A husband and wife duo were left with nothing after receiving no investment in the Dragons’ Den. After hearing their pitch, the Dragons’ Den cast were shocked to find out that the pair had invested over £200,000 in the product, with no real return.
Lorraine said: “It’s cost us blood sweat and tears, it feels like now is the last stop.
“We have nowhere to go and we have spent almost £200,000 of our own money and we’d like for you to invest in us.”
Limelight is a diving air safety device. It monitors the pressure in a gas tank and flashes green when there is sufficient air and red when a diver’s air reserve is low.
Graham had been a diver for 40 years and came up with the idea due to the shocking figures for the number of deaths due to diving suffocation in the UK.
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They aimed to sell their products in bulk to scuba diving training schools and resort diving locations.
Graham explained that the market reaction to their product has “been amazing” and their idea has been patented in 10 different countries.
Graham and Lorraine explained to Peter Jones the financial struggles they had faced in the past due to other health reasons and medical expenses.
Lorraine said: “We lost it all. We lost our house, we lost our investments, we lost absolutely everything.
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The setback on the show hasn’t stopped them though as the couple now sell their device worldwide and have credited their success to their lack of investment in the Den.
Graham told The Sun in 2020: “The Dragons saying no was in a way the best thing that could have happened to us because we suddenly became masters of our own destiny.
“We had people offering to market it for us, we had people offering to invest in it, we had people wanting to go in as partners. We took their advice on licensing.”
Lorraine added: “If it wasn’t for the Dragons we wouldn’t have been able to see the tunnel, let alone the light at the end of it.”
Dragons’ Den is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
