My firm is booming despite Dragons' Den rejection

A young businesswoman whose hair treatment brand was turned down on the BBC's Dragons' Den says her company is thriving despite the rejection.

Lucie Macleod, 24, who failed to get £190,000 in exchange for a 3% equity stake in her Hair Syrup company, said it was now projected to generate £6.5m in revenue this year.

The business people on the show known as dragons voiced concerns about profitability and she left without an offer, despite one, Touker Suleyman, making a last-minute, unusual proposal - only to retract it shortly after.

Ms Macleod, from Pembrokeshire, who was on Thursday's programme, said although it was "very intense", going into the den was the best decision she has ever made.

The idea for Hair Syrup came to her in 2019, while studying English literature at the University of Warwick because she was frustrated with her "unhealthy, frazzled hair after years of bleaching and heat damage".

Unable to find a suitable product within her budget, she set to work in her student kitchen perfecting different blends to help her hair and scalp concerns.

After many hours of work and to her family's disbelief, she said she found a formula that began to "completely revitalise" her hair.

In May 2020, she decided to share her findings on TikTok, and the video ended up going viral with more than 600,000 views.

"I thought it was mad that people were asking me to sell them a bottle of these hair oils that I've been literally making in my student kitchen," she said.

After a friend jokingly suggested that she should sell her products, Ms Macleod decided to set up the business in her parents' conservatory.

She used TikTok to promote her products and said within a couple of months she was turning over a substantial amount.

"My mum and dad just couldn't believe it. It was just almost too surreal to even believe.

"I didn't even think I'd break the tax threshold at the time."

Ms. Macleod was approached by Dragons' Den in 2024 and after initial hesitation, she decided to be "bold" and appear on the show in June.

She said: "I felt like the brand was getting really big and a little bit out of my control and above what I could handle.

"I thought I'd love to have a dragon on board to help me take the brand in a new direction."

Ms Macleod said the experience was "very intense" and different to what she was expecting.

Her pitch was going well until one dragon, Deborah Meaden, began questioning the profitability and dividends of the business, prompting all but one of her colleagues to bow out.

However, Suleyman made a last-minute, unconventional offer - he proposed investing £190,000 for a 3% stake, with the condition that he would get his investment back in three months while keeping his equity in the company.

Ms Macleod accepted the offer, despite the dragons interfering and advising her to think hard about her decision.

After noticing her discomfort, Suleyman withdrew, leaving her to walk away without a deal.

"At the time it was upsetting and dishearteningI ," she said. "I felt like I'd had a big confidence knock, but honestly, within a few days the adrenaline had calmed down and worn off, I knew I'd made the right decision by going on there."

Ms Macleod said she had been going through a "difficult time" and "had no confidence at all".

"The dragons were really lovely. They told me and taught me a lot of things that are really invaluable lessons to me."

Ms Macleod said although "it would have been easy to give up" she was determined to keep going and make her dreams a reality.

She listened to the dragons' advice and began implementing changes to her business.

In October 2024, Ms Macleod got her products into Boots - one of her main goals since starting the company.

She added: "It was a real pin-drop moment for me, because I literally used to say that these products are going to be in Boots one day, and people just thought I had completely lost the plot."

Since filming the show, Ms Macleod said her business had grown rapidly to a team of 14 staff, two warehouse units in Pembrokeshire and has completed 100,000 orders to date.

"It's almost like everything I went into Dragons' Den asking for has come anyway, which is insane."