Dragons’ Illustrate Their Concerns About Art Businesses Materials | Dragons’ Den

[Music] I've always loved painting I'd have Loved to be an artist I ended up going Into banking but I've come back home With this business but will her gamble Of leaving a well-paid city job pay off In the den well that is an artist studio Definitely it looks right up my street I'm feeling quietly confident so um I Hope that shines through Oh hello my name is Xena I'm the founder Of Masterpiece a mindful painting Experience and this is Lara professional Artist and Masterpiece instructor We're looking for a 50 000 pound Investment in return for a 15 stake in Our business When I was a busy city worker painting For me was an incredibly effective way To de-stress turns out research shows That creativity tangibly boosts the mood So much so that the NHS has started Prescribing it in the treatment of Anxiety and depression so a year ago I Launched masterpiece at our studio our Team offer daily drop-in painting Experiences where the focus is on Helping our guests unwind through Painting we had 2 000 visits in our First six months generating over a Hundred and ten thousand pounds turnover Then covert happened and we shut our Studio doors so within a few days we Launched our art kit experience

Customers get everything they need Through their letterbox to complete a Painting from home Supported by a virtual tutorial in our Mobile app in the first three months we Sold over a thousand art kits so now We're delighted to be in a position to Say that our studio doors are back open We're now in in studio at home and Online experience and we believe that With your help we can paint ourselves an Even better picture Brilliant so Um we have the pleasure of inviting one Of you to have a go with the projector I'd like to have a go actually Yay Brilliant Mindful art courses and painting kits Are the proposition on offer from Xena El Farah you can go as crazy as you like Uses many different colors you've got 90 Seconds just to get the shape of this Beautiful specimen please be careful With this one the belgravia-based Entrepreneur is looking for a 50 000 Pound investment We find what our gas our guests do in a 90-minute class They're drawing with the light box and Then as soon as they've got the hang of It they'll switch the light box off and Then finish off single-handedly in Return she's willing to give away 15 of Her business do you want to lift up your

Canvas off the table oh gosh it doesn't Look quite the same when you take away The actual picture underneath it that's Kids Will Peter Jones is questioning be as Favorable as his fellow dragons portrait Often That was really clever that you you gave Deborah my picture and that ladies and Gentlemen is How to Win Friends and Influence People Okay so great pitch thank you and Seemingly very very engaging and Enjoyable thank you so let's go through The business yes So in essence if you were in studio People visiting kovitz happened yeah and Now sending the outsets to people who Can subscribe correct what have you Turned over since you mentioned three Months you've done a a thousand so You've got the kits alone we turn over Five thousand pounds a month and they Retail for um 25 pounds so you've got Five thousand a month in your kits uh Yes broadly yes Went down a little bit over the summer So they went because people are outside They're enjoying look I really I'm sorry Yeah you might be nervous didn't it but This is really important of course it is It's coming across Really Woolly Oh I'm sorry I'm gonna start again yep What's been your turnover just in those

Three months Um it's 150 for the whole year no no in That period yeah Uh About 10 10 and 10. okay what's been Your gross profit and net profit in just That quarter it's not a number I know But I can calculate it if I may Yeah please per month my cost of goods Is four thousand and my admin costs are Around about 12 000. we're mixing Between the two but oh I know I just What's your gross profit so then my Gross profit will be thirty thousand Minus three times four which is twelve So that would give me an eighteen Thousand pound gross profit eighteen Thousand minus the thirty six which Would be eighteen thousand loss correct So you're losing money at the moment Yes yeah Frustrated Peter Jones finally gets to The bottom of Xena's numbers and Discovers a loss making business And Deborah meaden help the entrepreneur Get her pitch back on track I know Peter was getting frustrated I Thought you demonstrated a really good Understanding of your numbers thank you I totally disagree you were talking About admin costs and below the uncostal At nothing to do with gross profit but She was only talking through it Personally I thought you demonstrated

Very well that you had an understanding Of the way those numbers work so what's Your background So um at Uni I was part of a company Called hello fresh I was part of the Founding team there and I left and then They were huge and I was devastated and Then I I got a typical graduate job in a Bank and I got my top 10 women to watch In digital in the UK so I came to a Point in my career where I was just About to take that upswing and my mum Got really sick really really fast And it made me suddenly step back and Think you know you got these dreams in Life you've got these things that you Feel that itch you have to do so at that Point I was just like why don't you just Go and see and obviously fit the best But Um things happen for a reason then you Responded really well to that change in Circumstances which I think is good Impressive credentials and adaptability Are compelling attributes for an Entrepreneur But will they be enough to get Crafting Queen Sarah Davies ensign Xena So you know I'm in the space yes I do And and we sell millions and millions of Pounds worth of art materials but also I Do subscription boxes cool so I have Tens of thousands of people on a

