It is always good to step outside your comfort zone, which is precisely what Adam and Sam did, as they stepped into the Dragon's Den to pitch in front of representatives from Comic Relief and the British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA).
At Far'n'Beyond, we are always looking to develop our products and services, including the range of eco-conscious branded products made by our in-house fulfilment team.
Distributed under our 'Really Good Branding' umbrella, this has seen us become market leaders in festive merchandise, gardening products, and outdoor event production.
The BPMA is the industry association that underpins our processes, providing a trusted framework for best practice, compliance, and ethical sourcing.
In partnership with the BPMA, the team at Comic Relief were looking for innovative merchandise concepts that would promote Sustainability, Inclusivity & Accessibility, Humour & Joy and Recognisability.
A UK charity harnessing humour to raise funds and awareness for projects tackling poverty, injustice, and inequality, Comic Relief had a clear brief and we were looking forward to the challenge of tailoring one of our most popular and accessible products.
The first phase of the process was evaluated by the BPMA who selected a shortlist of eight entries for the 'Dragon's Den' style pitch event.
"Following an incredible response, a shortlist of eight entries has now been selected.
The BPMA were hugely impressed by both the quality and quantity of submissions received from our members."
BPMA
Given the quality and range of submissions, being invited to pitch our concept at the original BBC Dragon's Den Studio was a meaningful recognition of the work and thinking behind our idea.
The reality, however, was slightly more daunting...
Our concept was designed by Sam, who developed a marketing strategy to raise funds through retail sales and sponsorship of our ever-popular custom printed seed packets.
The primary campaign was our 'Tall Donation Challenge', which encourages participants to grow the tallest sunflower in 100 days and convert its height into donations by asking friends and family to sponsor by the cm or mm using the supplied tape measure.
As a retail product, it would be possible to purchase on its own, along with a trio of gardening seed packets, including 'Grow Your Own Red Nose' seed packets, including Tomato and Radish varieties, to help raise funds for the charity.
"It's such a great opportunity working on something new for Comic Relief and the BPMA, as it highlights the positive impact that Comic Relief has, whilst getting to create a new marketing angle, which is really exciting"
Sam Wood, Creative Design & Packaging.
Accessible to everyone, our seed packets are made in the UK by our in-house production and fulfilment team as a sustainable, biodegradable, and practical branded gift that really showcases your message, thanks to the full-coverage print... but what would the Dragon's think?
Entering a fairly unassuming building in Hackney, Sam and Adam got the full Dragon's Den experience.
After watching other leading merchandise brands take the daunting flight of stairs after a brief pre-presentation interview, it was finally time for Sam and Adam to enter the Dragon's Den.
Adam was clear that this was not something he enjoyed, as the nerves built up in the holding room, whilst Sam seemed calm and relaxed ahead of the pitch.
"I always make sure I do one thing a year outside my comfort zone at work, and this year was the most challenging! I am very proud of Sam, who was calm and collected throughout the process and delivered a fantastic pitch that all of us at Far'n'Beyond & Really Good Branding can be proud of."
Adam Moody
Greeted by the dazzling TV lights and several cameras, two industry experts and representatives from Comic Relief, we took the stairs into the den.
After fifteen terrifying minutes, a fantastic presentation from Sam and a strong grilling from the judges, both Sam and Adam felt they received the genuine Dragon's Den experience, and spoke of their elation when it was over.
We look forward to receiving the final cut of the event filming and more information about our performance, but at this stage, we are just relieved and delighted to have got this far in the process.
A great experience for Sam and Adam, along with an excellent opportunity to work with Comic Relief, it has been an exciting journey... we look forward to finding out if the Dragons are in or out.
