In Dragon's Den, the financial term for the company value implied by an investment request and equity offer is valuation.
A valuation is an estimate of what a business is worth. If an entrepreneur asks for £100,000 in exchange for 10% of a company, the simple implied post-money valuation is £1 million. The calculation divides the investment by the equity fraction: £100,000 divided by 0.10 equals £1 million.
Dragons often challenge a founder’s valuation by comparing it with sales, profit, assets, growth prospects, intellectual property, and comparable businesses. A strong pitch must explain not only what the company has achieved but why the requested ownership percentage is fair.
Valuation is not the same as turnover, which means revenue generated by sales, or profit, which remains after relevant costs. Nor is it a dividend, which is a payment to shareholders. These terms frequently appear together in pitches but describe different financial concepts.