At the start of the season of the founders show, there was almost a scandal between the founders of Feschd and investor Nils Glagau. In the end they struck. But the deal didn’t work out.
Their pitch took an unexpected turn: Nevertheless, Feschd founders Simon Josenhans (l.), Luisa Josenhans and Mike Obermeier went home with a deal after the broadcast. RTL / Bernd-Michael Maurer
An investor doesn’t negotiate a startup deal like he would a used Ikea bed on classified ads. That’s hardly surprising. Nevertheless, the founders of the startup Feschd used an unusual tactic in the opening episode of the 15th season of the TV show “The Lions’ Den”. Her plan to sell no more than 15 percent of her company shares and thus confront two investors almost cost her a deal during the show. Her dream lion, Nils Glagau, rejected her harshly. Although the founder and investor came to an agreement in the end, the “weird aftertaste” for Glagau apparently did not disappear afterwards. The deal subsequently fell through.
Everything started well at first: the invention by Simon Josenhans, his wife Luisa Josenhans and Mike Obermeier – a smart cell phone holder that doesn’t wobble – attracted interest from the jury. Your product is intended to mount cell phones securely and firmly (“feschd” in Swabian) to the handlebars of a standard bicycle. To do this, a thin adapter plate is glued to the back of the smartphone, which has a magnet and a fold-out metal ring. The holder, which is also magnetic, sucks in the cell phone. Four knobs also snap into place.
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For wild mountain bike rides, the metal bracket can be folded out and attached to the holder. Alternatively, according to the founders, the ring should be used to prop up the cell phone while playing videos or to hook your fingers in it – a “one-fits-all solution”, so to speak. In the future, the holder will also be further developed for cars and, for example, motorcycles. Josenhans promised that an “entire ecosystem” should be created around the product.
Ralf Dümmel and Nils Glagau made an offer
The founders came to receive 80,000 euros for ten percent of the shares for their startup in order to scale their production. At the time of recording, their production in Gießen had only been running for four months, and they had sold around 1,300 brackets to date – with manufacturing costs of around 15 euros per set.
Investor Dagmar Wöhrl thought her valuation was too high. The fact that the market for bicycle holders is already busy was another reason that made her and her colleagues Tijen Onaran and Tillmann Schulz doubt whether they would take part. She was also bothered by the fact that the founders were still running their startup Feschd as a sideline instead of going “all in”. Simon Josenhans has accepted a 60 percent position, his wife Luisa is still studying and Mike Obermeier owns two of his own companies. He plans to sell one.
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The founders of the two remaining lions, Ralf Dümmel and Nils Glagau, received recognition for their path. They weren’t worried about the strong competition. Both were prepared to give them the five-figure amount for 20 percent of the shares. However, this demand was too high for the founders of Feschd – they still wanted a deal. Hoping to reach an agreement on 15 percent with one of them without first committing to an investor, founder Josenhans asked: “Which of you is willing to accommodate us?”
Glagau reacted offended: “I expect a certain level of appreciation”
The answer: Nobody was. What followed instead was a lecture from Glagau, who felt offended by the founders’ actions. He accused them of putting money and shares above the personality of the investor. “You come into the lion’s den, you know that there are not traditional investors here who give you money, but who want to accompany you with full passion. I expect a certain level of appreciation for it. “I don’t feel comfortable anymore,” he complained. Dümmel also didn’t want to be the “second choice” and waved him away.
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At the last moment, the founders tried to turn things around and emphasized Glagau’s valuable network and know-how. With Dagmar Wöhrl’s persuasion, the family businessman finally agreed to a deal on his terms. Nevertheless, after the handshake he found: “It somehow leaves an aftertaste for Ralf and me.”
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Investor misses the professional focus on Feschd among the founders
In the end, it wasn’t the lack of respect for him that caused the deal to fall through, but rather the founders’ lack of commitment to their project: “The founders of Feschd convinced me with their cell phone holders and their mission in the pitch. However, it is important that everyone is equally passionate about the common idea,” explains Glagau when asked by Gründerszene. He goes on to say: “Unfortunately, it later became clear that not everyone in the team could put their professional focus on Feschd.” Nevertheless, he wanted to follow the startup’s further path.
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Founder Simon Josenhans is affected by the failure of the collaboration. But he also emphasizes: “At Feschd we value transparency and honesty and are the same towards Nils when it comes to the capacities of each and every one of us.” The founder is understanding: “Even if that didn’t mean a deal for us, we can “We understand that Nils sees uncertainty in this.” Nevertheless, they wanted to continue to “go full throttle” and stay true to their vision. According to Josenhans, the trio was able to obtain the necessary financing in another way – through the support of family, friends “and many loyal customers”. They are now working on other products.
Feschd continues with new products
They now sell different versions of their holder in their online shop. In addition to the universal solution for 49 euros, Feschd now also offers the holder in combination with cell phone cases for various smartphone brands. In addition, as announced, the founders have launched a mount for the car that costs 29 euros, as well as an “everywhere mount” for 25 euros, which can be attached to any surface such as tables or walls. The social component of cooperating with the aid organization World Bicycle Relief and using part of its proceeds to finance bicycles in developing countries still exists. The founders also want to position themselves as a sustainable startup by removing, melting down and replacing the individual components of their holders if they are damaged.
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