3 days ago
EXCLUSIVE We hit the jackpot with a life-changing deal on Dragons' Den - here's how much contact we REALLY have with the investors after the show
The co-founders of a pet food brand bagged a life-changing deal on Dragons' Den and have revealed how the show has shaped their business since.
Dr Guy Sandelowsky, 38, and Shiv Sivakumar, 33, developed their allergy-friendly pet food business, called Omni, together.
The pair appeared on BBC 's long-standing entrepreneur show in February and managed to secure a £75,000 investment from Deborah Meaden, 66, and Steven Bartlett, 32, for a 2.5% share.
They impressed the Dragons with their company, which uses novel proteins to create allergy-friendly food for dogs and offers a range of supplements.
Now, three months since the episode aired, Guy and Shiv have opened up to MailOnline about their 'nerve wracking' business pitch which landed them a deal with two tycoons.
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The businessmen admitted 'it wasn't easy to get on' the show and they had applied two years in a row before.
'We were just determined that, you know, the world and the nation needed to hear about what Omni was doing,' Guy explained.
The pair created Omni after Shiv, who has a dog prone to allergies and Guy, who has 10 years experience as a vet, came together with the aim to help prevent common problems in pets.
Before entering the infamous den, the pair already had their sight set on two of the dragons and knew what they wanted to leave with.
'Shiv and I had watched Dragons' Den forever, since we can remember, and the likes of Deborah Meaden and even Steven Bartlett, even though he's a dragon that joined later on, we always admired them,' Guy revealed.
He admitted: 'We always knew that, were we to be on the show, those are exactly the dragons we'd want, not least because they have pets, but also because they're just so aligned with what we're trying to do, creating a health sustainability brand.'
The vet described the experience as 'really surreal, honestly and very overwhelming, but in a very positive way'.
Despite carefully preparing an impressive business pitch, Shiv shared 'when it comes down to it, it was very sort of nerve wracking, because you realise you're going to go on TV'.
He added: 'No matter how much you plan, you just don't know how things are going to play out.'
During their business pitch, Shiv and Guy were quickly hit with questions from Peter Jones and Touker Suleyman about their valuations.
Shiv admitted they were 'a little surprised' by how fast the conversation went in that direction and pointed out they have now gone above and beyond with their business since.
However, the pair did manage to keep their cool during the grilling from the dragons.
Shiv said: 'It's really interesting, because we're now, literally a couple of months since being on the den, and the business ... it's doubled in size, we're now tracking revenues for the year of nearly £10 million annualised, which is way more than the valuation we even went into the den asking for.'
Eventually, Touker and Peter pulled out of making offers and Sara Davies declined on the basis the share was too low.
Despite this, the two businessmen are thrilled about securing Deborah and Steven.
Shiv explained how 'well aligned' the business partners are with the two dragons.
He added: 'They authentically care about sort of what we're trying to achieve here. So they're both pet lovers. Steven actually has a dog that's prone to allergies as well. Really has an authentic connection to the environment and sustainability too.
'They both are very good ambassadors and advocates for our business, and that's what we hoped they would do, and they've continued to do that as well since the investment.
'So we couldn't have got a better result, because those are the investors that we wanted to achieve. And we did manage to get this. I think we were pretty elated.'
Guy recalled how the knew the valuation they were asking for was 'reasonable' and even described it as 'quite generous'.
He admitted: 'It just felt very validating when people like Deborah and Steven actually got behind us, and sort of actually on our behalf, were like arguing with Peter and Touker.'
Since securing a joint deal with Deborah and Steven, the co-founders have been 'pleasantly surprised' by how involved the dragons have been with Omni since being on the show.
Guy acknowledged that even though they are both 'celebrities' and 'very busy' with other projects, in reality 'it doesn't feel like that'.
'... The line's always open. We can always speak to them,' he revealed. 'I would say that with Steven and his team, we've had particular guidance and support on some of the brand work that we're doing.'
As for Deborah, who is known for her environmentally friendly business pursuits, the Omni co-founders feel particularly 'mission aligned' with her.
'You know, for us, health is number one, but also the fact that we don't use animal proteins in our products, it just makes our food more environmentally sustainable,' Guy explained.
'And I think because that's a mission that's so close to Deborah's heart, it was quite easy to build that connection.'
He added: 'Whenever we do meet Deborah and we discuss our business plans, it's clear that she really cares, and she knows that when our business grows, yes, there's financial upside, but also the ethical side is really important to her, and she's helping to grow a business that is going to sort of contribute to practices that are better for the environment as well.'
