Record deal on "Die Höhle der Löwen Schweiz," episode 3/3

Last time, we were able to report on an investment worth millions. This was even topped in this broadcast. But more about the record deal a little later. First of all, it was about other business models, which sometimes required more, sometimes less inquiries from the five lions. First, Belinda Juon and Nicolas Heini presented their young company "FirstCar". It advises novice drivers and is also available for any concerns about the first car. In short: "FirstCar" accompanies young drivers from their first driving lesson to the purchase of their first own car, a kind of "Booking.com" for novice drivers, as the two young entrepreneurs describe it. The offer also includes, for example, own learning vehicles with double pedals. The demand is enormous, says Nicolas Heini. For further growth, he is therefore asking for an investment of 300,000 Swiss francs in return for a 10 percent stake in the company. Roland Brack and Tobias Reichmuth were particularly interested in the business model. They were both convinced of the market potential. They therefore agreed to jointly invest 300,000 Swiss francs - in return for a 20 percent stake in the AG, which was currently being set up. Belinda Juon and Nicolas Heini gladly accepted this deal without thinking twice.

Record deal for houseplants

Sven Jakelj, Severin Candrian, Janko Jakelj and Gabriela Troxler from Flawil (SG) launched their online plant store "feey". The shop supplies plant lovers throughout Switzerland not only with houseplants that match their own lifestyle, but also provides free plant tips to customers. What's more, thanks to augmented reality, the plant of choice can be projected into the customer's own four walls before purchase and thus tested on site. This is an idea that has excited investors. The growth prospects also seem impressive: From 600,000 Swiss francs in 2020, the four young entrepreneurs have already reached around 2 million. With an expansion into Germany, they even expect around 12 million in the next few years. Against this backdrop, their investment request seemed modest: 100,000 Swiss francs with a 5 percent stake in the company - in preparation for a next major round of financing. Anja Graf suggested: "Why don't we do the big financing round today?" A suggestion that Sven, Severin, Janko and Gabriela briefly discussed. The amount of the company shareholding then developed into a "pièce de résistance" in the negotiation round, which was exciting for the spectators. Because the founders did not want to cede too much of it to the lions, even with an offer of 1 million francs. In the end, they were faced with a choice: either 900,000 francs investment in exchange for a 25 percent stake in the company, or even 1.2 million in exchange for 30 percent. The four young entrepreneurs then struck at the latter - and the record deal was a fact, with Lukas Speiser taking the lead with his experience in setting up an online store. "From sex toys to plants," commented Anja Graf. "At last I get to tell my grandparents what I do," Lukas Speiser countered.

The "Winner of Hearts

Again, it was about smaller rolls at the sole proprietor Dominik Liechti with "bearbeat". He rents out a mobile music stage with all the trimmings and has a large network of artists from all genres. So he can organize suitable live musicians for the respective event. The founder converted two Piaggo Apes into mobile stages and drives directly to the event with the technical equipment. Thus, there is no additional expense for the organizer. Dominik Liechti needs 88,000 Swiss francs for further growth. However, it was not entirely clear to the lions how the sole proprietor intends to manage this on his own. Jürg Schwarzenbach finally asked, "What do you actually want to achieve with your company?" Dominik Liechti's answer: "To bring joy to people." "You can do that best yourself. You don't need an investor for that," said Jürg Schwarzenbach. So Dominik Liechti left the cave as the "winner of hearts", but without an investment - at least he almost won over the lions with a short concert, but they promised to book "bearbeat" for sure one day.

Too much "marketing power"?

With "Paido Soda," a low-calorie soft drink, Kanteevan Thamilchevan and Markus Kollmair from Thalwil ZH want to make a splash. With all the marketing power at their disposal, the two presented their drink, which consists of vitamins, among other things. It contains few calories and little sugar and could be suitable, for example, as a refreshing drink after a strenuous workout. However, the drink can also be used to mix cocktails. With this recipe and a concentrated advertising power, however, the two were unable to convince the lions. Lukas Speiser attested them a "good branding", but did not want to get in. Deep frown lines appeared on Barbara Hein's forehead, who described the drink as "gummy bears dissolved in water." The unanimous opinion of the five investors at the end: "You can do it better on your own," a market for which definitely exists.

Good idea fails due to difficult participation model

What remained at the end was the performance of Florian Felder with "niuway". He wants to stem the tide of waste at music festivals with sustainably produced tents. This is certainly a laudable intention, especially since Florian Felder expects a revival of the many open-air festivals in the coming year. The idea: Instead of using their own tents, festival-goers should use those from "niuway", which are to be dismantled again at the end of the event, refurbished and made available for the next festival. The lionesses and lions were skeptical, even more so when they had to learn that not the main owner Andreas Bär, but "only" the only employee with a minority share of 10 percent in the company was standing in front of them. A certain desperation could be seen in the presenting Florian Felder - perhaps this was exactly what led to a surprising proposal from Barbara Hein: "100,000 francs against a 60 percent share in the company, of which we would cede 30 percent to you." Was that the salvation? A telephone call with the main shareholder was supposed to fix it - but in the end it couldn't, because main owner Andreas Bär was only prepared to make a concession of 10 percent. So the deal fell through. But as a "consolation prize" Florian Felder still had the "founder's ticket" for an appearance at MediaShop.

Sometimes a lot of heart is enough

Conclusion of this show: On the one hand, two promising startups came out on top with scalable business cases and a record deal. This one is sure to be talked about in the near future, as well as "Nomady", which won an investment last season. "Nomady" is a marketplace that connects nature lovers with landowners. Camping enthusiasts find sites for their camper or tent with private vendors. Landowners rent out their plots or cabins to users - similar to the Airbnb platform.

On the other hand, it also became clear that you can achieve a lot with a lot of passion, but you don't necessarily have to convince investors to do so. However, the SME world lives just as much from such entrepreneurs as from potential "unicorns".

Interviews with two investors on "Die Höhle der Löwen Schweiz" can be found at here, a review to the broadcast of November 2, 2021 there is here.

Information about the next shipments: https://www.3plus.tv/die-hoehle-der-loewen-schweiz