Levi Roots: Net Worth, Dragons’ Den, and Reggae Reggae Sauce Story

Anyone who has caught themselves humming a reggae tune while reaching for a bottle of barbecue sauce has Levi Roots to thank for that unlikely combination. His ten-minute pitch on Dragons’ Den in 2007 turned a family recipe into a multimillion-pound brand that now sits on shelves across the UK.

Full name: Keith Valentine Graham ·
Born: 24 June 1958 ·
Nationality: Jamaican-British ·
Occupation: Businessman, chef, musician ·
Known for: Reggae Reggae sauce ·
Dragons’ Den appearance: 2007

Key biographical details are summarised in the table below.

How did Levi Roots make his money?

The Dragons’ Den pitch that launched a brand

In February 2007, Levi Roots walked into the Dragons’ Den and sang his way to a deal. He asked for £50,000 in exchange for equity in his Caribbean barbecue sauce, Reggae Reggae Sauce. Peter Jones and Richard Farleigh together invested £50,000 for a 40% stake, as detailed on Peter Jones’ official investor record.

A producer reportedly spotted Roots at a food trade show before the programme, according to Reggaeville, a Caribbean music and culture platform. The sauce itself is a barbecue sauce incorporating Jamaican jerk spice, per Wikipedia’s entry on the product.

Building a sauce empire

After the broadcast, Sainsbury’s agreed an exclusive distribution deal, per Peter Jones’ portfolio. The brand expanded rapidly: ready meals, snacks, soft drinks, and pasties followed. Wikipedia, the community-edited biography notes the sauce is now sold in all major UK retailers.

Other revenue streams: music, books, and speaking

Roots was a reggae musician before the sauce took off and continues to perform. He has published cookbooks, appeared on television shows including Celebrity Big Brother, and works as a motivational speaker. These ventures supplement his sauce income but the brand remains the financial engine.

The pattern: Roots turned a single product into a family of grocery items, each line extending the brand’s shelf presence without requiring a new pitch. That’s how a sauce becomes a brand, not just a condiment.

The pattern: Roots turned a single product into a family of grocery items, each line extending the brand’s shelf presence without requiring a new pitch. That’s how a sauce becomes a brand, not just a condiment.

What is Levi Roots famous for?

Reggae Reggae sauce

The sauce is a jerk-spiced barbecue sauce based on his grandmother’s recipe. Roots claims he started producing it in 1991 at Notting Hill Carnival, where he ran the ‘Rastaraunt’, according to Gordon Poole Agency, a talent representation site. It gained mainstream fame after the Dragons’ Den appearance.

Music career

Before the sauce, Roots was a reggae artist. He performed under the name Levi Roots, a moniker he adopted as a musician. His music career helped him build the public-facing persona that later proved invaluable in the Den — he sang his pitch, a move that became legendary.

Television appearances

Beyond Dragons’ Den, Roots has appeared on Celebrity Big Brother, cooking shows, and as a guest on various talk programmes. These appearances keep his brand in the public eye without advertising spend.

What this means: Levi Roots is famous because he successfully merged his musical identity with his food product. The reggae branding — from the name to the label design — made the sauce distinctive on crowded supermarket shelves.

How many children does Levi Roots have?

Family life

Levi Roots has 10 children, according to Heart, a UK radio station entertainment coverage. Reports indicate he has eight children with seven different women. He has spoken about the challenges of balancing a large family with a demanding business schedule.

Children’s involvement in business

Some of his children have worked with him on the sauce brand, though details are limited. The family-run feel of the business has been part of its marketing appeal — a real family recipe passed down and scaled.

The trade-off: A large family provides built-in workforce and authentic storytelling for a brand rooted in heritage. But it also creates complexity in estate planning and business succession that Roots will need to address as the brand matures.

Is Peter Jones still involved with Levi Roots?

The Dragons’ Den investment

Peter Jones and Richard Farleigh invested £50,000 for a 40% stake in 2007. Jones’ official portfolio page still lists Levi Roots as a current investment, confirming ongoing association.

Current business relationship

The exact nature of the current relationship is not publicly detailed. Jones remains a figure in the brand’s history and continues to reference it in his portfolio. However, Roots has not disclosed whether Jones retains his original equity percentage or has exited partially.

The catch: For fans of the Dragons’ Den story, the lack of transparency about the current equity split is frustrating. It’s a reminder that many Den deals are renegotiated after the cameras stop rolling.

What is Levi Roots’ net worth?

Estimated wealth from sauce sales

Net worth estimates for Levi Roots vary widely. Heart, a UK radio station reports a figure of about £30 million, citing the Sunday Times Rich List. Celebrity Net Worth, an entertainment finance site places it at about $45 million (£35 million). A case-study PDF from Warrior Academy, an entrepreneurship education resource estimates $37.9 million.

Other assets and income

Roots’ income streams include music royalties, cookbook sales, speaking fees, and television appearance fees. These are secondary to the sauce brand’s revenue but contribute to his overall wealth profile.

The implication: Without public company accounts, any net worth figure is an educated guess. The sauce brand’s longevity suggests Roots is comfortably a multi-millionaire, but the exact number matters less than the trajectory: 18 years after Dragons’ Den, the brand is still growing.

Timeline

• 24 June 1958 — Born in Jamaica
• c. 1969 — Moves to the UK at age 11 (Heart)
• 1991 — Begins selling sauce at Notting Hill Carnival (Gordon Poole Agency)
• January 2007 — Invited onto Dragons’ Den (Peter Jones)
• February 2007 — Pitch airs on TV
• 2008 — Reggae Reggae sauce launches in Sainsbury’s
• 2010s — Product line expands; cookbooks and TV appearances
• Present — Continues as chef, musician, and speaker

Blockquotes from key figures

“I sang my way into the Den.”

— Levi Roots, describing his Dragons’ Den pitch

“I saw a massive opportunity in Levi’s product.”

— Peter Jones, on the investment

Levi Roots’ story is not just about a sauce — it’s about how a memorable personal brand, a solid product, and the amplification power of television can create lasting wealth. For entrepreneurs in the UK food market, the lesson is clear: the product must be good enough to justify the hype, and the personality behind it must be authentic enough to sustain interest beyond the initial buzz. For Roots, the reggae beat that opened his Dragons’ Den pitch still plays on, 18 years later, in every bottle sold.

Frequently asked questions