The lion’s den: four lions fight for a deal in an exciting showdown

The lion’s den
Four lions fight for a deal in an exciting showdown

In the twelfth and final episode of the ninth season of the VOX show “Die Höhle der Löwen” (also via TVNow) another five start-ups the chance of lucrative deals with Judith Williams (49), Dagmar Wöhrl (67), Carsten Maschmeyer (62), Ralf Dümmel (54), Georg Kofler (64) and Nils Glagau (45). In the end, four lions even fought a deal battle with two combination offers.

Maren “Mary” Weiß (34, barista and sports scientist), husband Claus Weiß (35, business economist) and business partner Stefan Hrubesch (31, business economist) joined forces as a trio in 2018 and opened a café in Munich. With “Mary’s Coconut Coffee” they developed their own organic iced coffee in a Tetra Pak with coconut milk, coconut water and Arabica coffee. The drink is vegan and free of soy and lactose. Two more varieties are already being planned. The trio would like 100,000 euros for 10 percent company shares or 100,000 euros for 30 percent just for stake in the product. Georg Kofler shies away from the big competition, for Carsten Maschmeyer it is too special a product. The other lions also note that the mark still needs to be sharpened. But Ralf Dümmel is enthusiastic about the drink and accepts the 30 percent product deal.

An app impresses the lions

In order to be able to move safely through traffic, blind or visually impaired people need detailed and, above all, very precise information. Gerd Güldenpfennig (56, qualified computer scientist) and Stefan Siebert (57, qualified electrical engineer) have therefore developed Routago, a pedestrian navigation with object recognition and voice-over instructions especially for the visually impaired and the blind. You make the offer: 600,000 euros for 20 percent of the company’s shares. The lions are deeply impressed, but Nils Glagau, Dagmar Wöhrl or Ralf Dümmel do not see a deal due to their lack of know-how in the field. The last two lions also jump off: Kofler and Maschmeyer justify it with the difficult and cost-intensive customer acquisition for the app.

A well-known lion problem and a special offer

Christina Schwarz (30), a passionate fitness athlete and bodybuilder, developed FitOaty: The quick fruit and oat meal is vegan, lactose-free and without added sugar and is provided in the refrigerated shelf in a to-go cup made from recycled PET. The founder needs 80,000 euros and would give up 25 percent of her company shares. The taste can score points after tasting the layered cup meals. The difficult cooling area and the complicated cold chain have already been the undoing of some products in the “Den of the Lions”. Dagmar Wöhrl, Judith Williams and Ralf Dümmel do not want to invest this time either.

Georg Kofler would be there as a consumer and, as a private person, immediately order 1,000 pieces of the meal as a fixed order. “I’ll spend one,” he explains to his Leo colleagues. “Difficult, but feasible,” says Nils Glagau when it comes to refrigerated products. He therefore wants to work with the fighter nature and offers his investment. The deal is celebrated with a small push-up competition between Kofler, Williams and Glagau.

A good idea is not enough

Lydia Walter (35) is a designer and designs fashion under her stage name Mila Cardi, which she sells in her boutique in Nuremberg and in the online shop. Miss.pinny is a practical apron for the home and the catering sector, the PET fabric is water and dirt repellent. Logo, color and cut can be individually adapted to the catering industry. Walter requires an investment of 50,000 euros and offers 15 percent of their company shares. Miss.pinny is an idea, but a company that has not yet been founded. All Lions agree that they do not see the idea as mature enough. No deal.

Chris Kaiser’s (33, tourism manager) start-up B’n’Tree is an intermediary platform that works with various travel booking portals and plants a tree for each booking. This helps offset emissions and creates a habitat for endangered animal species such as elephants. Since the start of B’n’Tree, over 100,000 trees have been planted in twelve different countries. He also wants to expand his business beyond the tourism industry with the Click A Tree brand. Kaiser wants 75,000 euros and is ready to sell ten percent of the shares.

Which combination offer makes the deal?

Judith Williams and Carsten Maschmeyer find the project worth supporting and present a combined program: “You will get the 75,000 euros, we want to make 25.1 percent, but not a profit on the investment,” explains Maschmeyer. The investors make the investment available for an employee participation program and want it back later without profit. Georg Kofler and Nils Glagau also appreciate the founder’s credibility. The two want 20 percent shares for 100,000 euros. Kaiser decides on the combination of Maschmeyer and Williams. The lioness looks forward to the reactions of her children. “They’ll say: Mom, this is the most sensible start-up you’ve ever done.”

After the summer break, the Gründershow returns with an autumn season.

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