Is Trukster A Scam? 

Do you travel regularly and are concerned about losing your luggage? If yes, Trunkster is one of the best solutions for you.  This is a luggage company that has an in-built roll-up design, weighing scale, and USB ports so that you may easily charge your gadgets while you are on the road. 

Gaston Blanchett and Jesse Potash are the founders of Trunkster.  The founders wanted to design and launch a smart suitcase that could be handled with a smartphone app. 

TrunkSter is a unique way to travel. Two entrepreneurs came up with the idea of this Trunkster luggage when they were tired of waiting in a long queue at the airport.  That is why they made up their minds to introduce a better way to travel. 

This subscription-based service enables you to pack your bags in a trunk and deliver them to your destination.  You may get your trunk delivered to your hotel or your home. 

The people who want to avoid the hassle of packing and unpacking their bags,  this is a great product for them.  It is also a perfect product for those who want to travel with a lot of baggage. 

For those who are willing to travel light Trunkster is also a great option. 

So,  if you are searching for a new way to travel you may choose Trunkster without a second thought. The Trunkster suitcase comes with two design options: carry-on and checked. The suitcase opens like a garage door and there is no zipper in the suitcase just like the conventional suitcases have. 

Polycarbonate and airplane-grade aluminium are used to produce Trunkster.  It also has all-terrain wheels and a secret pocket so that you may keep your important documents there. 

Furthermore,  there is also a TSA-approved combination lock in the suitcase so that your products may stay safe. The founders of Trunkster featured Trunkster Suitcases on Shark Tank to get investment from the sharks so that they could increase manufacturing and distribution.

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What is TrunkSter?

Trunkster is a contemporary suitcase that comes with a USB charging port, GPS Device, removable battery, and built-in scale. The creators of Trunkster wanted to change the tradition of the luggage industry and fetch modifications to the conventional suitcase. 

The suitcase comes in two designs:  carry-on and checked. Trunkster has carried out a different approach than a conventional suitcase as it does not have a zipper pocket and opens like a garage door. In 2015, Trunkster was valued at $30 million. It seemed to be the most valuable startup. 

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Who is the person behind Trunkster?

There is always a passionate and driven person behind every great company who comes with a vision and makes it a reality.  For Trunkster,  Gaston Blanchett and Jesse Potash are the persons who invented a unique suitcase for travelling. They have grabbed the travel industry just like a storm. 

Trunkster is the brainchild of Gaston Blanchett and Jesse Potash. They made up their minds to create the company when they experienced frustration with convention suitcases. 

Blanchett got frustrated when he had to stand in a long queue in the airport to get his bag to come out on the luggage carousel.

Moreover,  he was also exhausted from damaged zippers, lost items,  and heavy bags.  That is why he tried to make a better suitcase. The outcome is Trunkster which is capable enough to give a better travel experience to everyone. 

The smart suitcases of Trunkster are the perfect examples of his affirmation to make travelling simpler and enjoyable. 

In 2014, Jesse Potash and Gaston Blanchett established Trunkster. The primary objective of the founders was to bring innovation and change to the luggage industry by putting in modern parts to the Trunkster.

In 2015, the founders of Trunkster began a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter and IndieGoGo which became incredibly successful.  They were able to generate more than $3 million from over 7000 persons.

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TrunkSter before Shark Tank

Jesse and Gaston set up Trunkster in 2014 to create a smart suitcase with modern features and gadgets to give travellers a hassle-free travelling experience. 

That introduced Trunkster with a removable battery, USB charging port, GPS, and built-in scale. They started a Kickstarter campaign to get funding for Trunkster.  They were able to generate $1.4 million from 7000 people. The campaign became very successful. They obtained thousands of pre-orders on the Kickstarter platform.

After that, the founders began another crowdfunding campaign on IndieGoGo intending to obtain funds for their product. In 2915, they were able to generate $2.7 million from the two campaigns. 

Trunkster also won the Shopify Build a Business competition in 2015 for which the product became super valuable. After that,  they came to Shark Tank to obtain more investment for their product. 

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What occurred to TrunkSter on Shark Tank?

The two friends, Jesse Potash and Gaston Blanchett, featured Trunkster on Shark Tank to obtain additional investment for the production and distribution of Trunkster. 

They came up on Shark Tank intending to get an investment of $1.4 million in return for a 5% share in their business. The two friends started to give their pitch by showing their product to the sharks. They displayed the design of the trunkster and how it is a better choice than conventional suitcases.

They also showed the two versions of the Trunkster: carry-on and checked. The carry-on version comes with a lightweight design and was designed particularly for frequent flyers.  On the other hand,  the checked model is focused on checking in. 

The sharks were very happy as the suitcase was created by using aircraft-grade aluminium to make it indestructible. Nevertheless, Kevin O’Leary was surprised after hearing the amount they asked for and called the founders insane. 

The founders of Trunkster told the sharks that they had already received $2.7 million in funding from the crowdfunding platform and they had begun to manufacture 500 bags with the amount which would be shipped by the end of December 2016.

