Aspiring entrepreneurs pitched their business ideas for everything from chocolate-flavoured wine to disposable toilets during Dragons' Den auditions today (Monday) in Abbotsford.
Producers of the hit CBC TV show were in town as one of 10 stops across Canada – and three in B.C. – to find contenders for season six of the program.
Selected candidates will be invited to face the "Dragons" – a panel of business tycoons – in Toronto later this year to seek investment in their product or business.
A total of 35 presenters auditioned in Abbotsford at the Best Western Plus Regency Inn and Conference Centre.
There, they faced producers Molly Duignan and Amy Bourne, who peppered them with Dragons' Den-type questions about their financing, business acumen and product plans.
Among those auditioning was Andrea Chapman of Abbotsford with her product Royal Relief, an all-natural topical pain reliever.
Chapman said, if selected for the show, she will ask the "dragons" for a $200,000 investment. In turn, they will receive a 40 per cent share in her company.
Chapman said she needs the funds to better market her product, which she makes from scratch in her basement.
Also auditioning from Abbotsford was Gary "Sir John" Carlsen III, who was pitching "Jimi Hendrix" coffee, which he proposes to sell as a fundraiser for the Jimi Hendrix Family Foundation, a non-profit music school for at-risk youth.
Other presenters included: Willis Butchart of White Rock, with a disposable toilet, called Gotta Go, which he proposes for use during natural disasters; Leonard and Linda Wiebe of White Rock with their chocolate-infused wines from France sold under the label Vino Cacao; and Surrey eye doctor Marc Moison with The Roaddie, a baseball cap with a plastic face piece attached to protect kids' faces while they play road hockey.
After Abbotsford, the auditions conclude with three stops in Ontario.