Dragons' Den star Sara Davies, worth £37 million, insists on taking budget holidays with her family to instil grounded values in her children. The entrepreneur, who founded Crafter's Companion from her university bedroom, says she wants her sons Oliver and Charlie to share in the same experiences she had growing up.
Davies, whose company now turns over £34 million a year and employs over 190 staff worldwide, recalled a disastrous camping trip to the Lake District. After a glamorous appearance on This Morning, she took a train north and ended up in a tent in the rain, with water dripping on her head at 3am while her children rolled down hill inside their sleeping bags.
“When I was younger, we couldn’t afford to go abroad for our holiday. We didn’t even have a caravan, we used to take one of my dad’s vans from work and put our tents out the back,” Davies told the Sunday People last year. “So while I want to give my kids experiences we didn’t have, I also believe the camping holidays made me the grounded person I am and I want my kids to have those experiences.”
The Dragon, who has previously called herself “tight”, also admitted she only buys smoked salmon when it’s on offer, a habit from her childhood. “Growing up, if something was reduced with a big sticker on it in Asda, we would call it a ‘whoopsie’,” she explained. “Smoked salmon was my mum’s favourite thing but in our house we would only ever buy it if it was ‘on whoopsie’ and greatly reduced. Friends think it’s hilarious.”
