A Dragons’ Den contestant who was once told she’d “never amount to anything” secured a £60,000 investment for her business — proving her doubters wrong in dramatic fashion.
Tonight, the BBC re-airs a powerful 2022 episode featuring Hannah Saunders, a former Royal Air Force member and founder of Toddle, a skincare brand designed for adventurous children.
During her pitch, Hannah shared that she had joined the RAF after her parents dismissed her potential. It was during her military service that she developed a love for travel and the outdoors — a passion she later passed on to her children.
After becoming a mother, Hannah noticed her kids often suffered from chapped lips and wind-burned cheeks during outdoor adventures. That’s when she launched Toddle, aiming to provide protective skincare products for young explorers.
Impressed by her drive and concept, Dragon Peter Jones offered a £60,000 investment.
When Jones asked whether her parents’ opinion of her had changed since launching the business, Hannah responded, “I have no idea — they haven’t spoken to me in years.”
Clearly moved, Jones replied: “I’m devastated to hear that on your behalf.”
Hannah added that it had taken ‘years’ and ‘some therapy’, but she was ‘through the other side of it now’.
When asked where her drive came from, Hannah said that as well as doing it for her two boys, aged three and six, ‘There’s a small part of me that wants to prove my parents wrong.’
The Dragons were moved by Hannah’s story, with Steven Bartlett telling her: ‘I think you should be incredibly proud of yourself and it’s made me a little bit emotional, which is quite rare.’
Sara Davies added: ‘My word, you are impressive. Honestly, I feel a little bit in awe of you.’
Meanwhile, Deborah Meaden dubbed Hannah ‘faultless’, while Touker Suleyman turned to her and said: ‘You’ve got every answer,’ after she successfully fielded the Dragons’ questions.
Hannah received offers from three Dragons and, after a little bit of bartering, secured a joint investment of £60,000 with Steven and Deborah.
She has since been dubbed the ‘most prepared entrepreneur to ever enter the Den’.
After striking a deal, Steven said: ‘When I can’t find a fault in an entrepreneur, I have no choice but to invest. And I literally couldn’t find a fault.’
Hannah revealed after leaving the Den: ‘All I did was prepare as thoroughly as I could for the day. I really wasn’t preempting any kind of reaction from them’.
She added: ‘To hear those kind words and to say how well I was doing is just a dream come true.’
Hannah has since sold Toddle and is now the founder of Pitch Fund and Grow, a company which helps other business founders speak to investors and raise money.
She is also the chief marketing officer a weServed, a platform that supports veterans, and chief growth officer at a tech startup called Nudge.
Reflecting on her Dragons’ Den experience, Hannah recently wrote in a LinkedIn post: ‘I stood on that famous carpet and told my story raw and real. I shared my childhood, my military background, and my big dream. The Dragons saw something in me.’
She added: ‘For me, building Toddle wasn’t just about creating a business; it was about creating value. From the beginning, I had a clear goal to grow the brand and sell. And that’s exactly what I did. Toddle has now been acquired by new owners, and I couldn’t be prouder of what we achieved.’