Antique appraisals site 'flooded with enquiries' after Den appearance

A successful appearance on Dragon's Den has left Value My Stuff Now flooded with enquiries.

That is according to Patrick van der Vorst, founder of the antique appraisals website, who braved the entrepreneurs for two and a half hours, far longer than the ten minutes his piece was broadcast on the BBC TV programme.

He noted that yesterday (September 1st) the company had 400 antique valuation requests going through and received around 500 to 600 emails from members of the public stating that they will photograph their item and send it in to be valued, which is the main objective of the site, since the show's airing on Monday.

Mr van der Vorst's pitch was turned into a success when Dragons Theo Paphitis and Deborah Meaden both pledged £50,000 for a 20 per cent stake each in the company.

And the antique appraisal site's founder has been delighted with the level of commitment shown by the pair.

He added: "What's great is that since we signed the contracts about five weeks ago they have literally been in touch every day with me - emailing and calling.

"I have actually been amazed with the level of involvement and the level of time that they have dedicated to us and to the company."

Mr van der Vorst expected to have a tough time in the den, stating it was a rollercoaster journey and although he did not lose faith, he was slightly anxious when three of the Dragons pulled out.

But he observed: "The good thing was that, overall all five of them agreed with the concept - that there was a need for it and a need for a product like we have.

"The sticking points were more about the financials and spending on Google advertising and those sorts of things."

The idea for the online company was born when the former Sotheby's worker was often told by many people that they were afraid to ring up an auction house to ask for an antique valuation on an item.