Grandfather's bright spark nets £25m deal on Dragon's Den

Peter Moule, 53, was seen by millions of viewers last night securing a £150,000 investment for his simple electrical accessory called a "Chocbox".

But viewers were not told that he has since signed a multi-million pound deal with one of the world's biggest electrical distributors.

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His £1 gadget is expected to sell five million units per year in 152 countries during the five-year deal - netting a cool £25million in sales.

The Chocbox is a simple plastic housing that protects cable connections, eliminating the need for untidy and potentially-dangerous electrical tape.

Father-of-four Peter said: "Although I was nervous about appearing on Dragons' Den, I have always been confident about my product and its potential and I went in with a quietly confident air about me.

"The whole atmosphere puts you under intense pressure and it is a daunting experience, so I was delighted when the Dragons decided to invest in me.

"I think they will teach me a lot and I am sure the company will continue to be a tremendous success."

Peter, of Goffs Oak, Hertfordshire, invented the Chocbox several years ago when new regulations came into force restricting the use of electrical tape on some connections.

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The Chocbox protects and insulates standard electrical connector blocks, negating the need to cover them with tape.

Peter explained: "Sixty years ago, something called the connector strip was invented and since then people have been putting electrical tape around it.

"Then a regulation came in that said you can't leave a bare connector by a wall, so I invented the Chocbox. The connectors simply get pushed into it.

"Around 75 per cent of homes in Britain have got a connector wrapped in a piece of tape which does not meet current regulations, so the market was huge."

Since inventing the Chocbox, Peter had been selling it in relatively small numbers to electrical distributors through his company Electro Expo Ltd.

But he wanted extra funding to break into the domestic and international markets.

Luckily Dragons James Caan and Duncan Bannatyne saw the potential and invested £150,000 in return for a 36 per cent stake in his business.

Peter said: "Before I went into the Den, the Chocbox was being sold mostly to the electrical wholesaler trade, so the reason I decided to have a go on the show was to take it to the domestic market as well as abroad.

"Even though it was also being stocked in Screwfix and B&Q, hardly anyone had a clue what it did or what it was for. Hopefully, going on Dragons' Den will change that."

Peter, who began his career as an electrician at St Paul's Cathedral, has now signed a deal with GET Plc, one of Britain's leading importer and distributor of electrical accessories.

It grants the company exclusive international distribution rights to the Chocbox in the 152 countries it supplies.

The deal is based on a conservative estimated of five millions sales a year - but Peter reckons annual sales of 100 million are possible.

"In the UK alone, there are 15 million connector strips sold every year, and each of those could use four Chocboxes, so we're talking 60 million units annually in this country alone" he said.

"GET's client list includes every major DIY wholesaler and every single DIY shop and warehouse."

The Chocbox was not only designed by a Briton but is also made in Harlow, Essex, rather than being imported from the Far East like most electrical goods.

Peter also made a "ratchet deal" with Caan and Bannatyne which means he will get six per cent of his business back from them if they make £1million profit in any of the first three years.

James Caan - who only joined the Dragons Den panel this series - said: "I had absolute faith in Peter and the simplicity of his product.

"The deal that Peter has struck with GET is phenomenal and both Duncan and I are delighted that we saw potential where the other Dragons could not."