A South Tyneside musical entrepreneur is hoping to drum up soaring sales after braving the BBC's Dragons’ Den.
Tony McNally, 57, from Jarrow, appeared on the popular business pitching show with his patented ToneAlly Practice Pad drum training kit, where he hoped to secure investment to trigger global growth.
Mr McNally unfortunately left empty-handed, having asked for £40,000 in exchange for 10% equity - but he says taking part in the show was a positive experience from start to finish, giving him plenty of ambition for the future.
The father-of-three was contacted by researchers for the show during the pandemic and wanted to use the opportunity to help take his drum training kit overseas.
He launched ToneAlly in 2017 and has since worked hard to make sure schools, universities and the arts are aware of his product, which he says is the only one of its kind in the world.
He travelled down to the BBC studios in Manchester in October 2020 after researchers discovered his products and the endorsements of such drumming stars as Tom Jones and Pink Floyd drummer Gary Wallis, who said it was a case of “practice made perfect”, with Derrick McKenzie labelling it “super cool.”
Dom Famularo, who played with such greats as BB King and is the global ambassador and head of education for Modern Drummer Magazine is also said to love the product after he ran an article on its benefits to practising drummers.
The practice pads start at £49.99, which Mr McNally says make them an affordable training aid for individuals and schools alike, making it an attractive and useful device for anyone wanting to improve their drumming skills or learn to play.
The kit has won three international awards and has already sold 1,850 units, through customers around the world.
Despite failing to secure investment from the TV Dragons, he hopes he will be inundated with requests for his product after its appearance on the programme, so much so that he has bought an industrial unit to house his stock, which are made by the British Drum Company.
He admitted he almost didn’t make it into the Den, as his car broke down just 20 minutes from the studios.
He said: “It certainly was a mad rush at the end but I got there just in the nick of time.
“Although Peter Jones was absent and he was my preferred investor, it was still a very positive experience appearing in front of the Dragons and they were so nice to me, saying that they loved the product and enthusiasm that I brought to the Den.
“I couldn’t have been made more welcome and the whole experience was exciting, positive and I left very much on a high.”
