On this episode of the KCB lions’ den we saw four entrepreneurs enter the den with the hope of securing a deal of a lifetime. These entrepreneurs were grilled on different aspects of their businesses by the thirsty lions. The financials and the scalability of the businesses were one of the major concerns of the lions. 

The first to face the lions were Allan and Boniface, two investors who are taking organic waste and turning it, into a fresh scented energy source. Their business is focused on turning ordinary organic waste such as orange peelings, egg shells, avocado peeling and other fruit waste into an environmental friendly bio gel. The bio gel is created so as to mitigate deforestation, to tame the silent killer smoke in our kitchen and reduce the malaria menace. They were requesting for 1.5 million for a 20% equity stake in their company Alka gel. Their bio gel doesn’t just produce fuel for domestic use alone but also keeps you warm, acts as a mosquito repellent and has some sweet smelling scent.   Unfortunately they didn’t secure an investment from the lions simply because their business was still too young. The duo really knew their business from head to toe but their financial projections weren’t adding up.  

Finding work internships for most tertiary students is usually one of the hardest things and it mostly comes down to the people you know.  The next entrepreneurs in the den had a brilliant concept which targets to make access to internship as easy as 1, 2, and 3. Mike and Sam are the founders of campus biz Kenya an online career platform that targets students and recent graduates offering career advancement opportunities. Their main aim is to curb youth unemployment and provide recruitment level solutions to SMEs, employers and recruiters. The duo was seeking for KES 1.2 million 15% equity stake. Kevin and Olive were triumphant in this battle against Joanne Mwangi.

The next to pitch in the den was a father son duo seeking a KES 2 million investment for 25% equity stake in their 3D learning events company. Their company is designed to give a practical approach of teaching and learning mathematics through their programs. Even though the duo didn’t manage to get the needed investment in their company they managed to get some form of support from two lions. Dashan bought 30 pieces of each of their products, and Joanne committed KES 100,000 towards the business.

The last to pitch to the lions on this episode was a duo who wants to ensure simple and safe delivery of products to online customers, Notify logistics.  Notify logistics works by renting a shop in the CBD and partitioning the shop into shelves that can be leased out to online sellers that cannot manage to have a physical shop in the CBD.  They have a built-in system where every shop owner can build a platform where he rents out the shelves he has partitioned in his/her shop.  The business has been in operation in the last 4 months and has shown a good profitability streak. They have 6 shops in the CBD and have over 600 clients. They were asking for 6 million for a 12% equity stake. They managed to secure an investment from Kris with an investment of 6 million with a 21% equity stake.

What we have learnt from this episode is:

• Release your business out to the open market first before seeking an investment. Before any investor jumps into any business they will have to check the profitability and viability of the business. And this can only be done if the business is already out in the market and some statistics can be deduced.
• Don’t be tempted to take the lift in making your business successful, use the stairs. By using the stairs you will learn valuable lessons that will make your business stronger.

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