A young entrepreneur has secured an investment through Dragon’s Den, and has launched a range of universal fixings, designed for use with all types of plasterboard installation.
Jordan Daykin, 19, impressed Deborah Meaden with his idea for Grip It Fixings, which can hold loads of up to 180kg with just one fixing, and she invested £80,000 for 25% of his business.
To prove the strength of the fixings, Ms Meaden put her trust in the product by sitting in a chair suspended by chains from a number of Grip It Fixings in a plasterboard wall during the BBC programme.
Mr Daykin came up with the idea for Grip It Fixings in 2008, at the age of just 13, while putting up curtain rails with his grandfather. Having difficulty installing the railings via traditional methods, the pair spent the rest of the afternoon in his grandfather’s garden shed and, aided by his grandfather’s engineering background, it took the pair just a matter of days to come up with a prototype.
Manufactured in Wiltshire, the range consists of four fixings, two of which are particularly relevant for the heating and plumbing sectors.
The Type 16-2 Grip It Fixing holds loads of up to 120kgs and is suitable for fitting anything from mirrors, towel rails, shelving and grab rails in the bathroom. The fixing takes either a 4.5, 5 or 6mm wood screw and comes in various lengths dependent on the application.
The Type 20-2 Grip It Fixing holds loads of up to 160kgs and can be used for items such as cabinets, sinks and radiators. The fixing takes an M6 bolt and similarly comes in various screw lengths.
The Grip It Fixings are re-usable and cater for any type of plasterboard be it cavity wall, insulated, double thickness, tile or dot and dab.
The product is now stocked in all 220 Wickes stores across the country, Travis Perkins, Buildbase and Plumbase, and they are already trading in Germany and Belgium, with a patent pending in America.