Dragons Den business owner says 'we failed' as Steven Bartlett breaks silence

Luxe Collective received £100,000 from Steven Bartlett after initial success for Formby brothers Ben and Joe Gallagher

A Merseyside business owner who appeared on Dragons Den has said he must learn ‘huge lessons’ following the closure of a fashion brand. Luxe Collective, established by Formby brothers Ben and Joe Gallagher in 2018, gained success by selling second hand, ‘pre-loved’ luxury goods.

Ben’s videos on Luxe Collective’s social media channels charting the history of the fashion industry became viral sensations and were designed as a way to get people interested in buying and selling products from the firm. In January 2024, the business received a record £100,000 investment on BBC show Dragons Den from Diary of a CEO host Steven Bartlett. Ben and Joe, along with chief operating officer Oliver Millar, made the successful pitch.

However, TikToks from former Luxe Collective employees were posted at the end of the month which said all staff members had been made redundant. The ECHO contacted the business and Steven Bartlett for comment following these posts.

Ben then confirmed the business’s closure last Thursday (May 8). In a lengthy statement, Ben said a break-in at the business’s warehouse in Ormskirk in July last year was a major factor in the decision but admitted he had gone on to make decisions he now regrets. He added that customers who contact the business about their orders would receive responses in due course.

Steven later left a comment on the Instagram post which said: “So proud of you brother – as you said to me – this is the right decision for you and your fam! You and your brother are just beginning. Excited to see what you do next."

Speaking to a reporter from the Daily Mail at the BAFTAs on Sunday, Steven then revealed he had told Ben not to give up on working in the business world.

He said: “Ben called me and told me that the business had had an emotional toll on him and that he didn't want to proceed in that direction anymore and he wants to go do something else with his life (after) everything that they've gone through with with the robbery and the emotional toll that's had on them.

“I said to him, ‘I support your decision.’ I told him to take a breath, to take a pause and then go again because they're a talented group of people and it's a shame what they've been through. But they'll pick themselves back up and Ben is a great guy, so he'll be able to come through this for sure.”

Ben has also posted a more personal video on his own TikTok page with the caption “Failing so bad is an experience.” He admitted “so many mistakes were made” about the business but expressed hope that he would learn from these in whatever he did in the future.

He also thanked those who had sent supportive messages, saying they had made a difference after seeing “so much hate online” about him.

Ben said: “It’s just really hard to explain how I’m feeling, because my emotions have just been all over the place for the past week. Sometimes I’m feeling really optimistic, sometimes I’m grieving because this is all I’ve done for the past seven years. Sometimes I’m defeatist, sometimes I’m pessimistic.

“But an overwhelming sense of relief is what I’m feeling, and I'm happy that I got to experience all this. Huge, huge, huge lessons that I need to take into whatever I’m doing next. Haven’t figured that out yet. I’ve got a few ideas, but I know I want to take a break for the next month because I haven’t stopped for the last seven years.”

“There were just so many mistakes that were made, coupled up with the break in and how that affected me and Joe mentally, emotionally and the decisions we were making. It just got momentum and there was no way back for us really.

“It’s been a long-time coming and we’ve been fighting with all we’ve got to keep it going. Failing publicly is an experience, let me tell you that.

“But I think the most important thing is just for me to stay optimistic and whatever I do next. If I take everything I've learned from what I've done here, the good and the bad, then I know I'll be able to do something amazing. That's the plan.

“But I just want to thank everybody for their support. Everybody who's sending me messages privately and publicly - you don't know how much of a difference they make, especially when you see so much hate about yourself online, but that's life, what can you do? It's happened. We have to move on.”