Lunch With Levi Roots

“It was back in 2006 that I had this idea going around in my head. I have six children and you know what they are like… they want £300 trainers and I just had to find a way of looking after them. So I came up with the idea of making a Reggae sauce. My kids said it wouldn’t work… they said I was too black, too Jamaican and too Rastafarian. [caption id="attachment_30063" align="alignleft" width="400" caption="Brixton lad Levi Roots, who rose to huge success from Dragons Den with his Reggae Reggae sauce."][/caption] “But I went to exhibitions, and events and tried selling my sauce.  I was a Reggae musician and song writer for 25 years and in the end it got tough because people weren’t comfortable with the controversial lyrics of my brand of music anymore. So I created my own sauce songs and went to food exhibitions with my guitar. I used to sing songs like ‘I am the best so take the ‘S’ off Superman’s chest’. “My kids thought I was too old to take on all of this. And when I announced that I had been selected to go on the Dragon’s Den Show they said, ‘you better win or don’t come back to Brixton.’ “People said to me that I was going to blow away a 25 year music career. But I decided to slay the Dragons. I spent all my money in developing this sauce. And when the day came to go to the studio for the session on Dragons Den I was broke. I had £18.50. I went to my mother and decided to ask her for a few pounds to get a taxi to the studio 12 miles away. The taxi fare was £22. She told me to read Psalm 23 ‘ you shall not want’ in the bible because my mother is a very religious woman…. when I arrived at the studio the taxi driver had let me off with the difference. I think the taxi driver was afraid of me!” joked Levi. “I had the passion. I had my guitar. And I was going to slay the dragons. I did not have much idea about business then. I thought enterprise was something you found in Star Trek. But everyone needs a mentor. And coming through Dragons Den I found two. Richard Farley and Peter Jones both decided to invest in my Reggae sauce after my singing pitch. I now must be the only person on the business circuit using singing and rap. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvL1EnzeIPI “When you are in from of the Dragons, they look into your eyes. They saw my passion, and decided to invest in the sauce and I think they were buying a bit of  Levi. I am staying with the integrity of the brand. I still live in Brixton in my flat. I walk everywhere I go, and go to the market. I am part of them. When you are successful you need to remember where you come from, you need to remember the people who supported you when you become famous. [caption id="attachment_30064" align="alignright" width="267" caption="Levi Roots addressing business people from Co Down at a special lunch in the Clandeboye Hotel near Bangor."][/caption] “The main thing for me is sending out the message ‘if Levi Roots can do it, anyone can do it!’ “Both my Dragon mentors put up £25,000 each, and I was very lucky to have good legal advice when I had an option built in to my contract that I had the right to buy out the shares first if either sold out. Well, after one year Richard sold me back his share for £250,000, such was the success of the business. “But you do need a cast iron plan. The Dragons look for it. Once things start to take off and you are successful you have to be careful with your head and not get carried away. When I’m in Brixton I get embarrassed sometimes when people refer to my business success.” He was delighted to mention that one of his great fans is Prince Charles. “The Prince asked to meet me one day and we sat and I had a chat with him… the future king. Charles explained that his sons were both Reggae Reggae Sauce users and could not stop eating it ! “My business team and myself are now working closely with Peter Jones and we are looking at breaking into the American market. And we are looking at the ready market which is £6 billion in the UK. But some say that America is the graveyard of British businesses. I have signed up for a 32-programme TV show and it will be pitched at the black American market. “What drives me? Fear of failure. The whole country is looking at my brand – which I am part of – and it is important for me to keep my feet on the ground. I have worked as an engineer, in insurance, and in music. When I was younger I just wanted to be a songwriter. Now I can merge my two passions… music and cooking. I am just an ordinary guy from Brixton. I can remember taking part in the riots years ago hoping they would bring a better life there. “Life has moved on and my Reggae Reggae Sauce was launched in Sainsbury’s and now it is in Tesco’s. I actually have a brand committee and they support products that are consistent with my brand image. “I hope my children carry on with the business. I hope it will be a family business. We are a very close family and they work well together. Since the business improved, I have little extravaganzas… except I do buy suits and clothes on Saville Row. My suits cost £5000 each. But when I am in Brixton I just dress like everyone else. In Brixton no-one treats me different from anyone else.” Levi Roots is a great example of someone who came up from the bottom, someone who had a vision for his business, and created a strong and unique personal brand. Reggae Reggae Sauce will be around for a long time to come.]]>