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Young women, fitness and elephants might seem like odd pillars on which to build a business. But James Brooks has at least four million reasons that prove otherwise.

That's how much money his company, Elephant Pants, made last year. Now, the Schenectady native will vie for a bigger prize when he appears on the hit ABC show "Shark Tank" on Friday.

The company has roots in Thailand, where Brooks and his business partner Nathan Coleman discovered the marketability for "harem-style" pants. It's also where they witnessed firsthand the plight of elephants in some of the country's worst refuges. "We got to see a lot of the so-called sanctuaries that claim to do good by elephants, but a lot of them were using bullwhips and riding them," Brooks said. "Once we did some research, we realized there was some good we could do."

After returning from Asia in 2014, the two launched a crowdfunding campaign for their Brooklyn-based company, with the caveat that 10 percent of all proceeds go to elephant sanctuaries. The company also works with the African Wildlife Foundation and International Elephant Foundation to help the animals, which are increasingly targeted by hunters for their ivory tusks.

Now Brooks and Coleman and Brooks are ready to pitch the idea to high-profile investor Mark Cuban. SEE MORE ABOUT THEM AT TIMES UNION PLUS

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