My ‘gruelling’ experience on Dragons’ Den left me in shock – I waited NINE HOURS for pitch which was changed last-minute
A DRAGONS' Den contestant has revealed their frustrations after waiting nine hours before his pitch was changed last minute.
Abeer Iqbal, originally from Canada but now living in London, appeared on the flagship BBC show last week.
The 33-year-old pitched his innovative rest company, Remy.
It sells weighted blankets and bean bags - but was rejected by each of the Dragons - with Abeer admitting the experience left him deflated.
He also questioned why the investors - including show stalwarts Peter Jones and Deborah Meaden - would turn down a brand that has sold more than 30,000 products.
Abeer revealed he waited nine hours to speak to the Dragons and producers altered his pitch moments before he went in front of the cameras.
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He said he has spoken to fellow contestants who shared his frustrations.
He had asked the Dragons for £80,000 for five per cent of Remy.
Before he even entered the den, Peter said: "What's the point of putting weight on top of you when you're sleeping?"
And Dragon's Sara Davies and Deborah didn't even test out the products - with all, also including Touker Suleyman and Steven Bartlett - opting not to invest.
However, Peter did offer Abeer a job, which he rejected.
He told Femail: "I was given some indication that we would go last and pitching towards the end.
"I had gone in at noon, and originally, they told me that the last pitches go on at around 5pm, sometimes they go to 6pm or 7pm, but by the time I got in, it was half nine, it was late... imagine for the Dragon's who turn up for 8am, it's a super long day.
"The producers were the ones who told me to jump onto the beanbag after my pitch."
He said he originally wanted to ask for £100,000 but producers suggested he instead go for £50,000 to £75,000.
Another factor which "shocked" Abeer was being told he couldn't use a screen to show off the rest of his system - including outlining the online shopping experience - which was a "big part" of his pitch.
He claims as he was "walking into the den", one of the producers said they didn't use the screen as it "didn't look good on camera".
Abeer also said he didn't get to see the set up before he pitched, as it was so late, but other contestants did.
He added that he had tried to manage his performance in fear of being portrayed negatively in the show edit.
He said he "knew the BBC was going to decided what the narrative is" and he didn't want to be "seen as argumentative".
"You have a lot of double thoughts when you're in there," he said.
He said he has spoken to Jasmine Wicks-Stephens from Faace Skincare and a couple of others who appeared on the same show - and they are keen to do a Life After the Den podcast
The BBC said it did not wish to comment when approached by The Sun.
