Here's What Happened To O'Dang Hummus After Shark Tank

Jesse Wolfe created O'dang Hummus after he got his wisdom teeth taken out and grew tired of eating milkshakes. After realizing every brand carried the same kinds of hummus that he considered bland and boring, he had an idea. "With my cooking background and passion for food, that week I decided to make my own hummus just for myself," he told UCF's The Blackstone LaunchPad in 2015.

When his friends and family tried his hummus, they were all blown away by its taste. During that time, Wolfe was attending the University of Central Florida (UCF) with a major in entrepreneurship and business management. One of his professors suggested that he enter The Joust, UCF's entrepreneur competition, where Wolfe ultimately placed third. Following this success, Wolfe wanted to expand his business by selling his hummus at a local farmer's market in Orlando, but the waitlist for a booth was around two years. Wolfe took the initiative and brought samples of his O'dang Hummus straight to the person in charge of the farmer's market, who ended up loving the product so much that they allowed Wolfe to jump the line and open his own stall.

When he came onto Season 7, Episode 2 of "Shark Tank," the Sharks loved Wolfe and his hummus, plus the new salad dressings he also offered. Everyone but Barbara Corcoran wanted to offer him a deal, leaving Wolfe in an unexpected but thrilling position.

Jesse Wolfe's road from the farmer's market to requesting $50,000 from the Sharks in exchange for a 10% stake in O'dang Hummus was a short one. Only eight months after creating his business plan, a friend of Wolfe's told him that "Shark Tank" was in town and suggested he audition. Wolfe showed up at 3 a.m. for an 11 a.m. audition and was shocked when he received a call two weeks later with a request to move forward. "I'm driving, I'm on a four-way pass, and I just start crying," he recalled to Greg from Ambitious in 2016.

The 2015 "Shark Tank" episode got off to a great start for Wolfe, with Mark Cuban proclaiming, "That black bean stuff is the sh*t!" Only Barbara Corcoran was skeptical, telling Wolfe that she thought he was naive and "underestimating" how expensive it would be to get into grocery stores.

Robert Herjavec liked O'dang Hummus so much, he was willing to make it his first food investment, offering Wolfe $50,000 for a 15% stake. Kevin O'Leary threw in his hat next, offering $50,000 for a 20% stake and telling Wolfe that he had a lot more experience in the food business than Herjavec. Next, Lori Greiner jumped in, teaming up with Herjavec to offer $50,000 for a 25% stake. After Wolfe countered with 20%, Mark Cuban reminded him that he was still in. But before Cuban could make an offer, Wolfe took Greiner and Herjavec up on their proposal.

"You blew it," Mark Cuban called out after Jesse Wolfe agreed to partner with Robert Herjavec and Lori Greiner, revealing to Barbara Corcoran that he was going to offer Wolfe $100,000 for a 25% stake. In his post-episode interview, Wolfe said "It means the world. ... I quit my job, you know, and cashed in my retirement and stuff, and I've worked so hard to get to this very point. There's no better feeling on Earth. You can't buy this."

In 2020, five years after appearing on "Shark Tank," Wolfe said on the 10 Minute Entrepreneur podcast that the deal with the pair never actually went through. While he said there were many reasons it fell apart, one of the biggest had to do with the Sharks wanting to take O'dang Hummus onto QVC, while Wolfe wanted to take the product to grocery stores.

Even without their help and financing, O'dang Hummus' oil-free, plant-based hummus and chickpea-based salad dressings took off after the episode aired. "We definitely experienced a production shock and went through some growing pains right at the beginning," Wolfe told Valencia College News in 2018, adding, "'Shark Tank' probably came a year too early." More stores started picking up the product, including Walmart, Whole Foods, Publix, Kroger, and Hy-Vee. While O'dang experimented with new recipes like Salsa and Caramel Apple Crisp Hummus dips, the business had more success with salad dressings, so that's where its focus shifted.

By 2019, O'dang's salad dressing lineup consisted of Honey Mustard, Ranch, Greek Tzatziki, Caesar, and Roasted Red Pepper. Eventually, its packaging changed so "Hummus Dressing" was more prominent on the label. Caesar dressing became Lemon Caesar, Ranch dressing became Garden Herb Ranch, and two new flavors — Balsamic Feta and Classic Mediterranean — were added to the list. By 2020, the packaging labels were updated again, and O'dang Hummus began selling an egg-free mayo made from aquafaba (aka chickpea liquid). Cucumber Dill and Lemon Garlic varieties were introduced first, but it wasn't long before Roasted Red Pepper appeared, followed by a plain Original flavor.

Available to buy in stores and online at the O'dang Hummus website, the business appeared to be thriving, with its Facebook page listing 21,000 followers. But a major change took place behind the scenes that most customers didn't know about: Wolfe left the company in January 2020. "O'dang was at a place where I could've stayed and I could have kept it going," he said on the Lunch with Biggie podcast in 2022. "But [my investors] basically gave me an ultimatum, which was, 'Stay and do as they say, or don't.'" Leaving was devastating, but Wolfe knew that staying after his brand was acquired by a new company would've been just as difficult.

The Facebook page for O'dang Hummus stayed the same after the company was acquired, but after May 2022, the website abruptly stopped posting, with a new page appearing called O'dang Foods. It seems many of the brand's fans never learned of the change, as the new page only has 65 followers as of this writing — a far cry from the 21,000 listed on the original Facebook page. Similarly, O'dang Foods' Instagram page has barely over 200 followers.

At one point, O'dang Foods offered seven salad dressings and four mayos, and customers could create their own four-pack for $29.99 through the brand's website. Available mayo options included Lemon Garlic and Original, while the dressing came in Greek Tzatziki, Honey Mustard, Lemon Caesar, Balsamic Feta, and Roasted Red Pepper. The customer reviews were mostly positive, though a few people complained about shipping problems and a lack of communication.

In December 2023, however, O'dang Foods announced it would close at the end of that year. "With a mix of gratitude and nostalgia, we want to express our deepest thanks for being part of our incredible journey over the past few years," the Facebook post read. "It's with a bittersweet feeling that we share this news as we appreciate your support."

After leaving O'dang Hummus in 2020, Jesse Wolfe continued making the most of his entrepreneurial talents by helping others improve their own business ventures. Wolfe currently serves as the founder and CEO of WolfePack Ventures, which offers services like brand and product development, distribution assistance, public relations, fundraising, trend analysis, and more to emerging businesses. According to the website, "Jesse has always loved helping fellow founders [of consumer packaged goods] navigate the crazy path of building successful brands along his journey, and that passion led to creating [WolfePack Ventures]."

It's not clear what businesses are currently affiliated with WolfePack Ventures, but the website states that the business has helped manufacture more than 10 million products and has 30,000 retail partners and distributors. Worth noting, however, is that there are no sources attached to these figures and no way to confirm their veracity. Based on Wolfe's LinkedIn profile, WolfePack Ventures has been the entrepreneur's sole focus since leaving O'dang Hummus in 2020.

Wolfe's experience on "Shark Tank" shows that even the most successful contestants don't end up finalizing their deals. And while Wolfe had the drive and ambition to navigate entrepreneurial challenges, his experiences after the show illustrate that the path toward business success is rarely straightforward.