Ari Siegel
IG/ Northbrook Public Library

A Chicago man who built a subscription business around replicas of historical documents has landed an investment deal on ABC's Shark Tank after the company crossed $2 million (£1.51 million) in annual revenue.

Ari Siegel, 38, founded History By Mail in January 2019. The company mails subscribers a replica of a different American historical document each month, printed on paper meant to closely match the original, along with a written page explaining the story behind it. Siegel told CNBC the business brought in more than $1 million (£756,000) in 2024 and is profitable.

The idea started during a US Senate internship. Siegel was visiting the Library of Congress when he came across a handwritten letter from Abraham Lincoln. He started making copies for friends and family. Their reaction convinced him there was a business in it. He was working for a real estate developer in Brooklyn at the time and ran History By Mail as a side hustle for more than six years before going full-time after the Shark Tank episode, he told Entrepreneur.

Mark Cuban Told Siegel He Did Not Need Shark Tank's Help

Siegel appeared on the programme in April 2025, seeking $250,000 (£189,000) for 10 per cent of the company. He handed each panellist a curated document on stage. Mark Cuban received the 13 original rules of basketball. Daniel Lubetzky got an eyewitness sketch of a D-Day platoon leader. Siegel also presented the cheque the US government used to buy Alaska from Russia, he told Entrepreneur.

History By Mail
History By Mail Website

Cuban was impressed but declined. 'You get to do what you love, and you're making a killing,' he told Siegel, per CNBC. 'You don't really need our help to get to the next level.' Lori Greiner also passed.

Kevin O'Leary offered $250,000 (£189,000) for 20 per cent. Lubetzky, the Kind Snacks founder, matched it. Barbara Corcoran then proposed joining Lubetzky's bid, splitting the investment at $125,000 (£94,500) each for 10 per cent apiece. Siegel accepted their joint offer on air.

The deal changed after cameras stopped rolling. Corcoran did not proceed past due diligence. The final agreement was between Siegel and Lubetzky's firm Camino Partners, a company spokesperson told CNBC. Daily sales broke the company's previous single-day record within an hour of the episode going to air.

Revenue Grew From $2,300 to Over $2 Million in Six Years

History By Mail made just $2,300 (£1,740) in its first year. A partnership with online gift retailer Uncommon Goods in 2020 changed the trajectory. Siegel said he spent weeks cold-calling buyers and attending trade shows before someone took a chance on the product. Uncommon Goods had never carried a subscription before. Revenue jumped to $153,000 (£115,700) that year and kept climbing, reaching $1 million (£756,000) by 2023.

The company pulled in $1.24 million (£937,400) in 2024 and just over $2 million (£1.51 million) in 2025. Siegel now runs a remote team of 12, up from 10 at the time of the Shark Tank taping. Subscriptions start at $8.99 (£6.80) a month. He is projecting $3 million (£2.27 million) for 2026.

In January 2026, History By Mail returned to Shark Tank for an update segment filmed with magician David Copperfield. Lubetzky arranged access to Copperfield's private museum, where the company replicated a letter from Harry Houdini. The segment aired on 28 January on ABC, according to the company's blog.

Siegel said the business recently passed one million letters delivered. He is now pushing to reduce the company's reliance on holiday-season gifting by expanding into corporate sales, school programmes, and museum partnerships. A campaign tied to America's 250th anniversary is also in the works.

'The mission is to allow more people to have access to documents that already belong to them, just not in their hands,' Siegel told CNBC. 'This is American history.'

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