It was 2016 when Kevin Consolo and Chris Pavlica first founded SneakERASERS, a Columbus-based business that sells instant sneaker-cleaning sponges.
That year, after the pair made their first 10,000 sponges by hand, they took one of the finished products to Walmart, hung it on a peg hook in the store and imagined what might someday be.
“Are people ever going to know this brand?” Consolo wondered in that moment. “And what do we do from here?”
Fast forward 10 years later and SneakERASERS products are sold in more than 2,500 Walmart locations and 57,000 total stores across the country; the company now has seven full-time employees; and Consolo and Pavlica are traveling to Washington D.C. this year for the fourth annual Small Business Summit & Expo to chat with policy makers about how to continue expanding American jobs.
Suffice it to say, the answer to Consolo’s first question was a “yes.”
And though the duo said they never expected this level of success when they first conceived the idea for SneakERASERS, they knew on some level that their brand was a chance worth taking.
“We would have never taken this risk on the company if we didn’t think that there was going to be some sort of version of success,” Pavlica said. “But we certainly never thought we’d get this far.”
In honor of National Small Business Month, Walmart market manager Paul Powell said Walmart locations nationwide are putting on in-store events or participating in factory tours to highlight the small businesses that make up over 60% of Walmart’s U.S. suppliers. On May 29, the Walmart Hilliard Supercenter hosted SneakERASERS to showcase its American-made products.
“Our customers have told us that second to price, where products are made influences their purchase decisions,” Powell said in a press release. “As we celebrate the small businesses here in central Ohio and across the country, Walmart remains committed to buying great quality products that create jobs in communities across the U.S. It makes sense for our customers, our communities and our company.”
The relationship between SneakERASERS and Walmart first became official after Consolo and Pavlica proposed their core product at Walmart’s 2019 Open Call event — an annual opportunity for entrepreneurs to pitch their brands to the largest retailer in the world — and SneakERASERS won a “golden ticket.”
This meant Walmart would give the brand a “test,” selling its product in 100 stores to see how it performed.
“You just really feel that support that Walmart is kind of taking you from the crowd of all these consumer goods and saying ‘This is going to work for Walmart, and let’s create American jobs,’” Consolo said. “It means a lot for our small business.”
A year later, Consolo said he and Pavlica were pitching SneakerERASERS on “Shark Tank,” when they mentioned their “successful test” with Walmart. By the end of the episode, they had a two-shark deal.
“A lot of ‘Shark Tank’ companies are ‘I just sell from my website; we’re looking to get into retail, but we don’t know how,’” Consolo said. “And the fact that we were able to be on the show and be in Walmart and have the revenue and the big-box success and footprint that we had, I think, really helped out credibility.”
In 2024, SneakERASERS won a Walmart golden ticket a second time, this time for its product SneakERASERS Soak Shoe Detergent.
Pavlica said he’s especially grateful to Walmart for seeing through the misconception that the SneakERASERS brand is intended for “sneakerheads” only and helping the company connect with everyday shoppers.
Looking ahead, Consolo said he is excited to launch a third and fourth SneakERASERS product in Walmart stores this year: an officially licensed Rugged Shark footwear-cleaning sponge in July, followed by a Herman Survivors boot-cleaning sponge in August.
Since SneakERASERS was established nearly a decade ago, Consolo and Pavlica have appeared on shows like “Good Morning America” and the “Today” show. And though they’re grateful for the exposure, Pavlica said it was the brand being sold in Walmart that marked “the real turning point” for SneakERASERS’ success.
“And that happened even before ‘Shark Tank,’” Pavlica said. “I go back to that original call when Kevin was there pitching and had a golden ticket and called me on that, and it was just like I can’t believe we’ve reached this level, this is insane. And then it kind of felt like if Walmart accepts us, then the sky’s the limit.”
Reporter Emma Wozniak can be reached at ewozniak@dispatch.com, or @emma_wozniak_ on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus brand SneakERASERS touts Walmart access as key to company’s success
Reporting by Emma Wozniak, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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