe today, you’ll have to look at brands like Siete or Miyoko’s, which managed to weather those same storms. Heidi Ho remains a cautionary but impressive tale of a founder who caught lightning in a bottle, even if the bottle eventually broke.
Your Next Steps for Tracking Shark Tank Success:
- Check the Founder's LinkedIn: If you’re curious about a "missing" brand, look for the founder's recent activity. Heidi’s move to Red Rug Realty was the first real confirmation that the cheese business was over.
- Verify Business Status: Use tools like Pitchbook or local Secretary of State filings to see if a company is "Dissolved" or "Inactive" before hunting for them in stores.
- Look for Rebrands: Sometimes a brand doesn't die; it gets sold. In Heidi's case, it seems she truly closed the chapter, but many Shark Tank brands survive under new parent companies without the original founder's name.