For most contestants on Dragons' Den, getting called 'delusional' would be enough to send them scampering out of the door with their tails between their legs. However, for Dr. Guy Sandelowsky and Shiv Sivakumar, who have co-founded pet health brand Omni Pet, not only were they able to prove the Dragons wrong, they have since landed a whopping £11,000,000 investment and boast £13,000,000 of annualised revenue.
The business owners appeared on the BBC show in February 2025 and secured backing from Deborah Meaden and Steven Bartlett. Since then, the company has seen rapid growth, adding more than 100,000 new customers and closing out 2025 with £8.4 million in sales.
However, following the most recent injection of cash into their company, both Guy and Shiv have spoken about their extraordinary journey. Asked what they made of their Dragons' Den episode 18 months ago, former investment banker Shiv said: 'Honestly, we're just so grateful for the experience.'
'As a consumer brand, we know the power of a programme like Dragon's Den, and it really helped bring our mission to millions of people across the country,' Shiv explained. 'As an early-stage business, it's difficult to get your message out there because we're competing against the giants of the pet food industry while trying to do something genuinely different. The platform gave us that opportunity.'
Shiv acknowledged that there was a lot of scepticism about the business, their valuation, and how they measured things like customer lifetime value. 'Peter Jones and Touker Suleyman questioned our approach, which reflects a more traditional way of looking at businesses,' he said. 'That's completely valid – valuations are subjective, and we respected that feedback.'
Shiv continued, 'What's been really rewarding is that since the show aired, we've welcomed hundreds of thousands of customers to the business. Stephen Bartlett has also continued to support us and has been a fantastic advocate.'
Guy, who is an experienced veterinarian, described their company's recent success as 'extremely validating'. 'As founders, you're always taking a risk. Even if you believe in your idea, when respected business figures question your valuation, it inevitably creates moments of self-doubt,' he said.
'Now we've been backed by some of the most respected investors in consumer businesses, including Redrice Ventures and others with fantastic track records,' Guy added. 'We've grown from around a £1 million annual run rate to approximately £13 million annualised revenue in just over a year, entirely through direct-to-consumer sales and Amazon. We're not even on supermarket shelves yet.'
Commenting on the Dragons' Den experience, Shiv said: 'Whenever you're trying to do something different, it's quite normal to be called "delusional". Human nature is to follow what's already working, so if you challenge the status quo, people naturally question it. Sometimes that's actually a sign you're onto something. Not always—but many successful businesses started with founders who saw something differently.'
Omni Pet has now raked in millions in just the last year and has become one of the fastest-growing names in the UK pet nutrition market. According to UK Pet Food, the trade body for the UK pet food manufacturing industry, over 50% of dogs and 43% of cats are overweight and this number is rising. Omni Pet is aiming to tackle this growing health concern with calorie-controlled, protein products backed by rigorous clinical research and sustainable champions.
