A DRAGON’S Den contestant has proven to be one of the show’s most successful
entrepreneurs ever – with a business now worth £10 million.
Jordan Daykin, now 20, appeared on the show back in 2014 where he managed to
secure an £80,000 investment from Deborah Meaden.
The cash became the turning-point for Jordan – who had invented a universal
plasterboard fitting called ‘GripIt’.
Aged just 13, Jordan had started his business in a garden shed alongside his
grandfather Stan, a retired engineer.
Jordan had left school at the same age with no qualifications – and was even
told by teachers that he would never amount to anything.
He was then tutored at home but this only lasted six months – as GripIt
Fixings became his priority.
To this day Jordan has no formal qualifications.
He said: “When I left school so many teachers told me I wasn’t going to make
anything of myself. A lot of people are clever but when they get into an
exam they panic.
“Because I left school so early I’ve had that thing driven into my head that
nothing’s going to be handed to you on a plate, you just have to go out
there and get it.”
However, in 2012 he acquired a patent for his invention and it soon began to
be stocked by DIY chain Screwfix – before later finding its way into Wickes,
Plumbase and Buildbase.
However, Jordan’s ambition didn’t stop there.
Less than two-years after appearing in front of the Dragons, Deborah’s
investment has increased more than 30 times over – and her share is now
worth a whopping £2.5 million.
Deborah now has such confidence in Jordan’s product that she has pumped in
more than £500,000 since her original investment on the show.
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Jordan’s success story will now feature on spin-off show ‘Dragons’ Den: From
Pitches to Riches?’.
The show, presented by Richard Osman, airs this Sunday on BBC Two and examines
the biggest hits and misses from the show’s 13 series and looks at where
they are now.
When he originally appeared, Jordan, then just 18, confidently strode into the
den, convincing businesswoman Deborah to invest £80,000 into his plans – he
even negotiated her first demand of a 30 per cent stake down to 25 per cent.
He had hoped for new machinery, stock increases as well as a deposit for a
warehouse in Melksham.
He was the youngest person ever to get investment on the show.
The company soon went from strength to strength and Jordan employed 11 of his
friends (all aged between 17 and 19) to help him run his business.
Jordan’s GripIt fixings are now stocked in more than 1,400 stores and Jordan
exports his products across Europe.
However, it hasn’t all been plain sailing. In 2014 Jordan’s mother (who he
does not live with) accused him of breaking into her house and he was
questioned by police as a result.
Thankfully, no charges were bought upon the young entrepreneur – but he no
longer speaks to his mother.
GripIt was actually the young entrepreneur’s third business. He had first
created an online business called RS2Services which was created around the
popular fantasy role-play game RuneScape.
His second venture saw him set up a nationwide tutoring agency, Tutor Magnet,
which now turns over thousands of pounds per month, as well as having
hundreds tutors on its books.