Tag Archives: Joe Mimran

Dragons' Den

Dragons’ Den Season 11 audition tour announced

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From a media release:

It’s time for entrepreneurs across Canada to polish their pitches to be part of DRAGONS’ DEN’s extraordinary 11th season on CBC-TV. This February, producers will hit the road on a 33-city audition tour to find the country’s best businesses in need of a Dragon investment.

As seen on DRAGONS’ DEN last night, auditions will be open to the public and kick-off in Toronto on Feb. 6 in the Barbara Frum Atrium at CBC’s Toronto headquarters (250 Front St. W.). All audition dates and cities are listed below, and venues are listed online. Tour dates will continue to be updated through the DRAGONS’ DEN website (cbc.ca/dragonsden/auditions).

The audition tour will welcome participants of all ages, with businesses at any stage of development. Aspiring entrepreneurs should prepare to pitch their concept to the DRAGONS’ DEN producers in five minutes or less. If they show the producers they have what it takes to pitch in the Den, they could be invited to Toronto to face the Dragons. Prospective pitchers are encouraged to apply online and bring a completed application form to the audition.

Online auditions are open now and will continue in-person throughout February, March and April across the country. Producers will be on the lookout for entrepreneurs in the following cities:

Feb. 6 – Toronto, Ontario
Feb.10 – Guelph, Ontario
Feb. 10 – Regina, Saskatchewan
Feb. 11 – Windsor, Ontario
Feb. 12 – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Feb. 13 – London, Ontario
Feb. 13 – Vancouver, B.C.
Feb. 13 – Winnipeg, Manitoba
Feb. 17 – Richmond, B.C.
Feb. 17 – Cranbrook, B.C.
Feb. 18 – Calgary, Alberta
Feb. 19 – Nanaimo, B.C.
Feb. 20 – Edmonton, Alberta
Feb. 20 – Sudbury, Ontario
Feb. 20 – Victoria, B.C.
Feb. 24 – Burlington, Ontario
Feb. 24 – Collingwood, Ontario
Feb. 25 – Prince Edward County, Ontario
Feb. 26 – Kingston, Ontario
Feb. 27 – Barrie, Ontario
Feb. 27 – Montreal, Quebec
Feb. 27 – Ottawa, Ontario
March 2 – Grand Prairie, Alberta
March 2 – Oshawa, Ontario
March 3 – Moncton, New Brunswick
March 4 – Abbotsford, B.C.
March 4 – Charlottetown, P.E.I.
March 5 – Halifax, Nova Scotia
March 5 – Hamilton, Ontario
March 5 – Vancouver, B.C.
March 9 – Waterloo, Ontario
March 10 – Kelowna, B.C.
March 12 – Calgary, Alberta
March 12 – Niagara, Ontario
March 18 – Quebec City, Quebec
March 19 – Montreal, Quebec
April 2 – Toronto, Ontario

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Dragons' Den, Featured

Preview: Newbies breathe life into Dragons’ Den

It doesn’t take long for the newest investors to establish themselves as a trio who belong on Dragons’ Den. Now into its 10th season on CBC, the franchise—following the recent departures of Arlene Dickinson and David Chilton—brought in Joe Fresh founder Joe Mimran, Buytopia co-founder Michele Romanow and Minhas Breweries’ co-founder Manjit Minhas to play alongside Michael Wekerle and cagey veteran Jim Treliving.

And the new casting works.

Returning Wednesday night on CBC, Mimran, Minhas and Romanow aren’t afraid to spar with budding entrepreneurs—and their fellow Dragons—in order to make a deal. Things start off on the right foot when a young man pitches his all-natural drink mixes and four Dragons get into a bidding fray before he settles on one. It’s a tougher road of travel for a dude shilling coconut oil and another who gets a little cocky during the deal stage over his dragon models.

One of my favourite segments of Dragons’ Den returns, as producers spend several minutes catching up with a duo who’d signed a deal with Chilton for their curling pads.

But back to the new kids on the block. Mimran deploys a playful sense of humour to the proceedings, happy to offer his money and advice but equally thrilled to joke around and keep the situation light. Minhas and Romanow are equally at ease, though more reserved than personalities like Mimran and Wekerle, but they’re certainly business savvy. I learned a lot about their passion and smarts from the no-nonsense questions they asked of the entrepreneurs and the enthusiasm—or distain—they displayed during pitches. Romanow’s knowledge of new media lead to a spirited, extended debate with Treliving; he didn’t think it was that important and she did. It made for engaging TV.

Dragons’ Den continues to plug along with a recipe for success that hasn’t changed that much in the last 10 seasons. And by swapping out panelists every once in awhile, they’re keeping the series fresh.

Dragons’ Den airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on CBC.

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