Dragon's Den woman who 'lost all fear' after cancer fight gets £50k and Trinny Woodall backing
A woman from Swansea, who beat breast cancer, has taken on Dragons' Den to secure a £50k business deal. 47-year-old Laura Harnett, who is the founder of Seep, managed to convince guest judge Trinny Woodall to make her first and only investment during Dragons' Den's fourth episode of the 22nd series.
During the programme, Deborah Meaden partnered with Trinny to invest in Laura's eco-cleaning brand and offer the full £50,000 requested for a 4% share in the business. Speaking to WalesOnline, businesswoman Laura described the experience as "a nail-biter" but a "massive adrenaline rush".
The idea behind the business came to Laura, who grew up in Swansea but now lives in west London, after she was diagnosed with breast cancer in her late 30s. Following her recovery, Laura said she had "lost all fear" of setting up her own business and decided to do exactly that. For the latest TV and showbiz gossip sign up to our newsletter.
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The mum-of-two said she had always been an "eco-conscious" person. During the lockdown of 2020, Laura said she was left feeling frustrated by the lack of eco-friendly sustainable alternatives to plastic in the cleaning aisle. Plastic sponges and microfiber cloths release microplastics when they are used and also end up in landfill. Laura, therefore, decided to do something about it.
"In my early 40s, I never ever thought I’d be a founder," Laura said. "And I came across this category and a set of products that were full of plastics. I had changed things in my cupboards to plastic-free products with no toxins. And I thought to myself, this is a category I could change. I waited for someone else to do it, but then I decided - if I can’t back myself, who can? I have no regrets in my life, so I decided this has got to be done."
But there was also another personal element to creating sustainable alternatives to plastic. As reported by Breast Cancer UK, studies have yet to demonstrate a link between microplastics and breast cancer risk, but the charity has said that "such a link is feasible". According to the charity, microplastics often contain mixtures of EDCs (endocrine disrupting chemicals), which mimic oestrogen and can interfere with hormone function. The charity notes that ingesting microplastics can cause inflammation and irritation, potentially leading to DNA damage and cancer.
"Plastic, I became almost obsessed with it," Laura said. "With breast cancer in women, incidents are going up - it's genetics, but it is also things we are coming into contact with in our environment, with plastics and toxins being the main things. I hated them, I hated these products and I found there were no alternatives. In really niche eco-friendly shops, all I could find were coconut scourers, but they didn't work very well. So that was the impetuous to start."
As Laura explained, the products are 100% plastic-free, compostable and long-lasting. Customers can purchase from sponges to loofah scourers, with both the products and their packaging fully recyclable and made from sustainably managed (FSC) sources. Impressively, Seep is the only B Corp certified, which is the gold standard for sustainability, cleaning accessory brand in Europe.
The business has grown from strength-to-strength, with six members of staff in an all-female team. Seep products are also stocked in Tesco, Ocado, Amazon and hundreds of other independent retailers. To take her business to the next level, however, Laura decided to go on Dragons' Den. She hoped that an investment could help drive her marketing activity to raise awareness, and ultimately, encourage more people to switch to plastic free cleaning tools.
"I've watched Dragons' Den for years," Laura said. "It's kind of how I learnt how to run a small business." She continued: "But I'd say it was quite a scary thing, to put yourself out there. I was quite shy growing up, I wouldn't have been the person standing at the front of the classroom. But the opportunity to get the message out about these alternative products was so important."
When asked what it was like to stand in front of the dragons during the pitch, Laura said: "I've done quite a lot of public speaking and I have never known anything like it. There are no retakes at all, you don't get to see any edits, so I saw it at the same time as everyone else saw it.
"It was a nail-biter. But it was also a massive adrenaline rush because you know once those lift doors open, you can't put a word wrong, if you make a mistake during your pitch, you can't undo that. Whenever I think back at what happened, it's all very blurry and fuzzy because I think the adrenaline is so high. It all feels hazy to be honest."
As the programme showed, during one moment of Laura's pitch Trinny decided to take on fellow dragon, Touker Suleyman, who questioned Laura's marketing strategy. "They have a difference in opinions on how to run a business, and I was kind of stuck between them two," Laura recalled. "But all in all, it was really lovely. I managed to get three offers and I accepted two of them.
"I went in there really, really wanting Deborah and Trinny, who was obviously a guest judge and she's iconic. I thought to myself, my gosh, having someone like her backing the business and helping would be the dream. And, obviously, Deborah is the queen of sustainable businesses and has already been super helpful for us, has been amazing."
Moving forward, Laura hopes to build her business to a "global household brand", for the products to get stocked in more retailers and to unveil new products. She also hopes that the opportunity will push her a bit further. She said: "When I left school, I never thought I'd be the type of person to launch my own business.
"Back then, I was more risk averse , I liked the idea of a steady job. The more I do it, as a founder, the bigger the risks I take, like Dragons' Den, the more I realise that this is what it's about. It's about taking risks and putting yourself out there. I have no doubt it was the right thing to do and I hope it will encourage me to put myself out there a bit more."
You can watch the Dragons' Den's latest series at 8pm on Thursday evenings and catch-up on any episodes you have missed on BBC iPlayer.