Subscription which we have run now Successfully for three years and I will Tell you it is hard work And the reality is two to three months And people drop off because when you're Giving people something every month they Don't have enough time to continue doing It and the pressure on my team to keep Innovating in those boxes every month is Off the chart because it is so tough If I felt that there was an opportunity In this space with this business model To make money Honestly I'd be doing it It's a complete non-starter So um I'm definitely out A damning appraisal from a subscription Savvy Dragon sees the entrepreneur lose Her first potential backer But will Sarah Davies seismic influence In the Craft Space have any sway on her Fellow investors look I think that What you're doing Is a good thing in the current situation People do need A break from The Hectic lives at their Lead and I'm being in the wellness space Speaks that language as well And I feel it's something I would have Liked to be a part of just for the cause Of it but I feel it's probably not Something for me at the moment So I'm going to wish you luck and I hope It does work out

But I'm out Ah Tina You are very credible thank you um All I can say is you've come here today With a business that if I had to be Honest yeah it's not investable And I think there's a lot of work and I Can see that this is going to be very Time consuming So I'm gonna say I'm not going to invest Them out Xena loses two more dragons in a pitch That's rapidly going off the rails Earlier the entrepreneur had a tourist Exchange with Peter Jones He since engaged in the activity on Offer has it had the desired effect of Calming him down I haven't been listening to half of this Okay Um because I've been Brilliant I've been doing that so cool Yeah all right I think that your level of excitement Needs a bit of a reality check in terms Of Putting an application like this in and Making it into a business okay Because to receive basically three Stencil pieces of paper and four pencils I'd go as far as to say that I would be Absolutely devastated that I have spent 25 pounds on this Comment that kit in particular is our

Kids Whilst you've done a wonderful job Coloring it in the video experience that You haven't participated in is 45 Minutes long Then you shouldn't have come in here Yeah and made me think until I've now Come back at you that this is a pack That you're selling no it is absolutely It's a disgrace for 25 quid If it was rubbish people wouldn't be Buying again well they're not buying it Because you're only selling four Thousand pounds a month that doesn't Mean it's a business this is what one Person could source during lockdown Where my suppliers had been shut down or Furloughed there's a challenge in Finding the best types of products and Working with the product designer to do This properly okay in my opinion it's Back to the drawing board you don't have To sit there and sell a potential Position of being a victim of why you've Done so well to create a 25 pound pack That I'm suggesting is not even worth Three or four pounds so just on that I Apologize if anything I said came across That I felt a victim because I didn't Represent myself well in that and that If that's my loss and I've lost you now I am sincerely sorry I am dreadfully disappointed because at The start the pitch was absolutely

Brilliant Where it went over the course of the Pitch I just was not engaged with the Words and they were too many words I don't think that there's a successful Business for an investor at this stage So sadly that's the reason why today I'm Out Really appreciate it and I understand Honestly I do I did ramble and uh You can't remember no more So more words A locking of horns with Peter Jones ends With the dragon declaring himself out Only Deborah meaden remains and it looks Like she's also made up her mind I'm gonna tell you where I am I think The studio has got some inbuilt issues It might work as a business yeah it's Never going to take over the world I Think the interesting bit for me is what Have the kits got in them you know what Life have they got ahead of them Particularly at the moment in terms of Mental health and mindfulness but I will Tell you Um I think there's big risks in this Business Um but I don't mind a risk with a good Person who I think will spot the issues And I think that you will you know I Think you are all over stuff Um and it's the mindful piece that I'm I'm really really interested in but I

Think you've got a lot of stuff to work Out yet So I'm going to make you an offer It isn't going to match the 15 you're Asking for But I'm going to offer you all of the Money And I want 25 of the business Uh it's a really brilliant offer And I know that I'm supposed to Negotiate with you and I know that I'm Going to get beaten up back home for not Doing But I'd be delighted to accept your Offer Congratulations Success for Xena who silences the Doubters and walks away with 50 000 Pounds and a business partner to help Her realize her childhood dream Wow I didn't see that offer coming no no I liked it I liked her and I like the Mindfulness piece getting an investment From Deborah meaden is an absolute dream Come true if anybody can sort that out It'll be you Deborah well I'll give it a Go there was a pretty epic battle with Peter but I feel proud that I stood my Ground and I represented the values of My business I just wish I'd used Fewer words [Music]

Your First Funnel Challenge
Quickly Launch Your Idea And Turn It Into A Business That You're Proud Of In Just 90 Minutes A Day!

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