We bagged a dragon! I took Scoff Paper’s edible dog cards into BBC’s Dragons’ Den, with my guide dog in training, Leo, along for moral support. Five Dragons, one very nervous Gem and a dog who was considerably less bothered by the whole thing.

Edible dog cards in the Den

Our appearance was in Series 21, Episode 7. It was hands down the scariest thing I’d done. Matthew and I had put so much into this business, and telling our story in front of the cameras felt like an enormous leap of faith.

The Dragons questioned me for over two hours. What viewers saw was a much shorter slice of that conversation. I’d been told so many times to take the idea onto the show; suddenly, there I was, explaining why a dog should be able to eat their birthday card.

Sara Davies was in!

Leo and I came out with a deal with Sara Davies. I was over the moon that the Crafting Queen saw something in our quirky little cards. Meeting Sara and her team afterwards mattered to us too: we wanted someone who understood both the business and the joy behind it.

Scoff Paper started with Loki, one of our guide dogs in training, trying to eat an ordinary birthday card. That sparked a question: what if the card was something a dog was actually allowed to eat? Matthew and I turned that idea into potato-paper greeting cards with dog-friendly flavours.

From our first award to a Dragon

Before the Den, we took Scoff Paper to our first in-person GLEE trade show at Birmingham’s NEC. There was plenty of stand-building, nerves and late-night planning—and a Best New Product award to bring home. You can read our original GLEE story here.

The award and the Den are lovely parts of our story. What we’re here for is still the same: cards that give dog-loving humans something to smile about, and their dogs something to scoff.

What happened after the cameras?

The weeks after our episode aired brought orders, enquiries and a huge amount of kindness. I wrote an update at the time about what that felt like. Read what Dragons’ Den did for Scoff Paper.

If you’ve found us through the show, hello! There are birthday cards, Christmas cards, Gotcha Day greetings and personalised designs waiting for your favourite four-legged family member.

Meet the edible dog cards we took into the Den or find out more about Gem, Matthew and Scoff Paper.

Big love,
Gem x