Nate Holzapfel

Nate Holzapfel was born on February 2, 1979, in Provo, Utah, USA. He gained public recognition through his appearance on ABC’s “Shark Tank” where he presented the Mission Belt Co. The Mission Belt, which features a ratchet-inspired buckle design, aimed to bring brand recognition to belts. After his television appearance, Holzapfel secured a deal with Daymond John from “Shark Tank,” leading to a significant increase in Mission Belt’s sales, exceeding $1 million within three weeks of the show’s broadcast. By early 2017, Mission Belt had achieved $25 million in revenue and was recognized as one of Daymond John’s top five deals on the program. In 2016, Holzapfel also appeared on “Beyond the Tank,” a spin-off of “Shark Tank,” further detailing the post-investment journey of his business.

Beyond his entrepreneurial endeavors, Holzapfel offered services in sales training, coaching, and public speaking through a personal website, which is now inactive. In 2015, he launched “The Nate State of Mind,” a platform that provided coaching, training videos, and books focused on personal branding, though this domain is also no longer registered to him. His fluency in Spanish, alongside his sales acumen, contributed to his professional profile. However, Holzapfel’s career also encountered significant legal challenges, including a lawsuit from Larry King in 2019 regarding unauthorized use of interview footage and a default judgment of $250,000 against him. In October 2021, he was arrested on multiple counts of communications fraud, with additional charges including forcible sexual abuse and theft emerging in subsequent months. In August 2023, Holzapfel was sentenced to 1 to 15 years in prison and ordered to pay approximately $300,000 in restitution for fraud and sexual battery charges.