A £70MILLION business idea was laughed at on Dragons' Den - now the helpful product is bought by famous celebrities worldwide.
Shaun Pulfrey, from Grimsby, walked away empty handed after his Tangle Teezer pitch was rejected on the show in 2007.
When he appeared in front of dragons Deborah Meaden, Duncan Bannatyne, James Caan and Peter Jones, his prototype was so flimsy it broke in his hand.
An unimpressed Meaden told him the "horse brush" wouldn't be a success, which was echoed by Bannatyne who said it "won't make any money".
I’m incredibly excited for the future and the new opportunities it will present for our iconic and much-loved brand, including continuing to bring even more new product innovation, which is the heartbeat of the brand.”
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Meanwhile, Jones slammed the idea, dubbing it a "hair-brained" pitch and Caan branded it a "waste of time".
The disappointed dragons turned down Pulfrey's offer, 15 per cent of the business for £80,000, and left without securing the life-changing deal.
It came as a crushing blow after the inventor had drained £98,000 worth of his hard-earned savings and even remortgaged his London flat to fund the project.
MULTIMILLION POUND DEAL
But, the entrepreneur trusted his expertise, having worked at high end salons, and went on to sell most of his shares for an eye-watering £70million in 2021 to Mayfair Equity Partners.
The business had previously been valued at a whopping £200million in 2016.
Shaun told The Times: “I’m incredibly excited for the future and the new opportunities it will present for our iconic and much-loved brand, including continuing to bring even more new product innovation, which is the heartbeat of the brand.”
Since 2007, the company has become a global sensation, with 80 per cent of sales recorded overseas - and almost a million sold in Latin American markets.
In its first year, 35,000 Tangle Teezers were sold by Boots, which quickly led to premium salons such as Toni & Guy stocking the magic detangling brush.
Now, A-list celebrities from the likes of Victoria Beckham to royalty Princess Kate have boasted they use the wonder tool.
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Others include Kate Moss, Nicole Scherzinger, Cara Delevingne and Salma Hayek.
It means the dismissive dragons will certainly be regretting their move, as Tangle Teezer is set to become one of the show's most successful rejects ever.
This comes as other Dragons' Den rejects have gone on to scoop millions with their business ideas.
Rachel Watkyn, 52, is was ignored after presenting her 'Tiny Box Company', which makes environmentally-friendly and recycled packaging, to the panel.
She was even called "pathetic" for the multimillion pound idea.
On the BBC show, Rachel was told by Duncan Bannatyne that she had produced a box which his "8-year-old daughter Emily could make better at school".
However, she did receive backing from two of the Dragons' at the time.
Her company now makes over 1,500 products for nearly 200,000 customers.
Meanwhile fellow entrepreneur Chika Russell rejected five offers from the dragons - and now she has a £10million business.
Nearly a decade on from turning down the £30,000 investment in return for a share of 25 per cent, her company - Chika’s Food - has flourished.
Speaking to The Sun, the mum-of-four, 39, from west London, says she is on track to make £5.5million in revenue this year alone - and admits Peter Jones was gutted she backtracked on their deal.
