Three lions in distress at sea

“The Lion's Den”
Three lions in distress at sea

This time in the lion's den: Nils Glagau, Tillman Schulz and Dagmar Wöhrl dare to “go out to sea” on a water bike. A passionate pasta fan declares war on the cooked noodle. And Ralf Dümmel clenches his fists in jubilation (again).

Your pulse is racing, your hands are sweating, your mouth is dry: founders who march into the lion's den always bring a lot of excitement with them. “eWater.Bike” inventor Alexander Dudin has a particularly heavy backpack strapped on. “What year is it, anyway?” asks the jittery founder with a tortured smile on his face. Ten minutes later, the mood of the designer of the “world's first electric motor water bike” sinks even further.

His “water toy”, which was presented with much fanfare, suddenly gave up the ghost during the splashy outdoor test. While Captain Nils Glagau desperately pedals the broken pedals, the two “Chillout” companions Tillman Schulz and Dagmar Wöhrl send a few big question marks towards the shore. In addition to the botched demonstration, the not yet fully developed data, figures and facts weigh heavily. Since the costs are very high (the Chillout variant costs the end customer around 6000 euros) and not a single order has been placed yet, all the lions present drop out.

The first pasta that no longer needs to be cooked

Pasta experts Robert Kaiser and Christian Zippel are not quite as excited: “We say 'Basta' to boiling pasta!”, the voices ring out from the lion's den. Shortly afterwards, the investors enjoy “the first pasta that no longer needs to be cooked”. Thanks to a special roasting process, the “Crunchy Padella” gets a “crispy” al dente consistency when placed in a warm sauce bath. The two founders have already been successfully on the market with an edible drinking straw for several months. The overall package is particularly convincing for the duo Nils Glagau and Dagmar Wöhrl. A short round of negotiations and the deal is done. Dagmar and Nils secure 25 percent of the company shares for 100,000 euros.

Orthomol boss Nils Glagau is also interested in the next pitch. This time, the investor brings his colleague Tillman Schulz on board. The two lions want to invest in the hair and scalp care start-up from Dennis Baltzer, Henning Jahnke and Roberto Bianco (“Better Be Bold”). At first, everything goes according to plan. The product is convincing, the figures are solid and none other than format presenter Amiaz Habtu is available as an enthusiastic product tester. The only hurdle is the valuation. The founders want to give up 15 percent of their shares for 400,000 euros. Nils and Tillman, however, want 30 percent. Since the founders are only willing to give up 20 percent of their company shares in the end, the almost sealed deal falls through.

It's dimmer again

The “Fembites” founders Angelica Conraths and Jana Deckelmann are also a little sad and have to say goodbye to the lion's den without a deal in their pockets. The two Berliners have brought with them a high-quality nutritional supplement set “that can support a woman's hormonal balance”. Unfortunately, fruit gums, chocolate and cocoa powder not only require explanation, but are also very expensive (50 grams of chocolate costs four euros). So no deal is made here either.

Shortly before the end of the day, one of the lions finally puts on a broad grin of victory. His name is Ralf Dümmel. The man of the shelves has never installed a ceiling light himself. But the lion immediately recognizes the innovation and the associated prospects of success behind the smart “Plux” ceiling light click system. He quickly adjusts the percentages (Dümmel demands 30 percent for 150,000 euros instead of the 20 percent offered) and then jumps out of his chair again, cheering: the man who clenches his fists like a winner at least once in every episode.