“The Lion’s Den”: Ralf Dümmel smelled big business

“The Lion’s Den”
Investor senses big business: Dümmel invests in WC-Star

We would have thought that there would be something else to find when it came to toilets. And above all: that a cistern like this can be a gold mine. Ralf Dümmel, the man for mass-produced goods in the “Lion’s Den”, couldn’t wait to shake hands with the founders of WC-Star. The two gas-water-shit aficionados have been trying to place their toilet blocks on the market for six years – with moderate success so far. 48,000 euros in sales with 90,000 euros in investment costs. A balance to wash down.

But Dümmel smelled big business. He referred to the example of Rostschrei, of which just over 3,000 units had been sold by the time of the DHDL presentation in October 2017. The number of anti-rust magnets sold is now almost eight million. Whether the Hamburg investor with the Sustainable hygiene system for the cistern Will a similar coup succeed again? “For me, the WC Star is a real star,” he exclaimed and also made it clear that competing offers were not necessary. “There’s only one lion for this one.” Deal Dümmel. (The star Incidentally, the product has been tested, you can read the test here.)

“Lion’s Den” investors with hedgehogs in their pockets

The fact that money is no longer so easy for the lionesses and lions has already been evident throughout the entire current season. That may be due to the economic situation, but perhaps also because the television investors in the “cave” have already seen pretty much everything. In short: the level of innovation or profit potential of a product has to be very high in order to raise the jury’s blood pressure.

The rollerback didn’t succeed. The buttrest for an ergonomic sitting position on the bike is a nice-to-have – but do you really need it? Nils Glagau carried out the test on the two-wheel simulator and confirmed that the system had a certain added value on inclines. However, he didn’t want to spend 299 euros on it. Carsten Maschmeyer also found the price for a “simple construction with four foam rollers” too high. Tijen Onaran unpacked the really big class struggle silverware: “The Rollerback only serves a certain target group that is placed at a higher level.”

Doctors told his mother the wrong anesthetic when he was born

The lights went out pretty quickly at Lixl, a start-up that wants to use three-dimensional lighting effects to transform gaming rooms into showrooms – Judith Williams didn’t feel any “financial tension”. But the beauty entrepreneur hardly felt weak when it came to the skin creams from Lanin Labs. The care range is explicitly aimed at darker skin types who – according to the founder – “have difficulty absorbing moisture and active ingredients in the lower layer of the skin”. Janna Ensthaler found the smell “very organic”, Williams found the price “difficult” (60 euros for 30 ml). After a long struggle (“I’m just breathing”), she decided against taking a financial stake. Due to the low sales to date, Lanin Labs is unfortunately “uninvestable”.

FourWays is unlikely to become a million-dollar business either. Carsten Maschmeyer still decided to invest 150,000 euros. FourWays is a software program that converts head movements into mouse movements, allowing people with disabilities to control laptops, tablets and smartphones. The inventor and founder is a business IT specialist who has severe physical and linguistic limitations. Doctors said his mother used the wrong anesthetic when he was born. During the pitch, the young entrepreneur could hardly avoid expressions of respect. Ralf Dümmel called him, somewhat borderline, a “Stephen Hawking who has cool things up his sleeve.” Tijen Onaran said he had “a good sense of humor”. But the only cash was from Maschmeyer, who not only promised the start-up money but also “tech support”.

Transparency note: Like stern, Vox is part of RTL Deutschland.

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