The pitch
What walked into the Den
Custom Car Posters, run by Jonathan Wong in Vancouver, turns a customer's own vehicle photos into personalized art prints.
Wong pitched asking $250,000 for 10 percent, which set the business's value at $2.5 million.
After the show
What happened next
Wong took a deal, but not the one on the table. On his own company blog he recounts accepting an offer from Arlene Dickinson structured as a royalty, which he describes as $250,000 for a 10 percent royalty until she made back three times her investment, choosing it because it meant giving up no equity.
The shop is busy today. A July 2026 visit found priced prints from $33 to $177, a working checkout with several payment methods, thousands of reviews claimed, active promo codes and a lifetime warranty offer.
Our read
The Hub verdict
This pitch is a reminder that a deal is not always equity. Jonathan Wong asked $250,000 for 10 percent, a $2.5 million valuation, and accepted an Arlene Dickinson offer structured as a royalty instead: $250,000 against a 10 percent royalty until she recouped three times her money, which meant giving up no ownership at all. For a print-on-demand business with high gross margins and no inventory to finance, paying out of revenue is far cheaper than paying in shares. The print shop is busy and well reviewed today, with pieces priced from $33 to $177.
Accepted a royalty deal, not an equity stake
Worth knowing: The deal terms come from the founder's own written recap of the episode.
