Entrepreneur’s low-sugar chocolate leaves three Dragons’ Den investors fighting to back him – and his website crashes after the show thanks to demand from viewers
- Stephen Conway, runs Pure Heavenly Chocolate – a healthy low sugar chocolate
- Judges impressed by chocolate bars, which only contain four per cent sugar
- The entrepreneur asked for £75,000 for 7.5 per cent of his business on the show
- Three of the judges tried to win over Stephen, but he opted for Peter Jones deal
An entrepreneurs low-sugar chocolate left three Dragons’ Den investors fighting to back him on last nights show – and viewers were so intrigued that the brands website crashed.
Stephen Conway, from Sailsbury, who runs Pure Heavenly Chocolate, pitched his low sugar chocolate, free from dairy, soy, gluten and palm oil free, to the five investors.
The chocolate bars, which only contain four per cent sugar, were welcomed by them all, who were all impressed by the taste – despite it being marketed as a healthy chocolate bar.
The entrepreneur entered the Den, which airs on BBC 2, looking for a £75,000 investment, in exchange for 7.5 per cent of his business. Three of the five judges fought it out to win over Stephen, but in the end he went for Peter Jones deal – which would see him take a 20 per cent stake in his company, and would go down to 15 per cent once he made £100,000 profit.
There were mixed reactions however on Twitter, with some claiming that he had taken the ‘good bits out’ of the chocolate, however others were keen to get their hands on it – but couldn’t as brands website had crashed.
Stephen Conway (pictured) from Sailsbury, who runs Pure Heavenly Chocolate, pitched his idea of a low sugar chocolate free from dairy, soy, gluten and palm oil free on last nights show
Three of the five judges fought it out to win over Stephen, but in the end he went for Peter Jones deal – which would see him take a 20 per cent stake in his company. Pictured: Peter congratulating Stephen on their deal
There were mixed reactions however on Twitter, with some claiming that he had taken the ‘good bits out’, however others were keen to get their hands on the chocolate but couldn’t as the website had crashed
The businessman explained, during his pitch to the dragons, that he created the chocolate as his two young daughters had food intolerances and he wanted to create a product that they could enjoy.
‘Its been heartbreaking for me when I have to monitor what they eat. I wanted to find a healthier chocolate alternative that we could all enjoy – so that’s when I started experimenting – and my children loved it,’ he said.
He went on to admit that the company had turned over half a million pounds in the first year – just via sales from their website.
All of the judges looked impressed, with them all noticing the passion and drive in his pitch.
The businessman explained, during his pitch to the dragons, that he created the chocolate as his two young daughters had food intolerance’s
The chocolate bars, which only contain four per cent sugar, were welcomed by the judges, who were all impressed by the taste – despite it being marketed as a healthy chocolate bar.
Tej Lalvani, said he loved the taste and it was ‘right up his street,’ but still questioned him on how much the bars of chocolate cost.
Stephen admitted that the healthy bars of the chocolate had a high price point – and sold for £3.45 on their website.
New dragon Sara Davies was impressed by his turnover of half a million in his first year of trading, but Stephen admitted that he had lost money – £180,000 in the first year due to mistakes concerning the quality of the chocolate.
Despite his revelation the judges liked his honesty and most of them still seemed interested in investing in his company.
Some fans were so impressed by the chocolate that they crashed the brands website, while others questioned the price of it
However some fans of the show weren’t as impressed by the idea, with one saying: ‘Healthy chocolate!?!?….as if! There’s no such thing…#dragonsden
While another joked: ‘On the rare occasion you find me eating #Chocolate you better believe it’s going to be full of sugar and unhealthy, that’s the point! #DragonsDen’
‘I love chocolate but not that much that would be what roughly €4 a bar why should it always be so expensive for people with intolerance and allergies it’s very unfair #dragonsden’ – another said about the price of the chocolate.
Dragon’s Den star Peter Jones was impressed with Stephen’s business skills and loved the idea of the chocolate – he was quick to make him an offer
Three judges all made Stephen similar offers – including Peter Jones, Tej Lalvani, Deborah Meaden, who said they would invest the full £100,000 for 20 per cent of the business
Peter Jones was the first to show some interest and said: ‘I’m a chocolate man. I’ve not tasted chocolate this good for a while – but is this a business opportunity?’
He quickly came to the conclusion that it was:’I can do all the things you need – and I can do it with passion drive and enthusiasm – as I like it that much.’
Three judges all made Stephen similar offers – including Peter Jones, Tej Lalvani, Deborah Meaden, who said they would invest the full £100,000 for 20 per cent of the business.
Faced with the competition Peter Jones put in a better offer and said he would be willing to drop down to a 15 per cent share if he made £100,000 in 18 months.
His hard bargaining worked out and the businessmen sealed the deal with a hug.
Faced with the competition Peter Jones put in a better offer and said he would be will to drop down to a 15 per cent share if he made his £100,000 back in 18 months. His hard bargaining worked out and the businessmen sealed the deal with a hug (pictured)
Three judges all made Stephen similar offers – including Peter Jones, Tej Lalvani, Deborah Meaden, who said they would invest the full £100,000 for 20 per cent of the business.
However, it wasn’t just Peter Jones that was a fan of the chocolate – as viewers were so impressed that they crashed the brands website.
Many tweeted how the website had crashed, when they attempted to buy some of the health confectionery themselves.
‘Pure Heavenly Chocolate inundated lol #dragonsden’ one said, as they tweeted a picture of the 502 error which had come up on the website when they tried to access it.
Others had similar problems: ‘Watching #DragonsDen and have tried to order some of your chocolate but your website won’t work! I think a lot of people must be trying to order #WeLoveChocolate’.
‘Tempted by the chocolate on #DragonsDen to find the website has a 502 error. Gah,’ another said.
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