“The Lion’s Den”
Gold winner Steiner silver-plated weight loss stamp
Matthias and Inge Steiner at “The Lions’ Den”.
© Photo: RTL / Bernd-Michael Maurer
In episode two of “The Lion’s Den” Matthias Steiner was able to celebrate a deal. Other founders also scored points with surprising ideas.
Golden deal for the Olympic champion
How hard is it for an Olympic weightlifting champion to land a deal with the Lions? Matthias Steiner and his wife Inge, presenter and best-selling author, wanted to know. After his career ended in 2013, the 2008 Olympic champion weighed over 150 kilos. At that time he wanted to go back to his normal body. “But without diets, without having to torture myself.” Today his mission is: good and healthy nutrition for everyone. From this, he and his wife developed a wide range of low-carb, reduced-sugar products and founded the “Steiner’s” brand. But: Have the two of them misunderstood each other? The “Steiner’s” products were consistently well received by the lions. Only the relatively high price and the previous business results could not convince everyone. In the end, Nils Glagau (48) and Ralf Dümmel (57) dueled for the deal. Both offered the required 300,000 euros, but not for ten, but for 15 or 17.5 percent of the company. After Inge Steiner’s passionate plea for their “baby” together, she and husband Matthias accepted the offer from lion Nils Glagau. Her conclusion: “You are the man.”
Clean shop for potties to go
Which parents don’t know the situation? At the most inopportune moments, children urgently need to go to the toilet. Without a quiet place nearby, things often get crowded. Founder Anna Wirsching (38) knows the way out of the misery. She invented “Pee & Bob”, the folding potty for on the go. The little place to go fits in every backpack. “I see Pee & Bob standing next to every diaper shelf,” says Anna. To achieve the goal, she needed 30,000 euros for ten percent of the company shares. Could she hope for big business or did her pitch fall flat? The lions found Anna’s presentation refreshing, exciting and entertaining. Lioness Dagmar Wöhrl (69) was the first to make an offer, and Ralf Dümmel followed suit. Both were prepared to invest 60,000 euros for 20 percent. Who will Anna’s idea grow out of diapers with soon? Power woman Anna came out as a real Ralf Dümmel fan and chose the original lion. Carsten Maschmeyers (64) final comment: “Ralf, I wish you that you turn shit into gold.”
“KitchBo” success story remains hot
Another deal for Ralf Dümmel from last season has already become a success story. Something literally clicked between him and the “KitchBo” team. Their modular silicone baking mat has impressed professionals like star chef Christian Rach (66) as well as many customers: “We sold 200,000 units in six months and achieved a trading turnover of over three million euros,” says investor Ralf Dümmel happy with his deal. The founders Karolin Djukic, Darko Djukic and Nikola Natterer have many more plans: “We want to make KitchBo a big brand for kitchen accessories.” You can continue to count on the support of Christian Rach. The new goals of “KitchBo” are: “Gain even more branches, position KitchBo even better on the market and go international.”
No lion money for the tipping platform
Joachim Sedlmeir (44) was hoping for a similar success story. With his platform YoYo.TIPS he wants to help the 34 million people who work in the service sector in Germany. Because they still rely on tips. At the same time, fewer and fewer customers are paying in cash. And: “The mixing of sales and tips has a disadvantageous tax effect for companies,” says Joachim. Using its platform, customers and guests can give digital, individualized tips directly to the employee using a QR code. Joachim, who has already had a bitter company bankruptcy behind him, was combative: “I won’t give up that easily.” He needed 120,000 euros for 15 percent of his company shares. The lions were enthusiastic about the idea behind Joachim’s development. At the same time, they doubted the practical implementation, especially since there was a competitor with a market advantage. So Joachim remained in the lion’s den without a deal.
Aperitif made from coffee bean waste is a lion’s favorite
A red-fruity, tart aperitif made from the waste products of the coffee bean? Lisah Dietrich (30) and Constantin Müller (34) from Mainz make the new aperitif Lacascara from the shell and pulp of the coffee bean, known as “cascara” in Spanish. Their motto: For us, the waste product is the star. The two founders still brew and bottle their bottles in their home kitchen, but that should change if possible. With an investment of 110,000 euros for 25 percent, both wanted to conquer the trade as quickly as possible. “Sensational performance,” said Ralf Dümmel. The lions liked the product, but the plan to set up their own production was less so. Ralf Dümmel, Carsten Maschmeyer and Tijen Onaran (39) therefore canceled their sails. Tillman Schulz (34), on the other hand, entered the fight for the two founders. Nils Glagau accepted the challenge from “Mr. Food”. His principle of market launch: quality instead of quantity – and the start of a negotiation marathon. The founders once again thought about a joint deal with Glagau and Schulz for 40 percent. Ultimately, they gave preference to the quickest possible market launch and the deal with Tillman Schulz.
Not keen on the Böcke deal
Founder Sebastian Radeck (42) from Dortmund was also keen on a lion deal. The owner of an assembly company has been to many construction sites around the world and has identified a weak point: wobbly assembly trestles. He wants to address this with his multifunctional assembly trestle system Multibex. The founder and professional craftsman on the areas of application of his product: “They are unlimited: the gardener, the housewife, in the hobby workshop when making models or wallpapering.” The friendly Dortmund native offered 25 percent of his company shares for 150,000 euros. Tijen Onaran advised the craft professional to “multiply” himself, for example on social media or in tele-shopping, but dropped out just like Dagmar Wöhrl, Ralf Dümmel and Carsten Maschmeyer. The feedback from the “Dortmund boy” Tillman Schulz remained: “Even if you come from Dortmund like me, unfortunately I’m out.” But let’s wait and see: Maybe we’ll see Sebastian on shopping TV again soon.