Dragons Den: review of last night
Jul 22
When I explain to people what I do at social events - the standard response is “so you are a dragon?” Personally, I like to think of myself as an angel!
I thought it would be good to write about my response to the episode last night as a business angel in terms of some of the businesses presented. I really would like to invite your feedback on this to see what you thought. (my apologies to readers outside of the UK )
The first noteworthy business was the band. They were very impressive as they had totally understood the concept of smart money. They were offered a better deal by Duncan, but declined his offer as they believed Peter Jones could do more for them than either Theo and Debra or Duncan. He competed as an angel on what he could bring to the party - not the terms he could offer. The Band decided to ignore the stake they would have in the business and focus on what the business would be worth with his involvement.
Lesson: As an Entrepreneur looking for funding from various sources - always go for the one that can do the most for the business
The guys who presented the water had sadly missed the point. Their solution involved a big capital expenditure (£700) and people are happy with the current solutions of tap water or bottled water - or the hybrid solution of Brita filtered water.
They had also failed to understand that having a door to door sales operation is extremely expensive. The margins would be very tight and the stock management would be a huge issue.
Some hilarity was provided by the fact that the water tasted awful. It reminded me of the time I worked for Fuji film. We were technically a much better product than Kodak - but it did not matter. The consumer perceived Kodak was ‘warmer’ and they bought film to capture ‘warm’ moments. It is not about what is technically better - but what the consumer wants.
Lesson: Does the consumer value the solution? (forget how you know it is better - do they value the difference with the existing solution?)
The Baby seat was a great example of inventing a solution to no problem (along with the pillow you can use on a train and the ‘strike pad’ which counted your calories!
Finally, my favourite was the couple who designed a duvet with a line in the middle. This would ‘help’ couples stick to their side of the bed. It was just crap! I can only assume they have no friends. Any decent friend would have asked them “why?” The fact they have spent money exploring this idea saddens me.
Anyway - that was my take on the pitches - what was yours?
Hi and welcome to my blog. 
Jul 22 at 16:47
[…] Anyway, I ended up happening upon something else - it’s the blog of a self-proclaimed ‘business angel’ and his reasoning for why the products failed last night and the motivations behind the choices that some people took during the show. Anyway, have a look here. […]
Jul 23 at 10:36
I have been a fan of Dragons Den since it started but I do wonder on the selection criteria for getting on the show. I have seen the “camera crew” at quite as few business events where you can pitch your ideas. I have thought about this as a way to raise funds and more importantly get a great name behind me for my businesses but I think it is turning into more of a comic show, made for TV, and less of a business show.
it is great to watch the “dragons” wake up when somebody who does have that spark of enthusiasm walks up the stairs and does a great pitch that shows they can execute on their given idea.
As we know, it is more about the execution than the idea, but the show IMHO is regrettably going downhill.