Teenage sisters Cat and Honor Black have become two of the youngest entrepreneurs ever to appear on BBC's Dragons' Den, walking away with investment offers from all five Dragons. The siblings, aged 16 and 17 at the time of filming, pitched their brand Maiden to Steven Bartlett, Deborah Meaden, Touker Suleyman, Peter Jones and guest Dragon Gary Neville.
Maiden creates cricket clothing, teamwear and equipment exclusively for women and girls. The business was founded after the sisters' own experiences in the sport.
Why the sisters started Maiden
"We started Maiden because we were tired of being at the sidelines," Honor explained. "We felt when playing at every level that we were forced to make kit with boys' kit or unisex gear that wasn't designed for us. And so we decided that we would make something that worked for us and others like us."
Cat recalled a moment that left her wanting to quit cricket, after a "humiliating" experience during her time of the month where the other players laughed and she felt misunderstood. "The kit we had was not designed for such a situation," she said. "This pushed me to help create something that made girls feel confident and comfort in the sport they play."
The sisters entered the Den asking for £15,000 for a 10% stake in their business, having launched in 2024 to success with girls, parents and schools. "The message was clear, we weren't alone," Honor said.
Scaling up and securing all five Dragons
Discussing scaling their business, Cat said: "Women's cricket is going, the timing is perfect and we're at the forefront of change. We want Maiden to be the go-to brand for female cricket." Honor added: "And as our brand does always say, it's ok boys, we will take it from here."
Cat and Honor secured five investments, giving away a total of 25% of their business. Touker Suleyman hailed the product as "fantastic" and admitted: "I'm very impressed." Steven praised the sisters: "If you're this capable at 16/17 years old, I can't imagine what you're going to be like at 18/19/20."
Reaction to the history-making moment
In an exclusive interview with The Mirror, Cat spoke about the experience and building the company with her sister. "When we ended up getting all five Dragons, we were like, oh my god, no way. We'd never even thought about what would happen if we had got Dragons!" she said.
After filming in the Den, Cat met the other Dragons. "It was hugs all around, I met all of them, definitely a bucket list moment ticked off," she said. She added: "I remember hugging them so many times, I was so overwhelmed. Peter Jones really understood the situation more than the others, just because he started a business at 16, so he was like, 'This is an amazing achievement, and I hope it all goes well for you'."
Reflecting on their journey, Cat continued: "You always look up to other business, and aspire to be bigger and aspire to be better. I didn't know that I'd been the youngest contestant on Dragons' Den [to receive five offers]."
"I don't think I realise how far we have come until someone tells me, which is always amazing. I am honestly proud that we've managed to do this and inspire other women to do the same," she said. "It's such a big thing because it's not just around cricket. The whole Maiden mission is more like for women who see a problem, you can fix it, you can do something about it. That's what inspires me and hopefully it inspires lots of other women, not just in the sports industry but everywhere. You can change and you can do something."
Dragons' Den is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
