2 days ago
"We Got Funded!" Shake Your Plants (SYP) Secure Shark Tank Funding
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur Middle East, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
Entrepreneurs Lia Coelho and Justine Dampt have never been discouraged from their mission to launch their functional drinks startup Shake Your Plants (SYP).
And they got a huge boost with a recent appearance on Shark Tank Dubai that led to an investment of AED1.2 million from Amira Sajwani, Managing Director at DAMAC, Founder of Prypco, co-founder and COO at Amali Properties, in exchange for 20% equity in Shake Your Plants. The deal also comes with a AED2 million line of credit.
The female entrepreneurs were also offered deals from fellow Shark Tank Dubai judges Elie Khoury, CEO and Chairman at Vivium Holding, and Mona Ataya, founder of Mumzworld.
"We are thrilled to partner with Amira, whose entrepreneurial insight and strategic support will help us scale responsibly while retaining most of our equity through smart capital diversification. She is a strong advocate for female founders, and we will be very proud to be part of her portfolio companies," said Dampt, who welcomed a new baby just two weeks prior to the show which was filmed last year.
The SYP founders have bounced back from multiple setbacks but are now enjoying plenty of upward momentum for their brand, positioned as a clean, plant-powered alternative to sugary electrolyte drinks.
Image courtesy of Shake Your Plants.
Lean and clean
Their journey began during COVID-19, when Dampt started experimenting with powders in her kitchen to make a different kind of wellness drink. "We have had a lot of challenges physically (including failed pregnancies) and what really helped us was to keep a lifestyle that was very clean and plant-based," says Dampt.
As a health coach and certified nutritionist, she has always recommended people to add more water and more plants to their diets. So the pair started experimenting and came up with Shake Your Plants, which comes in sachets to make an instant hydration drink.
"We're challenging people's habits," Coelho explains. "We want to use water as a vehicle for wellness." This means moving beyond traditional electrolyte drinks to create products that support overall health. And they prioritize "ugly" fruits that might otherwise be discarded, turning potential waste into nutritional powerhouses, while reducing waste and their carbon footprint.
Their first major hurdle came in summer 2022 when they were forced to recall 80,000 sachets due to crystallization issues, just days before their launch. "We almost did not survive that moment," Dampt recalls. But resilience became their trademark. Instead of giving up, they picked themselves up and recovered.
The manufacturer carried out a lengthy investigation before finally recognizing it was its mistake. "I literally sat down for two months in Germany in the office to get our money back on the product, because it was kind of like a make-it or break-it moment," says Dampt.
"We had invested a lot of money in this product launch. All the campaign was done and we were ready to go."
While others might have decided to quit then and there, something kicked in and the business partners pushed forward. "I don't think we wanted to quit, because we are very resilient people. But it was very difficult because, especially in the beginning, you need to pay everything up front. So we paid for the entire production 100% upfront, and we invested everything that we had," adds Coelho.
More water
With summer here, hydration becomes even more vital. The SYP founders cite statistics showing that 94% of people are chronically dehydrated, and 92% lack key vitamins or minerals—a clear opportunity to make hydration functional and enjoyable.
Currently, the company offers three products focusing on gut health and hydration, and uses natural, carefully sourced ingredients. Its kombucha-based sachets incorporate elements like organic blueberries from the UK and fermented tea from Taiwan.
The products are natural, with no added sugars or artificial colors, appealing to health-conscious consumers, while each sachet costs less than AED8.50. But what truly makes Shake Your Plants stand out from the crowd? "The taste," Lia emphasizes. "A drink has to taste delicious for people to want it." While it sounds like a simple philosophy, creating products people genuinely enjoy consuming, not all companies get it right.
And they are starting to win fans and followers. They prefer to use micro-influencers to spread the word on social media about their products, and some have approached SYP about doing it for free. A new product is in the pipeline at the end of the year.
"I think that it's so important to build a strong community. Everything we're trying to do, the way we're communicating to people on our struggles, the running the business, we're being very open about it. And we're very open about the ingredients that we use," says Coelho.
The Female Founder Edge
Being women founders brings its own set of challenges. "There's no such thing as balance," Dampt admits. "I'm a full-time founder and a full-time mum." But instead of letting that hinder them, they've used it to sharpen their focus and time management.
With eyes on new markets, SYP is preparing to scale into Saudi Arabia and the UK, where consumer testing is already underway. The roadmap also includes new products, targeting everything from sleep to energy, as they continue to broaden their wellness offerings.
