IVMF is overjoyed to congratulate IVMF program alumni Thereasa Black, CEO and founder of Bon AppéSweet, on her $175,000 Shark Tank investment win.

Congratulations, Thereasa!

Thereasa Black, Esq., a Navy veteran and IVMF alumni, appeared on ABC’s Shark Tank on January 14, 2026, pitching her better-for-you chocolate company Bon AppéSweet. She walked away with more than double what she came for.

Thereasa entered the Tank seeking $75,000 for 10% equity in her company. The Sharks saw even more potential than she anticipated, telling her she had undervalued her business. When the dust settled, she secured $175,000 from Robert Herjavec and Rashaun Williams, who each took a 10% stake.

Before building her business, Thereasa developed her entrepreneurial skills through a number of entrepreneurship programs, notably participating in a WalMart Open Call with IVMF and attending and later speaking as a panelist at IVMF’s Veteran EDGE. She has also attended our Military Entrepreneurship Forum (MEF). As someone who has had her chocolate products at Whole Foods and WalMart for a few years already, Thereasa was a huge asset to those founders in attendance looking to scale their businesses and learn from her experiences.

“The entire Shark Tank experience has been an incredible whirlwind. I was told that my episode would air January 14th on Christmas Eve, so it was the perfect Christmas gift! My amazing team and family were extremely supportive, and my team worked amazingly to make sure that we were ready! But to be honest, my team isn’t just the people that work at my factory, it’s also all of the organizations that helped me get to this point. Abe Karmack from True Made Foods (an amazing ketchup company that sweetens using vegetables instead of sugar), the folks at Walmart PR, Mark and Jennifer, the people rooting for me at New Hope Network, Chobani’s Accelerator Team, the Includ(ed) group, Warrior Rising, and most importantly IVMF. IVMF has been with me throughout my journey whether they knew it or not.

I discovered the IVMF program shortly after launching my business, but they discovered me at the Chobani Incubator. A member of the team traveled to the headquarters in NYC to talk to the veterans that were a part of that incubator and give us the resources that we needed. After that, they were behind the scenes pulling strings for me that I didn’t even see. They invited me to speak as a guest at Veteran EDGE and gave me the opportunity to expose my chocolate to all of the people in attendance. They gave me a stage to speak when I needed help. They connected me with Walmart and have always been one of my biggest cheerleaders! Words can’t express my gratitude, but it’s always nice to know that even when you leave the service, your brothers and sisters in arms will continue to stand beside you.”

-Thereasa Black, CEO & founder, Bon AppéSweet

Ethical, Healthy Sweets

The inspiration for Bon AppéSweet was deeply personal. Thereasa was deployed away from her daughter for over 13 months, leaving just before her daughter’s second birthday. During that separation, her daughter developed a love for sweets thanks to aunts and uncles sneaking her treats. Rather than taking away the foods her daughter had grown to love, Thereasa decided to make them healthier.

She created exquisite desserts using fruit-based sweeteners with zero processed sugars and zero sugar alcohols, eventually developing the date-sweetened chocolate bars that would become Bon AppéSweet’s signature product. Committed to her daughter’s health and sustainable practices to protect the planet her daughter will inherit, Thereasa made all of her chocolate 100% plant-based and dairy-free, using only organic, ethically sourced, single-origin cacao from Peru.

Access to Capital: A Persistent Challenge

Access to capital remains one of the most significant barriers to entrepreneurship, particularly for veteran and military-connected business owners. In IVMF’s National Survey of Military-Affiliated Entrepreneurs, researchers found 37% of veteran and military-connected entrepreneurs struggled with accessing capital, and 34% said lack of financing was an active barrier to their success and growth.

Pitch competitions have emerged as an increasingly valuable alternative for early-stage businesses seeking startup capital. Programs like Shark Tank represent the most visible example, but opportunities exist at every level, including the pitch competitions IVMF holds at the conclusion of each Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans (EBV) cohort, or the many competitions we’ve collected on our 2026 calendar. Pitch competitions give participants the chance to refine their pitch, receive feedback from experienced judges, and compete for seed funding in a more merit-based environment to help launch their ventures.

Thereasa’s Shark Tank success is a high-profile reminder that pitch competitions work. For veteran entrepreneurs exploring their funding options, they’re worth serious consideration.

A Bright Future

Congratulations to Thereasa on this well-deserved success. Her Shark Tank win is proof that purpose-driven veteran-owned businesses built on love, sacrifice, and a commitment to doing better, can compete on the biggest stages.