A dyslexic entrepreneur kicked things off by showcasing her collection of wallets manufactured by disabled workers. Asking for a £70,000 investment in exchange for a 7 per cent stake in the business, the entrepreneur hoped her products would be able to get more disabled people into work.
With partnerships with Boots and Halfords to brag about, Sarah wanted to know what the competition was like in that market, before ruling herself out of an investment after confessing to a lack of knowledge in the area. The valuation of the business proved a stumbling block for most of the Dragons as Peter ruled himself out of an investment.
With a couple of offers rolling in from Nick, Deborah and Touker, the entrepreneur dealt her chances of securing an investment a serious blow after slight indecision as to whether to manufacture globally or remain a ‘made in Britain’ company.
With the promising business proposal taking a turn for the worst, the businesswoman soon found herself leaving the Den without an investment to show for it, as the remaining Dragons uttered the dreaded words: “I’m out.”
An Anglo-French pair entered the Den next with their online hairdressing service. Asking for £80,000 and offering 5 per cent in their business, the two businessmen initially impressed the investors panel with the backing of famous hairdressers such as John Frieda. With a few limitations of the service being brought up early on, Sarah and Nick questioned the practicality of the website. Touker’s input was brief, and he refused to invest over concerns over customers loyalties to hairdressers.
Concerns over the booking system and the lack of ambition caused the remaining Dragons to flee from the opportunity of investing in the online hairdressing service, meaning the entrepreneurs’ pitch wasn’t as well groomed as they thought.
A Mumpreneur hoped to land an investment with her answer to the age old task of getting children to eat their greens. A lively pitch was met by some criticism straight away, with Nick quizzing the Mum on the demographic, but the businesswoman behind ‘Secret Sausages’ held her own and sidestepped an early sticking point. Peter wasn’t overly enthusiastic about the products, and refused to invest after a moments deliberation.
Touker and Sarah both shied away from the prospect of partnering with the entrepreneur, despite Sarah’s not so secret passion for food. After initially backing the idea, Deborah hammered in the final nail in the coffin by highlighting the less than favourable taste of the sausages. A promising pitch to begin with, but the Dragon’s dissected the sausages and the Mum left the Den empty handed.
Mad Mike the scientist was next in the Den, with his ‘Sublime Science’ service, which hosts science themed parties and makes science more interesting for primary school children. With all the Dragon’s sharing an interest in the products, Sarah, Deborah and Nick expressed their delight in the entrepreneurs motive behind his business.
After a small setback from Touker who refused to invest as he didn’t know the industry well enough, all the other Dragon’s jumped on board an made an offer.
With Sarah, Nick and Deborah meeting the entrepreneurs wishes of a £50,000 for a 10 per cent stake, it was Peter who mixed things up, by asking for double the stake. Nick later revised his offer and asked Sarah to partner with him, leaving Mad Mike with a tricky decision to make.
After a few tense moments, the scientist chose to partner with Sarah and Nick, choosing the Dragons’ combined expertise over Peter’s experience and let of contacts. Mad Mike and his wacky science products joined the exclusive list of entrepreneurs who managed to tame the entirety of the investors panel.
