DRAGONS’ Den’s Steven Bartlett was lost for words after he was told to ‘put his money where his mouth is’ during a fiery row.
The 29-year-old has made his mark since joining the BBC show for the current series, and has clashed with Touker Suleyman on a couple of occasions already.
In last night’s show they locked horns again during a pitch from two men wanting to secure investment for their refillable deodorant, called Fussy.
The pair were committed to sustainability, and their aims as well as the look of the product impressed the Dragons.
However, Touker, 68, felt it would be easy to replicate the business and said he could: “create this for 100 grand tomorrow, easy.”
Steven looked perplexed by the statement, before stating: “I don’t think that Touker or any of us could create this with £100k.”
Touker then got feisty, telling Steven: “Test me. Test me. You said I can’t do it. Test me.”
But Steven stood his ground and defended the product, telling him: “The brand, the design, the understanding of the market they’re appealing to, you see it in all of it.
“You see their ability to understand their customers’ care about sustainability, the fact that this looks beautiful in the age of the iPhone where aesthetic is so highly valued.
“The name, Fussy, brilliant, it’s all brilliant.”
But his passionate speech caused Peter Jones to ask: “Why don’t you make an offer? You’re going on a speech, why don’t you put your money where your mouth is?”
Steven faltered for a second and said quietly: “Doesn’t mean I… can still think.”
In the end, and despite his defence of the product, Steven opted not to invest in Fussy.
Thankfully for the two entrepreneurs, Peter and Deborah Meaden agreed to a joint offer sharing a 5 percent stake in the business for the £50k investment they had requested.
Dragons’ Den airs Thursdays at 8pm on BBC One.
