9 questions for the founders of “The Lion’s Den”

In this questionnaire we ask the founders and participants of the Vox show “The Lion’s Den” questions about their products and experiences on the show. This time: Alissa and Dominik Kübler, the founders of Veprosa.

Veprosa is one vegan protein saucewhich is available in different flavors. The product portfolio currently consists of a green pesto, a tomato sauce, a light sauce and a yellow curry. The organic sauces are free of added sugar, gluten and soy and have a high protein content.

In addition, the preparation is relatively simple. Because the sauce powder only has to be boiled up with water or your favorite plant drink. In the Vox show “Die Höhle der Löwen”, the Veprosa founders Alissa and Dominik Kübler could convince and secure a deal with their dream investor Ralf Dümmel.

Veprosa: This is the organic sauce powder from “The Lion’s Den”

BASIC thinking: Hello Alissa, hello Dominik, you are in the thirteenth season of “The Lion’s Den”. How does that feel?

It feels fantastic, exciting and surreal at the same time, as it has always been a big dream of ours to be on the show ourselves.

What makes your Veprosa product so special?

We are the first organic sauce powder on the market that contains over 30 percent plant protein. What makes us special is the clear list of ingredients with 100 percent natural ingredients.

We are a new, innovative source of protein that can be integrated into the diet in a variety of ways and individually. Be it as a classic sauce, as an addition to soups or dips, or as an ingredient in bread dough, fillings and gratins.

How did you come up with the idea and concept of Veprosa?

We have been eating high protein for a long time. This used to include a lot of meat and dairy products. In 2019 we changed our diet to a purely plant-based diet. What was not easy for us was to make our diet rich in protein.

We also didn’t want to drink artificial protein shakes all the time anymore. So we wondered if you could also make something savory, like a sauce made with natural herbs and spices. We tried out a few things in our kitchen and as a result founded our joint startup veprosa – which stands for vegan protein sauce.

Veprosa and “The Lion’s Den”

And how did you end up in The Lion’s Den?

We are both absolute fans of the show and know what a huge opportunity “Die Höhle der Löwen” is for startups in Germany. When we had four products on the market and wanted to take the next step, we tried our luck and submitted our application. Who would have thought that we would actually get the chance to pitch in front of the lions.

The pitch and the negotiations

What was going through your mind just before your pitch?

Although we were both very self-confident and optimistic, we were extremely nervous before the pitch. Shortly before we started, we hugged each other tightly and took a deep breath. It’s great to experience this journey together and to ground each other. So we marched into the cave full of positive energy and confidence.

How did the subsequent negotiations go?

What happened behind closed doors after The Lion’s Den was new and very exciting for us. After the deal with Ralf Dümmel, our dream lion, we flew to Hamburg with our consultant Marc Stratmann to discuss the contracts in Stapelfeld. We were able to come to an agreement quite quickly and then the participation in our GmbH took place. All in all, we received very warm and competent advice from DS Invest, the investment branch of Ralf’s company.

What has happened to you and your product Veprosa since the shoot and the participation?

We have revised all our recipes with experts. Our packaging has also been optimized for retail and made more appealing. For the broadcast, we also launched a special size of the veprosa sauces – a 250 gram bag – at a special price.

Working with the DS Group team was intensive, collegial and very enriching. Finally no longer working alone on the company was an enormous relief for us and brought us new expertise.

Veprosa: That’s how it goes now

And how does it continue? What are the next steps?

Of course, we hope that all the hard work behind the scenes – post-shoot and pre-broadcast – tweaking our products and pushing for TV appearances will be well received.

We want to take the show’s momentum with us to expand into German-speaking countries and then into new markets. We also have ideas for new veprosa products and hope for continued successful cooperation with Ralf and the DS Group.

Looking back, how do you rate your experience at The Lion’s Den?

We’ll make it short: this experience is priceless and the feedback from the lions was overwhelming. We will always remember it with a big grin and are enormously proud of ourselves.

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