"Ingenious" bike storage rail earns £100,000 Dragons' Den investment

The entrepreneur behind the SpaceRail — a "smart, stylish way to store bikes more efficiently in offices, homes and businesses, without losing access to any of them" — has earned £100,000 of investment on Dragons' Den for his "ingenious" bike storage solution.

Elliot Tanner's product uses rotating hooks on a sliding rail and impressed the Dragons in an episode of the BBC show which aired last night, the entrepreneur ultimately accepting Touker Suleyman's offer for £100,000 in return for a seven per cent stake in the business, dropping to four per cent once he has recouped his initial investment.

Tanner's Stashed Products company's SpaceRail impressed our sister site off-road.cc too — our reviewer giving it four-and-a-half stars and calling it a "fantastic bike storage solution", if not the cheapest given its start price of £169.

On the show, Tanner received offers from four Dragons and considered interest from Steven Bartlett, Sara Davies and Deborah Meaden (who dubbed it a "bike abattoir") — the chosen Dragon Suleyman's retail expertise and experience with other cycling businesses swinging the decision.

Calling his design "wonderfully simple", the entrepreneur suggested the "innovative" SpaceRail "finally answers the question: how do you store more bikes in less space?" He suggested the product allows you to store eight bikes in a space you would otherwise only be able to store four and told the Dragons it is manufactured in the UK and has patents granted in the UK, EU and the US.

"Since trading began we've had over 4,000 orders and now 80 per cent ship worldwide," Tanner said. "I expect to see revenues reach over £10m within the next five years. My vision, with your help, is to become the number one bike storage company in the world.

"We've sold 25,000 bikes' worth in two years. First year we turned over £85,000 and a net of £20,000. Year two: £825,000 revenue, net of £200,000. This year we'll turn over £1.9m with about £750,000 net."

The figures received an impressed reaction from the Dragons, Bartlett smiling and telling Tanner his bike racks are "printing cash" before asking why he even needed investment. "You clearly don't need cash, you're printing it... you've got a money factory at your house".

Answering Bartlett's question, the entrepreneur explained how currently all sales are direct to consumer and they "haven't even touched retail yet", something he wanted help with.

Tanner initially asked for £100,000 in return for 2.5 per cent of the business, but following negotiation shook hands on a deal with Suleyman for the full investment in return for seven per cent of the business, reducing to four per cent once the Dragon has recouped his initial capital.

Even the two Dragons who didn't make offers, Peter Jones and Emma Grede, were impressed, Grede saying she was going to buy one "immediately"

The only moment of uncertainty came when Suleyman, who owns second-hand bike marketplace Bikesoup, warned Tanner of the state of the bike industry, saying: "It's a disaster out there". 

"The bike market peaked a couple of years ago, you couldn't get a bike, and it's just collapsed for the whole industry and I'm experiencing it," Suleyman said. "However, that does not mean that accessories are not doing well because people still own bikes and want them stored."

Suleyman also highlighted SpaceRail's premium pricing, products ranging from £169 to in excess of £1,000, but ultimately invested in the business.

Stashed Products began trading in 2022 with the launch of the Ceiling Mounted SpaceRail. Designed to "solve the problem of how to store more bikes in less space" when Elliot found his own space for bike storage reduced following the birth of his daughter. Since then, the product range has expanded and includes Free Standing and Wall Mounted systems plus a range of complementary accessories.

Cycling products have regularly appeared on the BBC show, most recently in 2022 when TurboRocks, whose rocker plates are designed to add realism and comfort to indoor riding, secured £80,000 of investment.

One product which did not receive backing was 'the world’s loudest bicycle horn', although its founder Tom de Pelet is unlikely to care, the Hornit hitting over £3 million in global sales by 2021.