Eastern alum and former Eastern football team member Keithan Hedrick and his wife, Quiante, will appear on the Jan. 7 episode of Shark Tank, a show that allows entrepreneurs to pitch their products or businesses to investors.

The Hedricks will be featured pitching their business, Candi, to the “sharks” as well as comedian Kevin Hart.

Candi is a service that allows fans to connect with celebrities and influencers in a live video call, with over 350 people currently available for fans to connect with on the website.

Popular people to connect with through the website include singer Sisqó, Saturday Night Live cast member Chris Kattan, and Wild N Out star Justina Valentine.

Keithan Hedrick said lining people up for the business took a lot of work and connections.

“Initially it’s reaching out to cousins, uncles, aunties, whoever you can get in contact with that knows a celebrity, it’s sending them DMs, it’s email and just calling them and getting in contact with their managers, their agents,” Keithan Hedrick said.

He said there’s no one-size-fits-all approach with his business.

“You’re kind of just hustling and doing everything you can. Now, obviously, we’ve been doing it for a while and we’ve got some celebrities, and so we have a little bit more success and we have some direct relationships that we can tap into to recruit,” Keithan Hedrick said. “Particularly early on, it was just a lot of hard work and reaching out and cold calling almost like sales and trying to get in contact with in any way you could.”

Keithan Hedrick said taping the show was an amazing experience and he is excited for the exposure the show will provide to his business.

“There’s no losing going on Shark Tank whether you get a deal don’t get a deal, either way, just being able to get on the show and to get air is a win,” Keithan Hedrick said.

Corryn Brock can be reached at 581-2812 or at deneic@gmail.com.