A bloke who went on the US equivalent of Dragons' Den - ABC's Shark Tank - in the hope of raising $700,000, has turned his public failure to get investment into a huge success with the help of Richard Branson.
Jamie Siminoff's appearance on the show came in September 2013, pitching his company, DoorBot. The company made a video doorbell that connects to your smartphone, allowing you to remotely see and talk to the person at the door via your mobile.
The idea was based on the fact that burglars usually ring the bell before breaking in, so with DoorBot, you could see who is at the door even when you're not in.
Quite frankly the 'sharks' on the show thought the idea was shit, but luckily for Jamie, billionaire Richard Branson did not.
Despite getting no investment, DoorBot still had a solid business model and was growing fast. It had $250,000 in sales in the month before appearing on the show. After two months, Siminoff was able to raise $700,000 at a $7 million valuation, the same valuation that had been turned down on TV.
That same week in November 2013 his pitch was aired.
"We think we got at least $5 million of additional sales through the airing of 'Shark Tank," Siminoff told Informationblog.today.
As the company grew, Siminoff wanted to create a more serious image, and so he changed the name of the company to Ring. With this additional credibility he was able to get into some of the world's top retailers. Ring's products are now sold in 93 countries worldwide.
Then Richard Branson, the $4.8 billion founder of Virgin Group, got in contact. He tracked down Siminoff's email address via the show's producers and started talking business.
"I didn't even figure he'd invest," said Siminoff. "But then he was like, 'What if I send someone right now?' And then I got on with a couple of his guys from his team of investment the next day."
In less than 48 hours, Branson agreed to invest. And on Wednesday, Ring announced $28 million dollars' worth of funding that gives the company a $60 million valuation. Other investors include Shea Ventures, American Family Insurance, True Ventures and others.
The sharks who turned it down must be feeling pretty dumb right now.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Richard Branson
