“Hi all! Amelia and Lydia here. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to pitch on Dragons’ Den, we’re here to share our behind-the-scenes journey. From getting the call to watching ourselves on TV in front of the nation (ew), this is our experience of taking ivee to the Dragons.”
-Amelia & Lydia Miller, co-founders of ivee
preparing for the pitch
The preparation process was intense, but that’s mostly because the BBC only gave us 20 hours notice. There was a late-stage drop-out, and I guess we were top of the waitlist. We had both just come back from Glastonbury Festival, and at 2 PM we received the call. I sent Lydia a WhatsApp immediately, and she didn’t believe me at first. We had to go clothes shopping almost immediately. – Amelia
By 6:30 PM, we were on a train to Manchester. We hadn’t even launched our platform, so everything you see on screen is a demo site. We had just hours to prepare our pitch and demo before arriving at the studio. It was probably the most stressful train ride I’ve ever had in my life, but we had lots of people at home helping us out. – Lydia
We had a document prepared with potential questions that we thought the Dragons might ask. We wrote out our answers to each question and the night before our pitch, we just practiced as much as we could. Our goal was to nail every aspect of the presentation, which was extra important as we’re a tech platform. We had no physical product to show the Dragons, so we had to impress them with everything else. – Amelia
At the time, we were a part of the London Techstars Accelerator cohort, so at least we were up to speed with pitching. That bit was like second nature. What scared us were those tough questions that the Dragons are known for. – Lydia
what happened in the Den?
At the studio
On the day of the pitch, we arrived at the studio and met with the production team to start rehearsing. We were told that there were four pitches that day. As we went through makeup and wardrobe checks, we saw some of the other entrepreneurs preparing for their pitches. It all made it feel a lot more real. – Amelia
In the Den
Once we were inside the Den, the experience was totally surreal. I’ve grown up watching this show, kind of always hoping I’d end up pitching here one day. It was bizarre. We stepped out of the lift (which isn’t actually a lift, just a set of doors) and pitched. It was such a blur. – Lydia
The demo
Our demo went well, and the Dragons did seem engaged, but Deborah pulls a great poker face. Peter Jones remarked that it was one of the best pitches he had ever seen, which really made all the nerves worth it. – Amelia
who were the Dragons & what did they ask?
That day, we had Joe Wicks on as a guest Dragon. He really fought in our corner, which we appreciate, calling Lydia a ‘mini Dragon’. He was accompanied by Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden, Touker Suleyman, Steven Barlett, and Sara Davies. It’s surreal to think that we will be one of the last ever companies to pitch to Sara Davies in the Den. She’s such an icon! – Amelia
Each Dragon totally had their own perspective, asking questions about our business model (eeek!) and how ivee could scale. Steven in particular challenged us a lot, quizzing our valuation and our growth strategy. It seems we won him over in the end! – Lydia
Quotes from the Dragons
Did we get a deal?
Yes, but not right away. We actually went to the wall four times (a Dragons’ Den record) to negotiate. Joe Wicks was the first to offer, at £37.5k for a 5% stake. Deborah followed on with the same offer, as did Steven. After a lot (a LOT) of deliberation, we accepted Steven & Deborah’s offers for all of the money for 7.5% equity, plus office space (hello, penthouse suite) and future funding. – Lydia
The penthouse suite was a particular highlight. It’s not something we ever would have asked for, but we’re not complaining. – Amelia
what happened after the Den?
In the taxi
We actually left the building with the Dragons, and found ourselves in a taxi with Joe and Touker. It was a surreal moment to be sharing a cab with two of the UK’s biggest business figures, neither of whom invested in us. – Lydia
With Joe Wicks
Both of them were extremely kind and helpful in the taxi ride. Joe spoke a lot about authenticity and community-building, which are two things we are extremely focused on at ivee. – Amelia
With Touker Suleyman
Touker spoke more about the challenges that come with growth and the ups and downs of running a business. It was great to talk to them off-air, without the stress of being in the Den. – Amelia
What's next for ivee?
Well, the episode aired a year after we filmed it. The business has come a very long way since then. We’ve grown to over 70,000 community members, with an evaluation of £6.5 million. Working with Steven and Deborah has been great. We’ve been exchanging lots of voice notes, have visited Steven’s office, and even filmed a couple of TikToks.
This is just the beginning!
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