Talk Business

FACE ON THE COVER
TALK SUCCESS
Every time I go on holiday
I spot a Trunki in the
airport. A globetrotting
tot zooms past on the
ride on suitcase with
the biggest smile on their face.
They couldn’t care less about
the stuffy airport, delays and
the duty-free shops. Their
parents are happy they’re
not whining, as are fellow
passengers – and I think some
of the adults (including me) are
jealous there is not something
this fun to keep us occupied!
Rob Law came up with
the idea for the Trunki ride
on kids travel case while he
was at university studying
product design. Then in 2003
his company, Magmatic was
founded, which later secured a
licensing deal for Trunki with
a toy company. However, the
toy company performed badly
and went into liquidation in
late 2005.
Determined, Rob decided
to go it alone and in May 2005
the first container arrived in
Avonmouth and Magmatic
began trading.
Two weeks later Trunki was
introduced to the British public
when Rob appeared on BBC’s
Dragon’s Den series three.
He introduced his suitcase
prototypes Terence and Trixie,
of which he had already sold
20,000 units, and explained
how he wanted £100,000 for
10% of the business.
Despite a confident pitch,
Rob’s appearance took a turn
for the worse when Theo
Paphitis pulled the strap off
Trixie. ‘The whole integrity
was compromised… it’s not
a business opportunity,’ said
Deborah Meaden.
Then Theo shouted about
being sick of having his time
wasted, and Peter Jones called
the business “worthless”.
The only investment was
from Richard Farleigh who
offered £100,00 for 50%
It’s not
wheelie
rubbish
The Dragons dubbed the Trunki travel case “worthless” on
Dragons’ Den in 2006 – but now two million cases have been
sold worldwide in 97 countries, with a turnover £6.1m. Dawn
Murden met Trunki creator Rob Law
talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk
19