The sharks were confused after knowing the valuation of Trunkster to be $28 million. Nonetheless, the founders of Trunkster strived their best to convince the shark that Trunkster was valued at $28 million.

Potash even said that they were looking forward to generating sales worth $9 million with $6 million in profit by the end of 2016. Mark Cuban saw numerous problems with the pre-ordering and even thought about whether the founders were capable enough to regulate such a large company. So,  he left the deal. 

Barbara followed Mark Cuban as she was puzzled by the look of the product. Robert Herjavec was ready to invest $1.4 million in exchange for a 30% share in the business.

Kevin was eager to join hands with Robert in the deal and eventually Robert refused to invest. After that Kevin proposed to invest $1.4 million in exchange for a 37% share in the business. The founders did not accept the offer.

Lori gave another offer.  She was ready to invest $1.4 million in exchange for a 15% stake in the business while Cuban said that he wanted to negotiate his proposal. 

Jesse and Gaston asked for some time to consult among themselves and returned with Lori and Mark Cuban’s proposal of $1.4 million for a 5% stake in Trunkster and doubling their stake if they do not pay their money back in 2 years.

Lori and Mark both acknowledged the proposals from Trunkster creators.

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Did TrunkSter get a deal on Shark Tank?

Yes, Gaston Blanchet and Jesse Potash Trunkster were able to secure a deal from Lori and Mark Cuban’s investment of $1.4 million for a 5% share in Trunkster. 

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What occurred to Trunkster after Shark Tank?

Trunkster was supposed to provide the products to the pre-ordered consumers in January 2016. Nevertheless, the company did not make any deliveries as committed by them. 

Moreover, there is no news about whether the consumers received their refund. Customers who pre-ordered Trunkster have made a lot of complaints. 

One of the creators of Trunkster, Jesse has vanished from the internet world.  On the other hand, Gaston has introduced humanity. Tv. A lot of people who pre-ordered the product and invested in crowdfunding have filed a case against the creators. 

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Is Trunkster still in business?

Trunkster seemed to have stopped its operation as the product they committed to deliver in January 2016 has not yet been delivered. The co-founders of Trunkster disappeared from the internet and another founder began a new venture. The founders of Trunkster had a lack of vision and experience. That is why thousands of people had to waste their money. 

Although Trunkster secured a deal on Shark Tank, unfortunately, the deal did not work out, neither Lori nor Mark were associated with the company. The company faced a lot of problems while they were trying to get businesses off the ground.

In 2009 Trunkster was launched and it became unprofitable after various problems. The founders are now working on some new projects.

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What is the business model of Trunkster? 

TrunkSter has managed to raise $2.4 million only from pre-orders. They were able to raise a sum of $2.8 million from the crowdfunding campaign. As per the website, the cost of the carry-on model is $495 and the cost of the checked model is $535.

The bags are now available for pre-order, but as per multiple reports, a lot of users have yet to obtain their orders and a lot of people have obtained poor-quality products.

Trunkster suitcases are available for pre-orders; nonetheless, a lot of consumers have claimed that they were not delivered even after making the full payment.

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Trunkster Shark Tank update

Trunkster was never able to complete the required persistence phase to get a deal with Lori and Mark. They have completely vanished after appearing on Shark Tank. As they were not able to meet with Lori and Mark the deal was never fulfilled. 

But that was not the only issue that they had. A lot of other people have made complaints about the quality of the product also. We can say that they never delivered the products that people ordered. A lot of people who ordered the products never got the products delivered. Even those who received the products were not satisfied with the quality of the product.

A lot of people are claiming a refund from the company on their Kickstarter page. Several people are going to bring a class action case against the company.  

The worst thing is that one of the founders of the company Jesse Potash has disappeared. Gaston Blanchett left the firm to start a new project named Humanity. TV.

This social app allows people to interact with others who are curious, travellers and adventurers. Trunkster had removed its websites and social media accounts. 

There is no way to get in touch with the company anymore. A lot of people are saying that Trunkster was a big scam.

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Why did TrunkSter fail?

Unfortunately, the founders and investors of Trunkster were caught up in fantasies about what the marketplace could have been but the creators tried to make it a reality in their way but completely failed. 

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What is the net worth of Trunkster?

When Trunkster was featured on Shark Tank the valuation of the company was $28 million.  The net worth of Trunkster is unidentified as of 2023 since the company is no longer active in business. 

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How much does a Trunkster cost?

The price of Trunksters depends on their size and type.  The original Trunksters are available at $295 for the carry-on size and if you choose the largest size the price can go up to $395.

The Trunkster roll top starts at $495 for the carry-on size and it can go up to $535 for the largest size. You will get a lifetime warranty for all trunksters.

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Conclusion

It was unfortunate that Trunkster vanished after Shark Tank. As soon as the Shark Tank episode aired, Trunkster got a lot of rumours and orders for its unique product.

Nevertheless, because of some production delays, they were not able to fulfil all orders. Customers were not happy with their conduct and some customers had also made complaints about the bad quality of the product.

Trunkster has experienced an incredible increase in popularity. The company has managed to reach all over the world.  Unfortunately, due to some issues, the founders were compelled to cease all their business operations. 

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