15 Surprising Facts About 'Shark Tank' Judge Lori Greiner: Net Worth, Businesses, Family & More

Dec. 9 marked the 53rd birthday of Lori Greiner, the "warm-blooded shark" and one of the judges on the popular ABC reality television series "Shark Tank."

Greiner is a jewelry designer, entrepreneur, investor, producer, humanitarian and media personality rolled into one. She definitely has "multi-faceted" in her vocabulary for her wide-ranging career profile. Learn more about the famous shark's endeavors and her life so far in this rounded-up list of 15 surprising facts.

1. Greiner's net worth is estimated to be $150 million.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Greiner reportedly earns $5 million a year from her jewelry and home accessory business, "For Your Ease Only, Inc.," as well as from her role as a judge on ABC's hit show "Shark Tank," where she rakes in a whopping $50,000 per episode.

Greiner has the tiger's eye when determining whether a product is profitable or not. She is known for "telling instantly if a product is a "hero" or a "zero," and she has a 90% success rate on new items launched."

2. Greiner worked in Chicago Tribune while she was studying.

Greiner earned a bachelor's degree in communications at Loyola University in Chicago. She also worked at the Chicago Tribune to pursue her interest in journalism while attending college.

3. Her first invention was a 100-earring organizer.

In 1996, while still a student, Lori created and patented a plastic 100-earring organizer and struck a partnership with the American retail giant J.C. Penney. It became a huge success.

4. Before becoming the "QVC Queen," she was first rejected by the network.

Greiner had to first up the ante for investment opportunities before emerging as one of the industry's well-known sharks. After her product's feat in J.C. Penney, Greiner tried her luck with the home shopping channel QVC, where she offered her jewelry organizer for sale, but QVC rejected her pitch.

She then introduced her products on the Home Shopping Network, where she also made her first appearance. After two minutes, she sold 2,500 units of her jewelry organizer on the network.

Greiner's jewelry organizer was such a smash hit that it allowed her to pay back the $300,000 loan she borrowed for its production.

5. Greiner started her own show on QVC in 2000.

She started her own TV show on QVC called "Clever and Unique Creations", a free-to-air television program that became a staple of the QVC program for more than ten years. On the show, she promoted innovative gadgets, smart accessories, and storage solutions.

The television show ran for 11 seasons, making it one of the shows to have produced the most seasons on the network.

6. Greiner turned down an investor seat on "Shark Tank" in Season 1.

Greiner was supposed to join the prestigious group of investors when the ABC smash series creator Mark Burnett aired it in 2009.

"It was 2008 when I got the call to come in and meet with Mark Burnett for a new show that he, ABC, and Sony were developing, called 'Shark Tank,'" Greiner wrote in her success storybook in 2014. "The meeting went great, and I was so excited to be chosen for the show."

But unfortunately, she declined the TV offer since her mother passed away at the time.

"Then the most horrible thing happened," Greiner explained, as per Cheat Sheet. "My mother, whom I loved very much, died suddenly right at the same time as shooting, and I had to withdraw. It was a difficult time."

7. Greiner finally jumped into the Tank and swam with other notable investors in 2012.

She first appeared on the show as a guest shark in Season 3. Greiner was a hard catch since she only became an official shark in Season 4.

"The producers kept in touch with me, and three years later, I appeared in season three as a guest Shark," Greiner shared. "Then I became a permanent Shark in season four."

8. Shark Tank is a 4-time Emmy award winner.

Greiner was already part of "Shark Tank" when it brought home the Emmy award for Outstanding Structured Reality Program for four years in a row, from 2014 to 2017.

9. Greiner was the shark that bit the Scrub Daddy pitch.

Aaron Krause entered "Shark Tank" in 2012 with his prized Scrub Daddy samples that turned dirt into magic, not knowing that Greiner's investment would change his life forever. Greiner invested $200,000 for a 20% stake in Scrub Daddy, according to CEO Magazine.

Nine years after appearing on "Shark Tank," Scrub Daddy's scratch-free cleaning sponges generated $400 million in retail sales.

10. She's also an author!

With her desire to turn the dreams of others into reality, she authored a step-by-step entrepreneurship guidebook called "Invent It, Sell It, Bank It!: Make Your Million-Dollar Idea Into a Reality," which goes in-depth on her entrepreneurial efforts in inventing and marketing products to achieve success.

11. She's a business mogul for a reason.

The business mogul boasts 120 U.S. and international patents and has created and sold more than 1,000 profitable products.

12. She started a production company called Good Place Entertainment.

Apart from jewelry storage, cosmetic organizers and home accessories, Greiner also created her own production company called "Good Place Entertainment." With an already multi-faceted career, she's definitely up for the challenge of growing outside of marketing and business and creating passion projects in this field, given her early enthusiasm for TV, cinema and journalism.

13. She offers scholarships and helps humanitarian charities.

Greiner believes that "if you are lucky enough to be successful, you have a responsibility to give back," and true to her belief and success, she helps other people achieve their dreams.

Greiner sponsors "underprivileged women programs to uplift and encourage our youth, or supporting first responders and health care workers" with complete tuition for four years of college.

According to TV Guide, Greiner also helps nonprofit organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, the Salvation Army and the Howard Brown Health Center through humanitarian charities.

14. She received the Sherry Lansing Woman of the Year Award was and recognized as an Important Woman in Television by the Paley Center for Media.

"Lori's extraordinary track record in building brands and her standout success as a business innovator is the very essence of what SeeHer is all about," said the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) CEO Bob Liodice via Business Wire. "Her experience and perspective will be invaluable to us as we expand our movement into new markets and new areas."

She was heralded Woman of the Year in 2019. She was also recognized by the Paley Center for Media as an Important Woman in Television. For her achievements, she was tapped to join the SeeHer advisory board. She felt "honored and excited" to be part of "the collective of marketers that committed to creating and supporting content that portrays women and girls as they really are."

"Accurately portraying women and girls in advertising is so important and has a profound impact on how women view themselves, each other, and their importance and value in the world. I'm proud to be amongst esteemed colleagues on the SeeHer board and look forward to working with the women and men who continue to elevate our global consciousness with respect to gender equality, positivity, and unity," she proudly said.

15. She has an Instagram live show.

This year, fans of Greiner may also check out and watch her Instagram live show called "Bed Talks With Lori," in which the businesswoman changes from blazer to pajamas as she hangs out and tackles light and inspiring topics with a variety of celebrities in the comfort of their beds. Some of the celebrities she has already invited to her show include Jay Leno, Olivia Munn and Jennifer Garner.