Deal collapsed: This is how things continued for Micalé Visions after the show

The founders of Micalé Visions were able to convince entrepreneur Tijen Onaran. However, the deal did not go through after the show. So things will continue for them after the show.

It was an emotional performance by the two founders Alisa Parisi (34) and Virginia Schmidt (33) in the second episode of the current season of “Die Höhle der Löwen”. “We want to make the world a better place for our children,” Schmidt began her pitch. Micalé Visions is the name of their startup. The name of the startup is made up of the names of their children: Mina, Calla and Levi. Their product: a vision board that is intended to help people visualize their goals with pictures and affirmations.

In order to help people become the best version of themselves, the founders are asking for 150,000 euros in return for 20 percent of the company shares. That would correspond to a company valuation of 750,000 euros.

Visualize goals

What did Oprah Winfrey, Lewis Hamilton and Steve Jobs do together? They visualize their goals, wishes and dreams, says Parisi in her pitch. And how? With the help of a vision board.

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When she hears the word vision board, TV lioness Tijen Onaran is immediately enthusiastic. “I love vision boards,” says the entrepreneur, who is committed to issues such as female empowerment and diversity. Orthomol boss Nils Glagau also seems to like the Micalé Vision product. “I generally like working with images. “They sometimes express a lot more than words,” he says on the show. The product consists of a fold-out A4 vision board and 100 corresponding cards. The vision board is divided into six core areas of life: personal development, love and relationships, career and wealth, dreams and goals, body and health, and leisure and me-time. Three cards are intended for each category. The corresponding cards contain images on one side and affirmations such as “I am proud of who I am” on the other side. The lions like the high-quality presentation of the vision board and the cards, which are made of laminated cardboard.

RTL / Bernd-Michael Maurer

“I find that cheeky”

But not everything that glitters is beautiful. The lions' first question sparks a heated discussion. The question of price. At the time of the TV recording, the vision board is being offered for 79 euros. Production costs are around 16 euros. “How on earth did you come up with this price point?” asks Glossybox founder Janna Ensthaler. Before the founders can react to their shock, Onaran rushes to help. Although they otherwise campaign for equal rights and ensure that everyone can afford a product, she defends the price.

“The market for self-discovery and goals is much bigger than we think,” she explains to her colleagues. And perhaps the right target group is not the general public, but rather those who are already intensively concerned with themselves, says Onaran.

In contrast to other offers in the area of ​​self-discovery, such as workshops or coaching sessions, she particularly likes the tactile aspect of the vision board. It goes back and forth between the two lionesses. But Ensthaler sticks to her opinion, although they themselves have a lot of artificial self-discovery and manifest their goals. “I find it detached and it affects me in a bad way,” she explains her departure. Family entrepreneur Tillman Schulz follows her and justifies his departure with the following words: “I am not the right investor because I do not stand behind the product.” Ralf Dümmel and Glagau are also dropping out because the product “requires a lot of explanation”. And this despite the fact that the beauty line of Glagau's company, Orthomol Dermadore, is already one of Micalé Visions' customers.

RTL / Bernd-Michael Maurer

Moving

The two founders of Micalé Vision are not only business partners, but also friends. Parisi knew Schmidt's current husband from school, as she told Gründerszene. Schmidt is originally from Bulgaria and has been living with her husband in Germany since the Corona pandemic. In 2016, Parisi fulfilled a dream and opened her own café in Siegburg, which she had to close during the pandemic – a difficult time, as she says. To escape the gloomy Corona mood, Parisi and Schmidt decided to found Micalé Visions. Both founders have been working with vision boards for years. Schmidt explains in “Die Höhle der Löwen” that her mother introduced her to the concept as a child. “My mom always said: You can dream, but you have to turn your vision into goals.” When Schmidt was twelve, her parents died and she and her brother moved in with the big kids. There, a different mindset prevailed: “We weren't allowed to laugh, we weren't allowed to dance, we weren't allowed to dream,” she remembers. At the age of 15, she finally moved out and started working alongside school.

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The lions are deeply touched, and Onaran in particular seems to be affected by the emotional childhood story. She stands up and hugs the two founders. As the last remaining investor, she says: “I couldn't bring myself to let you leave without a deal. But of course I won't take the 20 percent.” Instead, she offers them 150,000 euros for 40 percent of the company shares. This means that Onaran has more shares in Micalé Visions than either of the two founders.

After a short period of reflection, Schmidt and Parisi return and accept the offer. When asked by moderator Amiaz Habtu why they sold twice as many shares as originally planned, Schmidt answers: “Because we see the added value in it. They can help us, she has the network and knows the sales channels.” As Schmidt later revealed to Gründerszene, Onaran had been their dream lioness from the start. The deal did not take place after the TV recording, as Gründerszene learned from people close to the investor's company. On the day of the broadcast, the ongoing contract negotiations were terminated because the parties could not reach an agreement.

So it continued after the show

Schmidt and Parisi are not only busy with their vision board startup, but also pursue other projects. Schmidt works as a freelance mentor, while Parisi has been running her own café for over eight years. A graphic designer supports her in the design department, and they also have a working student on the team.

The two founders are currently focusing on expanding their product portfolio. Their goal is to customize the vision board so that customers can upload their own pictures and affirmations and print them on the cards. They are also planning topic-specific vision boards, such as one on the topic of healthy lifestyle, a spiritual package and one specifically for men – because so far most customers have been women.

In addition, they want to increase their brand awareness. Since the product requires explanation, as the lions noted in the show, the two founders see it as being particularly successful with coaches or at events. For example, at the festival of the Cologne coaching platform Greator, where the founders have already exhibited twice. In the past, Schmidt and Parisi have worked with micro-influencers. Also influencers with a small but very committed follower base. In contrast to influencers with a wide reach, the micro-influencers took the time to explain the vision board and how to use it, says Parisi.

The Micalé Vision products are manufactured in Bulgaria because the production costs in Germany would be too high, explains Parisi. The products are sold in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.