Dragons’ Den success stories: Enclothed (and what you can learn from them)

Company name: Enclothed
Description: Men’s clothing subscription service
Series: 12
Year: 2015 (February)
Investment sought: £70,000 for 10% equity
Why didn’t the Dragons invest? Kelly Hoppen and Piers Linney made an offer of £70,000 for 15% which was accepted but the deal fell through after the show

One of the most recent businesses to have appeared on the Den, Enclothed founders Levi Young and Dana Zingher impressed the panel with their “hassle free” clothing subscription service for men.

An ‘online personal stylist’ for fashion, the London-based business allows users to create a profile, complete a questionnaire and a team of stylists then handpick a box of clothes which are delivered free of charge, with you only paying for what you keep.

Given the growing rise of sophisticated e-commerce platforms, Hoppen and Linney jumped on the chance to invest and offered Young and Zingher the full amount for 5% more equity than the asking – an offer which the duo accepted over Meaden and Jones’ offers. Yet, on leaving the Den the deal fell through – the details of which are unknown.

While this could have caused a set back for the business, the female entrepreneurs have bounced back and capitalised on the enhanced profile that their appearance on the show provided. In February 2015, Enclothed announced it had secured £459,480 via equity crowdfunding platform Crowdcube with 325 investors backing the campaign for a share of 23.4% equity.

Ranked among the top 100 UK start-ups in the Startups 100 2014 index, the fashion start-up is quickly making in-roads in the sector with over 30 top brands signed to the platform including Ted Baker and Hackett.

Watch the original pitch here.