A Monmouthshire woman who secured a £50,000 investment on BBC show, Dragons’ Den, has said her motivation is not money, but the positive impact her product can make in the modern world.
Lisa Hicks, founded her company, SNOAP, during lockdown in 2020 which aims to reduce the use of single use plastics through using dispensers designed for bars of soap.
Lisa has had over 160,000 enquiries ranging from product purchasing to media access after her appearance on the show on Thursday 28th February. However, the filming date for Dragons Den came at a difficult time in her life.
“We had to do auditions, and we had to prove to the producers that the numbers we were presenting were right. We got the date for filming and my dad, very sadly, suddenly died. That was personally very tough, but the personal turmoil took away the nerves of walking into the den. My dad would be absolutely bursting with pride.”
The day itself is very different to what you would see on screen and the preparations alone are challenging.
“We were in the den for two hours, but people will only have seen 15 minutes of our pitch so there is a lot of conversation you still wouldn’t know about.”
“We had to be dressed and on set for 07:30, we were to be on for early afternoon. You get your hair and makeup done and rehearse with the producers. Then suddenly, it’s time to go.”
“You wait in the ‘pre-lift’ area and for the light to go green, then you’re in and there’s no backing out.”
Deborah Meaden and Peter Jones secured a joined 7.5 per cent stake in Lisa’s business in the den, which she says will help to make our environment cleaner.
“What people don’t realise is the average household in the UK has 2.4 people in it and they go through 64 bottles of bodywash every year. This switch is not only reducing waste from bottles, but it’s clearing waterways, and it is better for your skin. SNOAP does not cost the earth.”
SNOAP is also a part of the ‘Buy Women Built’ group, which consists of businesses around the world founded by women. Lisa hopes to use International Womens’ Day this Saturday to showcase the amazing work of women in business.
“It shocked me when I realised less than 2 per cent of government funding for small businesses go to women founders. There aren’t as many female founders that are celebrated as there are males.”
“Every week, I usually do a shoutout on my social media where I will showcase people in business, which doesn’t exclude men. Ultimately, I just want to promote great businesspeople providing a great service.”
“We have got to lift women up in the business world. We shouldn’t have to. But I do think the tide is turning as more women enter business. It’s women supporting each other that will turn it. It’s a slow turning wheel, but it is turning.”