Dragons’ Den millionaires: The net worths of the richest people who pitched on the show

Some of them are now richer than the Dragons themselves

2 years ago

Hayley Soen | News

When you watch Dragons’ Den, you think the millionaires are the Dragons, sat there with all their power and literally bundles of cash on their desks. But, some of the people who stood there in front of them, literally begging for cash, have actually gone on to eclipse their bank accounts.

What’s more, some of the richest people to come out of Dragons’ Den pitches didn’t even land investment. Yep – the majority of them were laughed at by the Dragons, and told they’d never make any money. Oh how wrong they were. Here is a rundown of all the people who pitched on Dragons’ Den, and are millionaires now.

Louise Ferguson and Kate Cotton – £5million

via BBC

Louise and Kate are behind SkinnyTan – a brand that does exactly what it says on the tin: It’s a tanning brand that makes you look slim, too. The brand had profits of £600k in its first year, which had all five Dragons making offers. They secured investment, and are now said to be worth £5million each.

Jordan Daykin – £10million

via ITV

In 2014, Daykin appeared on Dragons’ Den and secured an £80k investment from Deborah Meaden, for 25 per cent of his company, GripItFixing. In February 2016, Daykin’s net worth was estimated to be £10million. In the same year, he went on This Morning with Deborah, and discussed being the youngest Dragons’ Den millionaire.

Chika Russell – £10million

via BBC

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The Dragons turned down the chance to invest in Chika Russell’s food company, but now she’s worth £10million and owns six houses, including an eight-bed Notting Hill mansion where she lives with her husband. Cool.

Rob Law – £12million

via BBC

Rob Law is the founder of Trunki – you know, those little ride-on suitcases you always see kids wheeling around airports on. The Dragons actually rejected the business in the Den, but earlier in 2023 Rob sold the company in a deal thought to be worth over £12million.

Levi Roots – £35million

via BBC

Levi Roots’ Reggae Reggae Sauce is now basically a household name, so you may forget that it started as a humble product presented to the Dragons. In 2007, Levi Roots’ music-led pitch became one of the most memorable in the show’s history.

The sauce is now stocked in supermarkets such as Sainsbury’s and has been picked up by restaurants such as KFC and Subway. Levi Roots now has a huge net worth of £35million, according to information gathered by Betway.

Alessandro Savelli – £40million

via BBC

Alessandro Savelli is one half of Pasta Evangelists, who were rejected by the Dragons in 2016. Touker Suleyman branded the pasta business “delusional”, but it’s now worth £200million and turns over £14million in revenue a year. The company delivers pasta dinner kits and recipe boxes to your door. It was reported Alessandro sold his majority share in 2021 for £40million.

Shaun Palfrey – £65million

via BBC

In 2007, the Tangle Teezer hairbrush was pitched to the Dragons by Shaun Palfrey, but rejected. They called the idea “just a brush” and said it “won’t make any money”. How wrong they were, the company is now worth £65million.

Harry and Charlie Thuillier – £85.7million

via BBC

Brothers Harry and Charlie Thuiller entered the Den in 2016, pitching their ice cream brand, Oppo Brothers. The Dragons turned it down, but now the duo is worth £85.7million.

Rachel Lowe – £96million

via BBC

Rachel is another Dragons’ Den reject who went on to become a multimillionaire. She invented Destination London, a destinations based board game, and took her idea into the Den in 2004.

Hamley’s launched the product and it became its best selling game that year – out selling Monopoly. Rachel Lowe went on to launch 21 different varieties of the game and was awarded an MBE in 2009 for services to business. She’s now worth £96million.

Martin Dickie – £228million

via SWNS

According to The Drinks Industry Rich List, Martin Dickie, who is the co-founder of BrewDog, is worth a huge £228million. This isn’t too bad, considering the Dragons rejected his business and said it wouldn’t make any money.

In 2009, the founders of brewery and pub chain BrewDog applied for Dragons’ Den – the Dragons rejected them saying the idea was not investment worthy nor unique enough.

James Watt – £262million

James Watt is also behind BrewDog, and pitched to the Dragons. He’s worth a lot more than his co-founder, £34million more exactly, but that’s a drop in the ocean when your net worth is in the hundreds of millions. The co-founders of BrewDog are actually richer than most of the Dragons themselves, which is a bit of a flex.