Created out of passion, the ready-to-use meal bases business became international in less than two years. Founder Tina Faghihi-Hallam shares her journey and the behind the scenes tale of her Dragons’ Den appearance with Leïla Davaud

A woman standing with her arms around a sitting man holding a food product. — Tina and Olly from Flavour Bombs

“It is surreal,” says Tina Faghihi-Hallam, on a rare break from her business. She founded Flavour Bombs and, alongside her husband Olly Hallam, has taken it from a Mill Hill dream to TikTok sensation to television success.

Their products have seduced food lovers across the world, offering ready-to-use bases for homemade Mexican birria, coconut curry, butter chicken and more… One flavour bomb in a pan with water and voilà!

“We launched in 2024 with a simple hope: to bring people together through great food,” Tina explains. “Cooking shouldn’t have to be complicated to be good or to be shared with the people you love.”

Barely six months after launching, the Dragon’s Den production team came calling. “It was insane, but we applied,” she recalls. After needing to build a little more experience, the couple finally aired on 5th February this year, pitching their business to five multimillionaires in hopes of securing investment.

They rehearsed their pitch the entire journey from Barnet to Manchester. “My heart was thumping so hard,” Tina admits. “It was nerve-wracking. When we stepped in front of them they were so silent, I was unsettled.”

But the effort paid off: entrepreneur and investor Peter Jones offered them £50,000 for a 25% stake. The couple initially accepted on air, but after careful consideration, decided to walk away. “We thought it was a lot to give away,” she says simply.

If passing up the investment felt daunting at first, what followed left little time for doubt. Within 24 hours of the episode airing, Flavour Bombs received 6,000 orders totalling 14,000 individual units.

“We hoped it would boost sales, but there was no way to gauge just how much,” Tina says. The business, usually well-equipped to handle demand, was forced to switch to a pre-order model. Normal service, she promises, will resume from the second week of April.

The growth has reshaped the business entirely. The couple have moved production out of their home kitchen and into a dedicated facility, and have hired two full-time manufacturing staff and a part-timer. They have also secured accreditation to sell in supermarkets, with international distribution now firmly in their sights.

“We haven’t really taken the time to reflect on this journey until now,” Tina admits, “but it is absolutely incredible.”

Flavour Bombs already ships to individual customers around the world: Kuwait, Singapore, Australia and beyond. “It is quite emotional to think that what we created in our house is now on tables across the world,” she says. “Food brings people together. I’ve never been more convinced of that than I am right now.”

Find out more about Flavour Bombs at: https://flavourbombs.com

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