Morgan Carey says decision based on exposure, not money
Ben Ingram
Other
Real Estate Webmasters president and Nanaimo entrepreneur Morgan Carey has spurned a $2-million deal he secured on the reality TV show Dragons’ Den for a richer investment involving one of the stars of American spinoff Shark Tank.
Carey will detail a new agreement that values his company at $50 million, $10 million more than the Dragons’ offer, at Real Estate Connect in New York later this month, where he has been tabbed as a keynote speaker.
The new agreement involves Barbara Corcoran, a real estate entrepreneur and star of Shark Tank, which airs in the U.S. The other players involved will be revealed when the deal is finalized, Carey says.
“I can say we’ve partnered with a multibillion-dollar software company,” the company president said in an interview. “It’s a much better deal that is due in part to our exposure on Dragons’ Den.”
Carey said he had every intention of going through with the Dragons’ deal, but that “there just wasn’t enough value there. They didn’t bring enough to the table.
“Like I said on the television show, I don’t need the money. We had $2.5 million in sales last month,” he said. “It was about the contacts and it was about the exposure. It always was.”
Carey appeared on the broadcast in November, where Dragons Jim Treliving and Mike Wekerle agreed to partner on a five-per-cent stake of REW, in exchange for $2 million, or a $40-million valuation of the growing company.
REW creates customized websites for real estate companies that are search engine-optimized to generate traffic. The Nanaimo-based company employs approximately 180 and Carey hopes REW will grow to 1,000 employees with multiple international offices over the next five years.
A crucial element of that push is expected to be announced by Carey at this month’s industry event in New York.
REW is looking at expansion opportunities in Victoria, Toronto and the eastern U.S.
In addition to the agreement with Corcoran, Carey says he is also involved in an effort to appear on Dragons’ Den again — this time as a Dragon.
“My net worth is somewhere between $60 million and $65 million after this deal,” he said. “That would be higher than most of the Dragons on Dragons’ Den and it would make a fantastic story, which I’ve already pitched to the CBC.
“I’m not like a typical contestant. I own real estate companies, I own restaurants, I own software companies,” he said. “I’m an entrepreneur through and through.”
Armed with a more lucrative agreement involving American investors, Carey said REW will target a five-year revenue goal of $100 million, which could push the company past the $1-billion valuation mark.
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