Starting your own company can be difficult; but when your business impresses even the toughest of Dragons, you know you’re on the right track. This is certainly true for Deepak Tailor, founder of giveaway website LatestFreeStuff, who received validation from the infamously tricky Deborah Meaden on Sunday night’s episode of Dragon’s Den.
For Ms Meaden, who is known for her investments in money-making businesses, taking a punt on a brand based entirely upon giving things away was a break from the norm. But with revenue of £350,000 and more than 300,000 monthly visitors, LatestFreeStuff.co.uk is more than a shot in the dark; it is a successful and viable business opportunity. Today the site lists over 600 free products from top brands and companies; it has a user database of over 120,000 members; and is currently working with the likes of Vodafone, O2, TasteCard, Amazon and Uber. The website brings users some amazing deals, free samples and the chance to ‘try before they buy’, and provides an excellent marketing platform for manufacturers and retailers to enhance their brand awareness.
But why choose the BBC programme Dragon’s Den for investment, rather than arguably easier routes such as crowdfunding or bank loans? As company founder Deepak Tailor explains, the Dragons offer more than just money:
“The main reason I chose Dragons investment was the brilliant connections that they have with the top brands in the UK. This was one of the fundamental problems at LatestFreeStuff, we had too many users, and not enough brands. I really felt like the dragons would be able to open up the doors with the brands that we want to work with in the future. This is something we couldn’t get from crowdfunding or traditional bank loans.”
“LatestFreeStuff has experienced tremendous growth,” Tailor adds. “When I first started my pitch none of them really seemed to understand what it was that I wanted, but once the penny dropped the Dragons all appeared to love my business, and I ended up getting three offers, which was incredible. Deborah Meaden made the best offer, and shaking hands on the deal was an amazing feeling.”
Thus far the company has grown virally through a mixture of word of mouth, social media and search engine traffic, with Deborah Meaden’s advice and investment, the aim was to take the platform to an international market, beginning with America, before spreading across the globe. Investment from Ms Meaden is just the beginning of the next phase of growth for Tailor and his business.
To find out what it was about LatestFreeStuff that excited the Dragons, follow the link here.
Miranda Wadham on 05/01/2015
