We visit Brewdog founder James Watt’s home for The Next Unicorn pitches

Have you heard the one about the controversial brewery founder, the contrarian investor and a comedian on the hunt for a startup unicorn?

While it may sound like the start of a pub gag, it’s actually a new competition being hosted at Brewdog founder James Watt’s posh London home with more than a hint of Dragons’ Den about it.

Alongside Trigger Happy TV star and confidant Dom Joly, and professional investor Codie Sanchez, Watt says he’s risking £5 million of his money to make three start-ups a success.

He says the panel’s “arbitrariness” will choose better companies. This is Money reporter Angharad Carrick visited his home and the first pitch day to find out more…

A few months ago, James Watt revealed that he was on a mission to find the next startup company that he can help transform into a unicorn.

A unicorn is a company worth over £1 billion – and since most new businesses fail, it’s seen as a mythical beast, although it may be.

It’s safe to say Mr Watt’s announcement raised a few eyebrows in the This is Money office.

His concept is relatively simple: start-ups pitch their ideas, the list would be narrowed down to a final pitch event in James’ central London penthouse.

It’s exactly the kind of place that a budding entrepreneur can only dream of living and living in one day.

From the 40th floor you have a full view of London and it feels more like a showroom than home, especially given the spiral staircase that dominates the main room and, of course, the gold taps in the bathroom.

Now listen, I’m not sure Peter Jones or Deborah Meaden would open their house and do the same thing, but Watt has always been out to do things differently – even though this concept has a familiar feel to it.

Dragons’ Den has been dynamic television for nearly two decades and its impact on entrepreneurs should not be underestimated.

From Reggae Reggae Sauce to the Tangle Teezer, many have been off the hit BBC show over the years and gone with varying degrees of success and disdain.

James is no stranger to the show.

He has been turned down by the program twice – firstly from the investment panel as an entrepreneur at Brewdog, and secondly from being on the panel himself after being interviewed thanks to the huge success of his Scottish brewery, which he co-founded with Martin Dickie .

Now it seems he has mastered the formula for finding his own companies to invest in. He says he puts £5 million of his own money into three start-ups.

Some 750 enthusiastic entrepreneurs submitted their ideas, which was reduced to 14 start-ups who had to personally pitch to Watt.

Before pitches, he sits back on the bench with his feet up and talks to me about it. He’s more than happy to open up to the rejections from that Dragons’ Den.

‘They said [Brewdog] wasn’t enough to invest in and it wasn’t good enough to do business, which is so ironic because if we had gone through with it, it would have been the most successful investment in Dragon’s Den history.”

He’s not bitter though, to be honest.

“After being rejected twice, I remain a huge fan of Dragon’s Den, but I thought… what else can I do, which is more evolved as a concept, go a little bit further.

“My big problem with Dragons’ Den is that when you watch it at home, you see other people investing, you see other people making decisions, you see other people potentially making money. I wanted to do something more interactive.’

One possible reason for Dragons’ Den’s success, I’d say, is because it’s primarily an entertainment show – as a viewer, you don’t have to think too deeply about it, the numbers and what the pitch is like. made.

If there’s one thing TV viewers love to do, it’s being a backseat driver, especially when it’s something they have absolutely no idea about.

But Watt is right to an extent: he’s capitalizing on the growing democratization of investment through crowdfunding platforms like Crowdcube, which he’s partnered with on this “Next Unicorn” project.

The three companies he ultimately invests in will be brought into the crowd, and ordinary investors will be able to raise money in the same deal at the same valuation – though it remains to be seen whether casual investors are willing to take the risk. .

Watt would like it to be something enjoyed through social media rather than on TV, but it didn’t stop him from bringing a full film crew to his house.

Despite this, he’s not the gaudy character I expected. He is polite and gentle and he is quick not to criticize Dragons’ Den.

“I love it, I watch the show, I think the Dragons are fantastic there, it’s definitely not a middle finger.

‘Maybe a bit of healthy competition… can [we] choose better companies than the Dragons? I’d like to think we could.’

As I sit back and watch some of the pitches, I’m surprised by the element Dom Joly adds to it – namely asking questions that others might be too afraid to ask.

Pitches with goat and insect burgers

Watt may see ‘Next Unicorn’ as a bit of fun rather than direct competition with Dragons’ Den, but among the companies vying for investment was sustainable deodorant brand Fussy, which found success in the Den last year and received a £50,000 investment from Peter Jones and Deborah Meaden.

Fussy founder Matt Kennedy comes in with a bang while I’m there. Or rather, Cheryl the goat he rented from someone online, in a rather random turn of events.

He bleated something that the next goat would be a unicorn. No one knew exactly what was going on, but it gave Joly plenty of material to work with.

The pitch went smoothly, albeit with a few interruptions by Cheryl – but the whole process lacked real depth.

What we don’t see on TV are the hours of interrogations that take place.

With Watt’s version, startups are given just 15 minutes to sell themselves.

This was probably easier for the companies that have some name recognition or some connection to Brewdog.

Flexi Hex, a packaging company, is already used to bottling Brewdog’s spirits, while Watt recently asked his followers what they thought of a bug burger courtesy of Yum Bug, who also pitched.

While Watt insists this is definitely not a PR stunt – ‘I’m investing my own money in this’ – it’s hard not to feel that this was all cobbled together rather quickly.

And the elephant in the room is that, rightly or wrongly, Watt has had to deal with a lot of flak in recent years.

For that reason, you’d think many entrepreneurs would drop out – but given the 750 signups and serious investment money at stake, it’s clear many are willing to overlook any controversies Watt has been involved in over the years.

One thing you can’t overlook is the gigantic success that Brewdog has become with beers in all major stores and even a rooftop bar in Las Vegas – any entrepreneur pitching will be desperate for his help and a similar recipe for success.

Especially after seeing a slice of highlife in his premier London penthouse.