Added: 3rd October 2011

Since securing Deborah and Theo’s backing on series 6 of Dragons’ Den, Magic Whiteboard has gone from strength to strength, with rapid sales growth and the addition of a host of new ‘Magic’ products. This track record has made Magic Whiteboard one of the Den's most successful investments and has led to a feature on the Dragons' Den spin off ‘How to Win in the Den’. The programme is available to view on BBC Iplayer until Wednesday 19th October.

The company’s growing product range includes a new erasable Magic Sticky Note. These reusable self stick notes are available in a pad or a mini roll and are handy for reminders. Another recent addition to the range is an A4 version of Magic Whiteboard that costs £9.99 for 20 sheets and is ideal for sticking to fridges. All Magic products are available from www.magicwhiteboard.co.uk

On 7th October their new book, inspired by another product from their range Magic Blackout Blind, will also be launched. Diary of a Sleep Deprived Mum is a must have for every parent suffering from sleep deprivation. Including sleep tips from real mums it is a deliberately non-preachy hilarious combination of information, anecdotes, advice and tips for attaining every parent's ultimate goal - getting more sleep!

Click here to pre order your copy from Amazon today for only £9.99 or click here to visit the facebook page to pick up more tips and add your own.

Neil Westwood, Managing Director of Magic Whiteboard is currently undertaking a tour of schools across the UK. Neil is doing a series of visits and free Skype sessions direct to classrooms to inspire students to get involved in business and learn about the skills required to run and manage successful companies. To date over 500 students have taken part, ranging from Primary schools to academies and 6th form colleges.

For more information on Magic Whiteboard click here to visit their page on this website or click here to visit the Magic Whiteboard website.

Added: 5th September 2011

barMate, the innovative new product designed to generate increased revenues in bars, clubs and pubs, secured Deborah's backing in episode seven of the latest series of Dragons' Den.

barMate is designed to increase the amount of lager, cider, stout or draft bitter that can be sold at peak times by releasing bar-staff to serve other drinks or to take payment. barMate saves significant amounts of time when serving customers, reducing wait times and improving the customer experience as well as increasing the volume of drinks sold.

Deborah and Theo offered £50,000 between them for a 40% stake in the business. Deborah said, "Richard, Sebastian and Nick presented a very credible pitch. They were articulate and accomplished with a great skill base and knowledge. Plus, Sebastian's experience in bringing a patented product to market  demonstrated a real and tangible track record.  I also completely understood the importance of being able to serve drinks fast without product waste, having spent years in a part of the leisure industry where everyone rushes to the bar in between entertainment breaks."

For more information on barMate click here to visit their page on this website or visit the barMate website .

Added: 31st July 2011

Ploughcroft, the solar power and renewable energy specialists, secure Deborah's backing in episode one of the latest series of Dragons' Den.

Ploughcroft is a sizeable business covering several areas including solar installations, roofing and renewable training. Ploughcroft Solar is a market leader in the installation of solar PV electricity generating systems. Demand for solar PV is growing rapidly, driven not only by rising energy prices and environmental awareness, but also by excellent returns for customers thanks to the government backed Feed-in Tariff.

Deborah and Theo offered £120,000 between them for a 25% stake in the business. Deborah said about Ploughcroft, "I had already identified the renewable energy market as an exciting place to do business, not least because it combines doing the right thing with great returns. Chris clearly demonstrated that he was deeply knowledgeable and an industry leader, not just “jumping on the bandwagon”. He was also obviously someone who gets stuff done and cares about his customers...seemed like the perfect fit and so I went for it!"

The final choice of Dragons was of top importance to MD of Ploughcroft Chris Hopkins, “apart from their excellent reputation in the world of business, Deborah and Theo are trusted household names. This was very important to me, as I want Ploughcroft to grow to become the household name of choice for solar and renewable energy installations.”

Chris is excited at the prospect of working with Deborah and Theo to drive his business forward and expand across the UK.  “It's fantastic to have had the opportunity to meet such successful entrepreneurs. Through their backing and bank of contacts, both in the UK and across the globe, we’re looking forward to achieving major success with Ploughcroft in the renewable energy market.”

