A business owner has secured a £50,000 investment for his unique football shirt business.
Alex Street, a former Grantham College student, appeared on BBC’s Dragons’ Den tonight (Thursday, January 16), seeking investment for his business Mystery Jersey King.
The Dragons’ were impressed with his business, which involves him and his team sourcing rare football shirts from across the globe.
Alex Street, co-founder of Mystery Jersey Kings.
However, it was Dragon Sara Davies that secured a deal with Alex, offering him £50,000 for a 15% investment in the business, which will reduce to 10% once her initial investment is recouped.
Alex, who now lives in South Normanton in Derbyshire, said: “If you don’t shoot, you don’t score.
Alex in front of the Dragons.
“I was nervous walking into the Den, but I decided to stay true to myself and have fun with it.
“I knew my numbers and had rehearsed as much as possible.
“Securing backing from Sara Davies – the ‘queen of the north’ – is a dream come true.
Some of the shirts on offer in Mystery Jersey King
“She’s the perfect partner to help Mystery Jersey King to the next level.
“Our UK success has been incredible, and our next big challenge is cracking the US market.
“Since Sara is already a household name stateside, I’m confident we’ll make it happen.”
Alex, originally from Clapham, co-founded the business with Jamie King in 2021. It sells high-quality, distinctive shirts to customers through one-off purchases or through a monthly mystery shirt subscription.
Sara was impressed by the concept.
Sara Barnes (left) with Alex Street (right).
She said: “Alex is such a character, and his enthusiasm lit up the room the moment he walked in.
“His vibrant, eye-catching products immediately grabbed our attention, but what really impressed me was his savvy business sense and the massive potential of his idea.
“With an endless supply of unique shirts that sport and fashion fans adore, Mystery Jersey King has global appeal.
“I’m thrilled to join Alex on this journey and can’t wait to help scale the business.”
Alex and Jamie plan to use the investment to optimise operations at their East Midlands headquarters and boost their buying power.