Kippo: Dümmel Deal on DHDL Collapses After the Show Aired

The deal between Kippo founder Patrick Waligorski and investor Ralf Dümmel never came together after the TV show "Die Höhle der Löwen" (DHDL). Waligorski says he learned about three months after the recording that Dümmel was withdrawing from the agreement.

A rotating handle for wheelbarrows

Waligorski runs a scrap yard with his cousin. In the show he presented Kippo, a rotating handle for wheelbarrows meant to take strain off the wrists, for example during garden work. He came up with the idea after suffering wrist pain himself. The solution came from his brother's cable cross machine, whose handles rotate while the cable stays stable. He built the first prototype from parts from his scrap yard.

His ask was 50,000 euros for 30 percent of the company. Andreas Herb tested the product with a wheelbarrow loaded with soil and noticed a clear difference. Frank Thelen praised the invention but dropped out because he had never used a wheelbarrow. Judith Williams and Dagmar Wöhrl also declined. Herb and Dümmel both offered the full amount, even though Waligorski had no sales figures yet: 250 handles produced in China had arrived only days before the pitch.

The lions were also moved by the founder's situation. The lease on his scrap yard expires next year, and finding a new site is hard, so Kippo is meant to be his new career. Dümmel said business is always about money, but that some moments touch the heart. He also praised the valuation, saying it showed Waligorski wanted a deal.

Why Dümmel pulled out

According to Waligorski, he was told the hardware stores approached had shown too little interest in the Kippo handles. A press request to Dümmel about the deal went unanswered.

Waligorski is carrying on regardless. He has had 1,000 handles produced and is now selling them on Amazon. After that he will have to see what comes next, whether a large-volume buyer, an interested company, a sponsor or even an investor turns up.