For more information on Ploughcroft click here to visit their page on this website or visit the Ploughcroft website.

Added: 28th July 2011

After a rigorous eight month trial Steri-Spray, the innovative showers that prevent legionnaires disease, have been endorsed by Belfast NHS Trust as "an effective legionella control measure."

George McCracken, Head of Estates Risk and Environment at the trust said, "we have completed our trials, although we are still monitoring out of good practice. All results have been highly satisfactory to date and we have now installed 20 of these units in problem areas. Our Water Safety Group at the last meeting has formally approved the showers for use as a Legionella control measure." 

Ian Helmore, the inventor behind Steri-Spray, secured investment for his potentially life saving invention from Deborah and Theo in Series 5 of the Dragons’ Den, but his appearance on the popular BBC2 programme was no publicity excercise. “Without Deborah and Theo’s investment I would not have been able to continue with the Steri-Spray project as the patent fees were financially crippling me and I simply didn’t have any more money to invest in getting the product to market”, he said.

Ian admits that it has taken longer than planned to get the products to full manufacture and onto the market. However, everyone involved felt that it was important to test the showers in live installations, before fully launching the range. All of the on site testing has taken place in facilities that had live Legionella issues before the Steri-Spray showers were introduced. With endorsement from the UK’s largest NHS trust now secured, this strategy has given them independent verification that the showers really do prevent people from being exposed to legionnella bacteria when showering.

“To put it in perspective, our showers are now installed in high risk cancer wards, where patients with little or no immune system are actually using our showers. We will never know for sure, but our showers may have already prevented someone from contracting Legionnaires Disease”, said Ian.

Steri-Spray is now poised for a nationwide launch that will see them go head to head with standard showers from the large manufacturers. Steri-Spray’s ambitions don’t stop there though. The product has worldwide patents and is already creating waves across the Atlantic; currently a trial is being planned in association with an internationally recognised expert in legionella, based in the United States. 

To find out more visit the Steri Spray page on this website or visit the Steri Spray website

Added: 3rd May 2011

Valuemystuff.com, the online valuations service targets viewers of daytime antiques shows

Securing investment from Deborah Meaden and Theo Paphitis on 'Dragons' Den' last year, the business is one of only a handful of companies from the programme to go on to launch a TV advertising campaign. 

The ads, which are 30 seconds, 20 seconds and 10 seconds in length will be broadcast on Sky channels ‘Home’ and ‘Yesterday’ and will be shown during the ad breaks of programmes including Cash in the Attic, Antiques Roadshow and Flog it! during May.

Set up by ex-Sotheby’s Director Patrick Van der Vorst in 2009, the service helps make the art and antiques world more open and less intimidating. Customers simply send in photographs of any items they wish to have valued, and within 48 hours, one of over 50 experts will respond with a description and a valuation of that item. All the experts are ex Sotheby’s, Christie’s or Bonham’s and cover every area from Aboriginal art and ceramics through to sport, music and film memorabilia, stamps, coins, toys and more. Prices start from £4.99 per item valued.

Value My Stuff has continued to grow steadily since launch and currently values between 250 and 300 items a day. The company has just moved in to a new office in Westminster and has recruited their first US based experts, with plans to take on more in the States later this year.

Value My Stuff’s app for the iPhone and iPad is also due to launch in May, making it easier for customers to take photos of their items on their phone or iPad and upload direct to the site.

Patrick says; “2011 has been a busy and exciting year for us so far, but we want to keep up the momentum and continue to build on our success, which is why we have invested in the TV ad campaign. The TV ads from part of an integrated marketing strategy and have been designed to communicate and reinforce Value My Stuff’s key messages.

“The ads will therefore focus on the two core principles of the website, which are namely the wide range of expertise available, and the easy to use, friendly service on offer.”

For more information or to speak to Patrick van der Vorst, please contact Katie Matthews at PHA Media on 0207 025 1355 or Katie@pha-media.com