Poker ace JJ Hazan baffled the dragons of hit television series Dragon’s Den with perhaps one of the most unusual business propositions they’ve ever encountered.
For those that have watched the BBC show, you’ll know how it works – hundreds of wannabe entrepreneurs enter the Dragon’s Den one after another, hoping to leave the room with a tidy investment in their new business from the dragons.
Unfortunately, most hopefuls leave with a shameful look of humiliation after Duncan Bannatyne has told them to go back to cleaning windows because their business idea is a complete waste of time.
JJ Hazan was hoping to buck the trend by offering the dragons a percentage in a different kind of business – himself.
JJ was asking for £65,000, money that he would use to play 33 high stakes online poker tournaments, telling his potential investors that he planned to win eight of the 33 tournaments he entered.
His spiel stunned the dragons and immediately alienated three of the five, however, poker enthusiasts Duncan Bannatyne and Theo Paphitis wanted to hear more.
JJ told them that if he wins big he’ll claim over £1,000,000 in prize money and asks them to think of any other business that can give those sorts of returns overnight.
Duncan and Theo remained interested and looked to be considering a joint investment, that is until the pair questioned whether or not JJ would really need as much as £65,000 of their money if the returns were so high.
That was the turn to negative town that JJ was hoping the pair wouldn’t make and both Duncan and Theo declared themselves out.
It will go down in history as one of the show’s most audacious investment attempts but full credit to JJ for trying. Perhaps a £65,000 stake was a little too much of a gamble, though.
