Die Höhle der Löwen Switzerland: Starting the season with a deal

"HERA organics: This was an idea by women for women, presented by Naomi Dirlewanger and Valentina Biland from Merlischachen (SZ). In the latest episode of "Die Höhle der Löwen Schweiz" they took center stage and presented their innovative business idea. But what exactly is behind the term "organics"? This is what the lions and lionesses asked themselves.

The two founders sought an investment of 140,000 francs in exchange for 10% of the company's shares. Their concern was to do something about the fact that menstrual products are often 90% made of plastic and synthetic materials. Her vision is therefore a product where you know exactly what is inside and that is good for both the body and the environment: the menstrual sponge. The sponges are made in Greece and are reusable. Depending on how they are used, they can last up to three months. During the presentation, the question of hygiene was also raised, and Lukas Speiser was not entirely convinced.

The lionesses and lions also asked about the competition, especially "menstrual cups". However, the founders' plan is to establish themselves with their unique sponge and then expand. Nicole Büttner advised them to think bigger and come back in a next season. Finally, Lukas Speiser and Bettina Hein decided to buy 15% of the company's shares for 140,000 Swiss francs, as they saw great potential in marketing the product. The founders accepted the offer and were looking forward to working together and further developing their product.

Counterarguments for the cigarette replacement product

"HAPPYHALE" - A cigarette replacement product presented by Torsten Prenter and Miriam from Schlieren (ZH). They presented the next idea in "Die Höhle der Löwen Schweiz". On the one hand, they saw the future of smoking in it, and on the other hand, an idea to get people off smoking.

Their product is an alternative to traditional cigarettes, which is based on natural ingredients and does not contain nicotine (but the product is also available with nicotine). It is consumed at a lower heating level. According to the two founders, HAPPYHALE even celebrated a world premiere in Las Vegas.

Their goal was to further expand the company. For this purpose, they wanted an investment of 1 million francs against 1% of the company shares. They argued that health consisted in not consuming toxic substances and stressed that their product was not unhealthy. However, the lion Roland Brack pointed out that a conventional cigarette is not healthy and that HAPPYHALE may just be less harmful.

However, the lions criticized that there were already enough such alternatives on the market. Torsten emphasized that HAPPYHALE tasted natural and that this was an advantage. Lukas Speiser, on the other hand, was not convinced by the taste. He also pointed out that the product could only be used once and that it cost 10 francs.

The discussion then turned to whether HAPPYHALE was a real business opportunity or just advertising. In the end, the lions were not convinced and declined to invest. No deal was struck.

Good but not rousing ideas

Sybille Oetiker from Thalwil (ZH) presented her brand "SASHAY", which makes shoes from apple leather. Sybille told the lions that she has been on the market for 1.5 years and has already launched her fourth collection. For her business, she was looking for an investment of 310,000 francs in exchange for 15% of the company's shares. She explained to the lions that she needed the capital to build her team for production. The apple leather she uses for her shoes is a sustainable substitute for animal leather and is made from apple scraps. Sybille emphasized elegance combined with sustainability. Felix Bertram expressed concern about whether 310,000 Swiss francs would be enough and asked if a much larger capital of 20 million was not needed. Sybille responded that her product was working and that she needed capital now to grow the business. Despite Sybille's efforts to combine sustainability and style, the lions and lionesses saw no business opportunity and declined to invest.

In another presentation, Robert Koss from Lucerne presented his company "A Moon With a View"which manufactures socks with tattoo motifs. Robert has 20 years of experience in the tattoo industry and knows the popular motifs of customers very well. His business is only a few months old. Robert explained that he designed the socks so that customers would enjoy them and be curious about them.

For his business he was looking for an investment of 50,000 francs in exchange for 10% of the company shares. Lion Felix Bertram brought up the question of why his socks were better than others on the market. Robert emphasized that he created something he loves himself, namely the tattoo patterns on the socks. He also shared the story behind the name "A Moon With a View." When the moon is full, he often works on the socks, and that's where the name came from. The idea behind it was that we can all see the same moon. Despite all the sympathy, the lions were not convinced to invest, and no deal was made.

Another deal for the season start

Elias Böni, Beat Hafner, Sandro Michel from Bern presented their business idea "mobileup", a circular economy platform for electronics. Their goal was to turn old electronics into something new and lions into potential investors.

The founders explained that almost everyone had old cell phones lying around at home and that there were about 10 million unused cell phones in Switzerland, which was harmful to the environment. Their business focused on refurbishing old electronics to reduce CO2 emissions.

The founders had already achieved success by winning the Swisscom Startup Challenge. They were looking for an investment of 500,000 francs in exchange for 10% of the company shares. Their goal was to achieve sales of 50 million francs in the next 3 years, and they plan to offer not only cell phones, but also iPads, smartwatches and other electronics.

The idea appealed to the lions, but the offer was not satisfactory. Roland Brack finally made an offer of 500,000 francs in exchange for 15% of the company's shares, which was accepted by the founders, and a successful deal was struck.

A promising concept, but unfortunately no deal

Last, Philipp Kirschbaum and Philip Bienz from Reinach (BL) presented their company "Indyvit", which specializes in individualized nutritional supplements. They emphasized the importance of customized health care and asked whether it is really right that we all take the same multivitamin preparations.

Their idea was to offer personalized vitamins because each person is unique. Indyvit uses online analysis, surveys and individual formulas or tests to determine which supplements each individual needs.

The founders emphasized that personalized health is a big topic and that their product is already available and successful on the market. They were seeking an investment of 250,000 francs in exchange for 5% of the company's shares to drive their expansion abroad.

Nicole Büttner asked about their plan and how they planned to build trust and awareness. The founders explained that they needed the capital to expand abroad and implement their vision. However, despite the promising concept, no deal was struck in this round of "Die Höhle der Löwen Schweiz."

More information on upcoming shows: https://www.oneplus.ch/detail/1000604