Owners of an Alberta agriculture company hope to tame the dragons when they appear on the popular television show Dragons’ Den.
Frank Campbell and Jeff Schneider of AgriConnect, a farm sitting company, will make their pitch for the dragons’ money May 10 in Toronto.
Campbell said they are willing to sell one-quarter or one-third of the farm sitting company to the panel of investors called the dragons in exchange for an undisclosed amount of money that will help finance the company’s North American expansion.
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“They could help us take it to the next level,” Campbell said.
AgriConnect, which matches farmers with workers for vacation fill-in or full-time work, has expanded beyond Alberta to British Columbia and east to Ontario in its three years of operation.
With the connections of the millionaire business owners on the popular CBC program, Campbell hopes the dragons will see their company as unique and worth the investment.
“They’re very well connected,” Campbell said.
More than 4,000 people in 40 Canadian cities auditioned for a chance to make their pitch to the dragons. Campbell’s company made a shortlist of 300 that will get a chance to present their products on the Dragons’ Den. Only 160 will make it to air in the coming season.
Campbell and Schneider have spent the last week honing their presentation to help ensure they make the final cut. They hope to catch the dragons’ attention by bringing animals onto the television set.
“Agriculture is unique and we’re very good at our pitch,” said Campbell, who has honed the company’s story at prairie trade shows.
“We are very confident with our selling and we know our numbers.”
Campbell said even if they don’t get a television agreement with the dragons, the 10 minutes of exposure on national television with two million viewers would be invaluable.
Many deals are made off camera or may come about because of the show, he said.
Campbell is not worried about being blasted by the dragons, who are well known for ripping into unprepared guests.
“If you’re not prepared and don’t go in with a plan, they’ll tear you apart,” he said.
“We’re going to knock ’em dead.”
