Why did Barbara Corcoran hate Lori Greiner? Shark Tank star reveals details on missed deals, her dyslexia and more

Barbara Corcoran is a millionaire entrepreneur who is famously known for her stint on Shark Tank. She is one of the sharks, alongside Lori Greiner, Mark Cuban, Kevin O’Leary, Daymond John, and Robert Herjavec.

In a recent interview, she revealed that she misjudged a few business deals on the show. But when she discovered that those businesses were thriving and Lori Greiner was the investor, Barbara joked that she hated her co-star. Speaking about the deals that she regrets missing, the shark stated:

“Lori, with that stu pid business with the sponge with the happy face. When she bought that business, I really didn't mind it. I didn't get it.”

She added:

“I went, 'Who would want a smiley face in the kitchen in bright yellow?' But then I went to my sister's house a month later and she had those sponges all over the house, I hated Lori.”

The businesswoman was referring to the Lori-invested company, Scrub Daddy, that appeared on Shark Tank season 4.

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Barbara Corcoran believes in investing in a person rather than the business

Shark Tank star Barbara Corcoran stated that she missed out on many deals because her decision-making depended on the person and not the company. Narrating another story that made her “hate” Lori, Barbara said:

“My uncle must have been 90 at the time, maybe even older. He called me all excited — he never calls me — [saying] 'I got the craziest thing on Shark Tank. And it was her stupid glasses. I again hated Lori."

While she joked about hating Lori Greiner, she also mentioned the process of how she picks a business to invest in on Shark Tank, stating:

“Surprisingly, it's not the idea. I’ve seen many entrepreneurs with genius ideas, but they don't know how to get to second base. I'm really looking for someone who has people talent, knows how to hustle, has ambition. You're going to have to have that ambition to get through the obstacles of building a business.”

Citing an example, the DWTS alum stated that she once started a flower business in college because she loved flowers. But it went bankrupt, which made her realize that it was her “hobby” and couldn’t turn it into a business.

Furthermore, Barbara Corcoran mentioned in the interview that she was dyslexic as a child. She struggled with reading and writing, but her mother gave her the power to think she could be a genius too:

“I couldn't read or write until I was in seventh grade. My mother told me all the time, 'You're a genius. You have a wonderful imagination. Don't worry about reading.' Most people wouldn't agree with that, but she didn't have time. She had 10 kids."

Barbara continued:

“To have a mother constantly telling you you're a genius, and she looked at me in a way with her eyes that I believed her, she gave me the power to think I was.”

The investor and reality TV star currently runs several businesses and has an estimated net worth of $100 million, as per Celebrity Net Worth.

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Here’s how Barbara landed her Shark Tank seat

In her recent Instagram reel, Barbara Corcoran told her fans how she landed her Shark Tank job, revealing that she once got a call from a woman stating that producer Mark Burnett was casting for a new ABC show, Shark Tank. She initially thought that the concept might be about “fishing.”

Barbara was all set and excited to leave for LA, but a day before the same person called and mentioned that the producer had changed his mind. The real estate mogul didn’t want to give up on the offer, so she wrote an email to Mark, stating that she would compete for the role and was coming to LA.

Fortunately, things worked for her and Barbara has been a shark on Shark Tank for 14 years. In addition to her, the panel also includes Lori Greiner, Mark Cuban, Kevin O’Leary, Daymond John, and Robert Herjavec.

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Shark Tank airs new episodes every Friday on ABC at 8:00 pm ET and the next day on Hulu.