A beauty technology firm won record investment on Dragons’ Den last night.
yuv, a London-based company transforming professional hair colour, set an all-time record for both the amount of financing offered and the valuation achieved in the show’s 22-season history.
During the episode, founder and CEO Francisco Gimenez presented yuv Lab, a smart, cartridge-based professional hair colour system designed for salons and freelancers.
yuv’s AI-driven system revolutionizes hair coloring by automating precise color formulation and dispensing. It says this eliminates manual mixing, reduces waste and chemical overuse, and ensures accurate, repeatable results, setting a new standard for sustainability and creativity in professional hair color.
The pitch drew great enthusiasm, with offers from five of the six Dragons present, ultimately resulting in Mexican Gimenez accepting offers from Bartlett and Davies by securing a combined £500,000 for 2% equity — valuing the company at £25 million.
Gimenez, speaking on the show, said the business was set to turn over £1m this year and is targeting £6m next year. The investment was part of a larger fundraising effort of £4m, which at the time of recording – and before the Dragons’ backing – was three-quarters completed.
Peter Jones, whose offer of £250k for the 1% requested plus another 3% in advisory shares on top was turned down, seemed particularly impressed by the fact that Gimenez had previously sold a beauty tech business for €200m.
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“We are humbled and thrilled by this record-setting outcome on Dragons’ Den,” said Gimenez. “To receive recognition and offers from five investors — and to secure partnerships with Steven and Sara — is extraordinary.
“We see this as validation not only of yuv’s technology and sustainability mission, but also of the incredible work professional hairdressers do every day. This moment belongs to them as much as to us.”