Derry Green, a businessman who appeared on Dragons' Den, has transformed his fortunes from facing financial ruin to owning a multimillion-pound glamping company. Featured in series 21, episode two of the BBC show, Green pitched his business, The Secret Garden Glamping, to dragons Deborah Meaden, Peter Jones, Touker Suleyman, and Steven Bartlett.
From financial ruin to viral success
At the start of the Covid pandemic, Green's European transport business lost all its work overnight, leaving him on universal credit with a mortgage payment break. 'I had nothing to lose,' he recalled. He built a glamping pod for his children, which went viral on Airbnb, leading to requests from others. He then made the first six pods himself.
Within a few years, his business boomed, offering glamping retreats across the UK and Ireland. By 2023, Green entered the Dragons' Den to seek investment for further expansion. He secured a £100,000 investment from Deborah Meaden after offers from multiple dragons.
TV exposure boosts bookings
Just two weeks after his episode aired in January 2024, the company generated an additional £500,000 in bookings, Green told the Naked Founder podcast. He admitted being taken aback by the impact: 'I thought it would be me on my phone for maybe one or two days before the next episode was on and it would calm down. It was six months before it calmed down and even then, it still never stops.'
Annual turnover reaches £2 million
Green's annual turnover has since grown from £500,000 to £2 million, with 47 employees and five nationwide sites. Remarkably, he acknowledged he didn't need the investment or advertising from the show. 'What I wanted was somebody else to tell me I was doing the right thing,' he said.
Since Dragons' Den, his glamping sites have appeared in other TV shows, including Four in a Bed and Celebs Go Dating.
