I gave Dragons’ Den’s ‘best ever’ pitch but knew I’d reject ANY offer… my gameplan played clueless tycoons like a fiddle

WITH millions in the bank and an enviable list of contacts, Dragons' Den's fearsome tycoons are used to having entrepreneurs begging for their investment.

But not Paul Stanley, 48, who says he took his devil-branded rum business Cloven Hoof on to the BBC business show with a different game plan instead… rejecting any offer.

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Despite offering Dragons a five per cent share of his firm for £50,000 in his pitch, he tells The Sun he “categorically didn’t want any of them on board”.

Paul saw the 2019 TV appearance as “a free advert on the BBC in front of three million people” and claims he was thrilled to have duped producers to get on the show.

He says it paid off too because after the show aired Hoof became the top-selling rum on Amazon and made half a year’s worth of sales in a single day. 

Paul, who lives in Haywards Heath, West Sussex, tells us: “We got asked to do pop-up events at festivals and markets, made loads of sales directly and started exporting to Poland, Holland and France.

“In the 12 months prior to the show, I think I had sold 15,000 bottles but the day after being on Dragons’ Den we sold 8,000 in just one day. 

“I easily made £40,000 off the back of the show straight away, then we grew a little bit afterward… it was a quick win.”

Paul was scouted by a producer, who tried his rum in a London bar and thought the bottle’s devil-inspired design “looked a bit wacky”.

He says: "You have to do s*** loads of due diligence, like literally three or four weeks' worth of ticking boxes and bureaucratic red tape."

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Despite insisting he did not want investment, Paul brought a rock band to perform for the Dragons and Peter Jones later described it as “one of the best opening pitches I’ve ever, ever seen”.

Paul says: “I didn’t want to be diluted by any Dragons and would never been tempted to take any offer they may have made.

“I pretended to be interested and gave the BBC and all of their researchers and lawyers the strong impression that I wanted investment from a Dragon. I spun a load of bulls*** and they fell for it.”

Paul paints a grim picture of his time on the show - claiming it was like “a pantomime”.

‘Outrageous’ Dragon

The rum creator's biggest bugbear was being interrupted during his pitch.

Before cameras started rolling, he claims a producer told him: “At some stage during your pitch, Peter Jones is expecting a phone call from America.”

Paul added: “I found it a bit outrageous that after two or three months of preparation, he would answer the phone during what could be a big moment for someone.

“It wasn’t great, this guy is worth millions and he has the nerve to take a call when you’re putting everything out there. It was very disrespectful and took the p***.”

The show is a pantomime, it’s not for business advice or funding really

Paul

He believes the investor should have scheduled it during his lunch break or at another time - and says the decision to accept the call mid-pitch reaffirmed why he didn’t want the Dragons’ money. 

Paul - who had to pause his pitch when the phone rang - says Peter did apologise for interrupting him.

While waiting for the Dragon to return, he recalls it being “awkward and silent” on set.

He adds: “I tried to engage with the rest of the Dragons but they had this cold, hostile front so I thought, ‘Ok, I’ll stand for 20 minutes in silence’.

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“There was no idle or pleasant chit-chat, it was just hostile. Some of them didn’t even make eye contact with me.” 

To make matters worse, Paul says having to stop and start made him “lose all momentum and adrenaline”. 

‘Outfoxed’ Dragon

That wasn’t Paul’s only gripe with Peter Jones, who he claims to have bested during a row over financial figures that never aired. 

He also alleges the show’s editing was “disingenuous” and when Dragons are "made to look silly they cut it out”.

Paul recalls: “I was justifying how many bottles I had sold and what the income was and Peter needed to make a quick calculation off the top of his head.

“He said, ‘Well, that doesn’t stack up. You’ve just said X and it’s Y’ and I said, ‘No, it isn’t. You’ve got that wrong Peter.'

“It was a simple calculation. Then Touker [Suleyman] said, ‘Peter, actually you’re wrong. You’ve not done the numbers correctly.’

“It was quite funny, he messed it up but they didn’t keep it in the show, probably because he’s perfect Pete… but I outfoxed him. 

“The show is a pantomime, it’s not for business advice or funding really.”

'Awkward, disorientating & unnerving'

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Paul says he felt disrespected throughout the process - from being “put up in a cheap Travelodge” to being stuck in “a small, dark and dingy room” for hours before pitching.

“You have to be in the studio by 6am and wait there for hours with everyone else pitching that day,” he recalls. 

“You’re kept in a small room, not allowed outside for a walk or to get fresh air - and they chuck cheap sandwiches at you.

“By the time you go out to pitch you’re all disjointed, dishevelled, and desperate for fresh air. Then you get thrown into the Den with loads of bright lights. 

“It’s an awkward, disorientating… and unnerving process. I imagine lots of people leave it a bit shell-shocked and in a state. I didn’t struggle because I knew I was using them.” 

We were going great guns, our turnover quadrupled… and then it all went t**s up

Paul

Paul was also annoyed that the Dragons 'messed around' with his perfectly presented stall and the musicians’ instruments before he pitched. 

“They all started p***ing around with the bottles, pretending to swig from them and made the stall look a bit s***,” Paul tells us.

“Then Tej [Lalvani] got on the drums and was smashing away on them. Someone else picked up the guitar. 

“They were trying to be really cool but they weren't… It was a bit naughty, I know the drummer was annoyed that his cymbals had been messed with.”

In the Den, Paul annoyed some of the Dragons by revealing he already had two investors - who were from the spirits industry - and paid £56,000 for 11.25 per cent equity each.

Their deal, which was better than the one offered to the Dragons, led Peter to pull out. Sara Davies did the same and said Paul “didn’t truly value” what Dragons could add to his business.

The other TV investors soon followed - including Deborah Meaden who said he gave “too much” equity away and made his business “completely uninvestable”.

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Business collapse 

Paul walked out of the Den empty-hand and while his business did well in the short term after the show aired, he has since hit a few speed bumps. 

“We were going great guns, our turnover quadrupled… and then it all went t**s up because of Brexit and Covid,” he tells us. 

“It used to take me two weeks to get rum in from Trinidad and Guyana but when Brexit hit it took three to four months to get liquid into the country because of all the red tape.

I find the show a bit sad really, there are five millionaires getting a kick out of being on TV who don’t make investments to massage their own egos

Paul

“Then that first year of Covid all the festivals I booked into - about 40 or 50 of them - all got cancelled and I lost my deposits. I ended up doing care work for a year or two.” 

In August last year, Paul relaunched the rum business – which will soon be renamed ‘Hoof’ – and says sales are “beyond expectation”.

Following the launch, he says he was selling 600 bottles a month but in December managed to flog an impressive 5,000 bottles.

He believes the company will turn over £350,000 this year and make £70,000 profit.

Paul explained: “In three to four years we’ll be turning over £1million and making a couple of hundred grand in profit.”

While the entrepreneur doesn’t have fond memories of his time on Dragons’ Den, he says it was worth it because it “took Hoof to the next level”. 

He said: “The exposure was great, I made a bit of money but then got unlucky and learned a lot of lessons but I’m happy and know what I’m doing is honest. 

“I find the show a bit sad really, there are five millionaires getting a kick out of being on TV who don’t make investments to massage their own egos. 

“Overall, I’m happy where I am… I don’t need to be mega-rich to be happy.” 

The BBC declined to comment after being approached by The Sun.