ROBERT HERJAVEC
Shark Tank investor, founder of Herjavec Group, and one of the most successful immigrant entrepreneurs in North America
Robert Herjavec arrived in Canada from Croatia at age 8 with his family, living in a friend's basement because they had no money. He delivered newspapers, waited tables, worked on film sets, then built and sold a tech company for $30 million before founding Herjavec Group — one of the largest cybersecurity firms in the world. He then became a Shark Tank investor where he is reliably the nicest person in the room. In a show full of people who enjoy saying no, Herjavec actually seems like he wants to say yes.
Net Worth
$200M+
Nationality
Croatian-Canadian-American
Time Horizon
Long-Term
Risk Appetite
7 / 10
Net Worth Context
- · 200x the average American's lifetime earnings, stacked and waiting.
CAREER & BACKGROUND
Robert Herjavec was born in Varazdin, Croatia (then Yugoslavia) in 1962. His family fled communist Yugoslavia and arrived in Halifax, Canada in 1970.
They had almost nothing. His father worked in a factory for 22 years.
Young Robert delivered newspapers, worked at a gas station, and waited tables through school. He got into the tech industry by essentially talking his way into a sales role at Logiquest, a technology company.
He then founded BRAK Systems, an internet security firm, and sold it to AT&T Canada in 2000 for $30 million. In 2003, he founded Herjavec Group, a managed IT security company that grew to over $200 million in annual revenue.
He joined Canada's Dragon's Den in 2009, then Shark Tank in 2015, becoming one of the show's most popular and investor-friendly sharks.
COMPANIES & ROLES
Herjavec Group (founder and CEO — $200M+ revenue cybersecurity firm). BRAK Systems (founded, sold to AT&T Canada for $30M in 2000).
Shark Tank investments (dozens of deals across seasons). Books: Driven (2010), The Will to Win (2013), You Don't Have to Be a Shark (2016).
INVESTING STYLE & PHILOSOPHY
Herjavec invests in people first, businesses second. On Shark Tank, he consistently picks founders he believes in personally — even when the numbers are shaky.
His real investing is in cybersecurity, where he has deep domain expertise. Through Herjavec Group, he has built a massive managed services business that benefits from every new data breach headline.
His personal investments tend toward tech, consumer products, and businesses where he can add operational value. He is less aggressive on valuation than Cuban or O'Leary — he would rather take a smaller stake in a founder he trusts.
THE PLAYBOOK
Money Habits
Herjavec is a car enthusiast — he owns Ferraris, Porsches, and races competitively in the Ferrari Challenge Series. He trains for races seriously.
He also won season 20 of Dancing with the Stars (where he met his second wife, dancer Kym Johnson). He wakes up early, exercises daily, and is known for being one of the most disciplined and personable people in the Shark Tank orbit.
BIGGEST WIN
Herjavec Group. He founded it in 2003 with essentially a desk and a phone after selling BRAK Systems.
He grew it into one of the largest privately held cybersecurity companies in North America, with offices in multiple countries and over $200 million in annual revenue. As cybersecurity spending exploded globally, Herjavec Group was perfectly positioned.
BIGGEST MISTAKE
He has been candid about his first marriage ending during the period when he was building Herjavec Group. He threw himself into work at the expense of his personal life and has spoken about the cost of that imbalance publicly.
On the business side, some of his earlier Shark Tank investments did not pan out — a pattern common to all the sharks, but Herjavec's empathetic investing style means he occasionally backs founders whose stories are stronger than their businesses.
FINANCIAL PHILOSOPHY
Work harder than everyone else. Then work smarter.
Herjavec's philosophy is straightforward: success is earned through relentless effort, and immigrants who come from nothing often have an advantage because they know what losing everything actually feels like. He believes fear of returning to poverty is a more powerful motivator than the desire for wealth.
FAMILY & PERSONAL LIFE
Born 1962, Varazdin, Croatia. First wife Diane Plese (divorced 2015, three children).
Married Kym Johnson (professional dancer from DWTS) in 2016, twins born 2018. His immigrant story — from a basement with no money to a $200M net worth — is central to his public identity.
EDUCATION
University of Toronto — degree in English literature and political science. No formal tech or business education.
BOOKS & RESOURCES
The Art of the Deal by Donald Trump (cited early in career).
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QUOTES (6)
I came to this country with nothing. That is the greatest gift my parents gave me.
If you don't believe in what you're selling, nobody else will either.
Business is a sprint and a marathon. You have to pace yourself but also know when to run.
Cybersecurity is the biggest business opportunity of the next decade. Every breach headline is a sales call.
The best investment I ever made was in myself. Everything else followed.
NETFIGO SCORE
Proprietary 5-dimension investor rating
Risk Appetite
Contrarian Index
Track Record
Accessibility
Time Horizon
Related Profiles
Investors
Barbara Corcoran
Both are Shark Tank investors who built their wealth from humble beginnings and bring emotional intelligence to their deals — often bidding together on consumer product pitches.
Kevin O'Leary
Herjavec and O'Leary are the original Dragon's Den Canada pairing — O'Leary plays the villain, Herjavec plays the hero. Their dynamic carried over to Shark Tank.
Mark Cuban
Both are Shark Tank co-stars — Herjavec is the empathetic investor, Cuban is the tough-love billionaire. They frequently bid on the same deals with very different approaches.