Watt seeks funding from Dragons' Den investors

19-Jun-2024 - Last updated on 19-Jun-2024 at 14:10 GMT

Lucrative investment: Watt urges Dragons not to miss out

James Watt has urged investors not to miss out on another “lucrative” opportunity by supporting his new business.

The former BrewDog boss shared a video post to LinkedIn on Wednesday 19 June publicly addressing venture capitalists and TV personalities from BBC’s Dragons' Den offering them the opportunity to invest in his new business the Social Tip.

Watt and BrewDog co-founder Martin Dickie applied to be on Dragons' Den after founding the Ellon-based firm in 2007 but were unsuccessful in securing investment, and now he has urged them not to “miss out” again.

The post said: “Hi Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden, Touker Suleyman, Steven Bartlett & Sara Davies MBE.

Lucrative investment

“Last time I launched a business, Dragons' Den famously turned down BrewDog, and the Dragons missed out on what would have been by far the most lucrative investment in their history.
“To ensure you don’t miss out this time around, I am giving each of you the opportunity to invest £25,000 in my brand-new business, Social Tip. DM me to discuss this further.”

Earlier this month the former BrewDog boss shared news of his new business venture, also on LinkedIn, describing it as being in the “brand building space” with a focus on “building community and rewarding everyday people for genuine brand advocacy and love”.

Watt added the Social Tip would be launching later this summer and that he would share more details “soon”.

Democratising influence

In May, Watt announced he would be stepping down as BrewDog chief executive after 17-years at the helm of the Ellon-based business, remaining on the BrewDog PLC board in the role of “captain and co-founder” and remained a major shareholder.

Following the call for investment from the Dragon’s Den team, Watt then posted a separate video urging others to support the initiative by signing up for the waitlist to access shares via Crowdcube.

A further post also shared details of Social Tip event set to take place at BrewDog’s Waterloo site on Thursday 20 June between 8AM and 9AM.

He said: “Social Tip is all about democratising influence, to that end, the invitation to invest is not only open to the Dragons but is it also open to anyone who believes in our mission.
“You will be investing in Social Tip alongside an award-winning VC, angel investors and brilliant tech founders - all on the same terms and at exactly the same valuation.”