$1Mfor 10%
Protein Candy
Valued at $10M
The pitch
Giacomo Villella from Niagara Falls, ON, pitched DaVinci Stick in Season 14, Episode 4, asking the Dragons for $250K for 20% of the company.
- Asked for$250K for 20%
- Valuation$1.25Mimplied by the ask
- OutcomeNo deal
Offers in the Den
| Dragon | Offer | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Lane Merrifield | Unable to answer sales numbers, out | Out |
| Jim Treliving | Zero dollars in sales in 7.5 years, out | Out |
| Vincenzo Guzzo | Doesn't know sales numbers, out | Out |
| Michele Romanow | Impossible to invest without knowing sales, out | Out |
| Manjit Minhas | Valuation too high given unclear numbers, out | Out |
Giacomo Villella, of Niagara Falls, Ontario, sought $250,000 for 20% equity plus a 10% royalty in Davinci Stick and System, a fitness product line built around a stick with patented rubber ferrules used for exercises including wall squats and planks, inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man. The line also includes a Davinci Pressure Ball used for massage and leverage exercises; in 2014 he made 550 sticks, sold 350 and gave away about 100, and he earned roughly $10,000 in the past year teaching classes, but could not state recent unit or dollar sales figures for the product.
All five Dragons declined to invest, citing Giacomo Villella's inability to state his sales numbers and the high valuation relative to those unclear figures. Lane Merrifield, Jim Treliving, Vincenzo Guzzo, Michele Romanow, and Manjit Minhas all went out. No deal was made.
Pitch details from CBC’s Dragons’ Den pitch page.
DaVinci Stick today
- StatusIn businessLast checked September 2026
DaVinci Stick is still operating and sells through its website.