One of the stars of Dragons’ Den has revealed why she ended up giving footie legend Gary Neville’s £25,000 back after filming ended – despite him being her ‘dream Dragon’
It may sound like a dream come true – but one Dragon’s Den contestant ended up giving back the £50k investment offered her by football icon Gary Neville, after the cameras stopped rolling.
Danielle Close, a professional psychic medium, was the envy of the other contestants on BBC hit Dragons Den when she bagged a £50,000 joint investment from her ‘dream Dragons,’ Deborah Meaden and Gary Neville.
The business owner, who was pitching her skincare brand My Skin Feels, which creates effective, sensitive-skin-friendly formulas using rescued food by-products, appeared on the show in 2023 – when former Manchester United footballer Gary was announced as a guest Dragon.
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Speaking to Metro, she said, “If you want to know something really weird … years ago, when Gary Neville was announced as a Dragon, I really thought if I ever go on the show, I want my Dragon to be him.
“So when I was put with him, I just knew it; I had such a good feeling about him, and I don’t know why,’ she told us.
And though she was offered the huge amount on the show, Danielle confessed that she ended up turning down the offer – as private investors offered a better deal.
“Weirdly, these investors came in through my psychic mediumship contacts, and they just really liked the business, then it just went on a bit of a spiral.”
It came after the businesswoman seemed to hilariously snub fellow Dragon Peter Jones, who had also offered to invest in her company.
Explaining what happened, she said, “It was a complete accident,’ she added. ‘I actually forgot he made an offer because I was so focused on Deborah and Gary, and then I said, “I’m actually really sorry”.”
The entrepreneur, who is a fifth-generation psychic medium and offers psychic and mediumship readings online and in person, balances this with her full-time business.
Discussing her background as a professional psychic medium, Danielle admitted that there is a ‘lot of stigma around the work’ – but said it had actually had a positive impact on her skin business.
“People think that my psychic work is separate, but intuition is your daily life… for me, choosing who to work with, knowing which direction to go in, knowing what feels right, what is wrong, it’s just having good intuition.
She added, “I bet if you talk to any business leader, they’re using intuition and not realising they’re using it.”
Since appearing on the show, My Skin Feels has achieved 250% year-on-year growth, has branched into the US, and secured early distribution with Whole Foods.
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