An entrepreneur who was rejected by Dragons’ Den and claims he ‘turned down a £90 million offer for his company’ because he believed it was worth £1 billion has had to sell his car and home to keep it afloat.
Marco Hajikypri blames health food Pro Gains business’ 80% sales slump on customers hating his “bragging”.
He’s been forced to sell his £50,000 Audi Q7 – and start driving his girlfriend’s Smart car around the streets of Birmingham.
He has also sold his house and is now renting while he ploughs £90,000 back into the business in a desperate attempt to keep it running.
Back in July, Marco rejected a £90million offer for Pro Gains because he believed he could do better on his own.
But now he has told the Birmingham Mail :
“I wish had taken a tenth of that offer now. I’ve had hate mail, it’s been awful.
“Since I went public with my offer, my business has been massively affected.
“I’ve had lots of abuse from people thinking I’m money-grabbing and arrogant, and a lot of customers have stopped buying my product.
“Sales are down by 80 per cent and I’ve had to sell my house and my car.
“I’ve even started selling cheap raw meat to get customers back and get my cash flow going.
“I’m really gutted. I’m driving a Smart car but it’s not a joke.”
Marco appeared on BBC’s Dragons’ Den last year but ended up rowing with the Dragons, particularly Deborah Meaden who believed he had over-valued his company at £2 million and described him as “like arguing with cotton wool”.
Marco was determined to prove the Dragons wrong, and within a few months had expanded to three units in West Bromwich and employed 33 people to prepare and deliver 7,000 healthy meals a week to customers’ doors.
He claimed the business was worth £16 million, but Coventry multi-millionaire Jojar Singh Dhinsa offered him a staggering £90 million for the company.
However, believing the company was going to be worth £1 billion, Marco decided to turn down the offer. But it was after this that his luck turned.
Marco said: “I think I have been portrayed by some media outlets as a money grabber, which is not true because I’m all about giving back. Last year I donated £4,000 worth of food to the homeless.
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| the car he drives now |
Emeh Achanga,the CEO of the Miss Petite Nigeria Brand is a lawyer turned blogger. She is very passionate about writing, with several publications and awards to her credit .She is currently working on publishing a collection of short stories which are basically a memoir about her exciting true experiences.
