It's been a whirlwind year for a family who went from sitting on a beach pondering wetsuits to appearing on Dragon’s Den.

Father and son Simon and Toby Brookes, from Bothenhampton, faced the show’s four millionaires to pitch for £50,000 in return for a 25 per cent share of their business, Funky Seal Wetsuits.

They were turned down - but that hasn’t stopped them.

Simon said: “It was terrifying and exciting in equal measure. Since being on the show we’ve been inundated and had brilliant feedback. We haven’t stopped.”

Simon and Toby came up with the idea behind the company – brightly-coloured and patterned wetsuits – at the beach.

Simon said: “We were sat at the beach in Salcombe and thinking ‘why is everyone wearing black?’ So we thought we’d do something about it ourselves. Life is too short. You’ve also got kids running around the beach in black wetsuits and their parents trying to figure out which one is their child – now you can’t miss them.”

Funky Seal has 12 designs and caters for all ages. The business has also teamed up with environmental charity Surfers Against Sewage to donate a percentage of its profits, pledging £2.50 from every wetsuit sold.

Simon and Toby say they are “a team of imagineers, adventurers and funsters with a passion for water-based sports who have discovered a global niche for great quality, colourful and imaginatively designed wetsuits”.

The pair delivered a colourful pitch on the hit BBC2 show and for a while it looked as though the Dragons could be convinced. But, one by one, the Dragons opted out of the deal, with Deborah Meaden suggesting the idea could easily be replicated.

But it hasn’t deterred them.

“It’s been crazy since we appeared on Dragon’s Den,” said Simon.

“We have had so much support and the response from the show has been overwhelming.“We only started this a year ago and we’ve come so far.”