Dragons' Den (Canada)
Encyclopedia
Dragons' Den is a Canadian
television reality show, based on the internationally franchised Dragons' Den
format, in which aspiring entrepreneurs pitch business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hopes of securing business financing. The show debuted on October 3, 2006 on CBC Television
. It is hosted by Dianne Buckner
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
television reality show, based on the internationally franchised Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den
Dragons' Den is a series of reality television programmes featuring entrepreneurs pitching their business ideas in order to secure investment finance from a panel of venture capitalists. The show originated in Japan as "Manē no Tora"...
format, in which aspiring entrepreneurs pitch business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hopes of securing business financing. The show debuted on October 3, 2006 on CBC Television
CBC Television
CBC Television is a Canadian television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster.Although the CBC is supported by public funding, the television network supplements this funding with commercial advertising revenue, in contrast to CBC Radio which are...
. It is hosted by Dianne Buckner
Dianne Buckner
Dianne Buckner is a Canadian television journalist, best known as a host of business-oriented programming, such as Venture and Dragons' Den on CBC Television....
.
The Dragons
- Arlene DickinsonArlene DickinsonArlene Dickinson is a Canadian marketing professional and CEO of Venture Communications.Dickinson joined Venture Communications in 1988, taking sole ownership in 1998...
(Season 2-present), the owner of Venture Communications, a marketing company with offices across Canada. - Robert Herjavec (Season 1-present), founder of an ITInformation technologyInformation technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
security firm that he sold at the height of the dot-com bubbleDot-com bubbleThe dot-com bubble was a speculative bubble covering roughly 1995–2000 during which stock markets in industrialized nations saw their equity value rise rapidly from growth in the more...
for over $100 million. - Laurence Lewin (Season 1 & 2), co-founder of La SenzaLa SenzaLa Senza Corporation is a Canadian fashion retailer based in Dorval, Quebec, Canada, which sells lingerie and intimate apparel. The La Senza brand is currently owned by Limited Brands.- History :...
, a chain of lingerie shops with more than 310 stores throughout Canada, and, through corporate licensees, a further 320 stores operating in 30 countries around the world. Lewin left the show for health reasons. Lewin died on 12 November 2008. The show broadcast a dedication in memory of him on 17 November 2008. - Kevin O'LearyKevin O'Leary (entrepreneur)Kevin O'Leary is a Canadian entrepreneur, venture capitalist, investor, and television personality.-Early life and education:O'Leary was born in Mount Royal, Quebec, a suburb of Montreal, to a salesman father and seamstress mother....
(Season 1-present), co-host of CBC News Network's business news series The Lang and O'Leary ExchangeThe Lang and O'Leary ExchangeThe Lang and O'Leary Exchange is a Canadian business news television series, which airs weekdays on CBC News Network. Hosted by Amanda Lang and Kevin O'Leary, the series presents a summary of the day's major business stories in a manner similar to Lang and O'Leary's earlier Business News Network...
. O'Leary is the former president of The Learning CompanyThe Learning CompanyThe Learning Company is an American educational software company, founded in 1980. It produced a grade-based system similar to Knowledge Adventure's JumpStart series. The products for preschoolers through second graders feature Reader Rabbit, and software for more advanced students features The...
, which was sold to MattelMattelMattel, Inc. is the world's largest toy company based on revenue. The products it produces include Fisher Price, Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels and Matchbox toys, Masters of the Universe, American Girl dolls, board games, and, in the early 1980s, video game consoles. The company's name is derived from...
for $3.7 billion in 1999. - Jim TrelivingJim TrelivingW. James "Jim" Treliving is a Canadian businessman who, with George Melville, owns the collective investment portfolio T&M Group of Companies. Treliving has stepped into the public eye in recent years as one of the "dragons" on the Canadian television show Dragons' Den.-Career:Treliving began his...
(Season 1-present), a former Royal Canadian Mounted PoliceRoyal Canadian Mounted PoliceThe Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
officer and co-owner of Boston PizzaBoston PizzaBoston Pizza is a Canadian-based restaurant chain which owns and franchises locations in Canada, the United States and Mexico.-History:...
and Mr. LubeMr. LubeMr. Lube is a Canadian chain of automotive service centres, specializing in oil changes and other scheduled maintenance. It was founded in 1976 by Clifford Giese, who opened its first location in Edmonton, Alberta....
. In 2005, his restaurants generated over $500 million in sales. - Jennifer Wood (Season 1 only), an executive in Canada's beef industry. Her career in the cattleCattleCattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
business began in 1990, and she now owns a 6500 acres (26 km²) ranch with over 20,000 head of cattle. - W. Brett WilsonW. Brett WilsonBrett Wilson is a Canadian entrepreneur, member of the Order of Canada, philanthropist and the lead deal making panellist or "Dragon" of all-time on CBC's Gemini Award-winning Dragons' Den. Wilson was born in North Battleford, Saskatchewan...
(Season 3-5) is a founder of FirstEnergy Capital Corp, and part owner of the English football team Derby CountyDerby County F.C.Derby County Football Club is an English football based in Derby. the club play in the Football League Championship and is notable as being one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888 and is, therefore, one of only ten clubs to have competed in every season of the English...
. During his time on the show, he brokered more business deals than any other Dragon on any version of the show worldwide. Said to be the most philanthropicallyPhilanthropyPhilanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
-minded of the Canadian Dragons, he has been involved in numerous charities and participated in a CBC staff video for the online It Gets Better Project. Wilson left the show following Season 5. In interviews following the announcement of his departure, Wilson criticized the show's producers for sticking to a format that favoured "abuse" and "criticism", rather than offering constructive guidance and feedback to potential entrepreneurs. He subsequently announced his own entrepreneurship-themed series, Risky Business, to air on Slice. - Bruce Croxon (Season 6) is a founder of online dating website LavalifeLavalifeLavalife is an online dating service.-History:Lavalife began as a basement operation in 1987 by two Toronto entrepreneurs: David Chamandy and Ed Lum...
.
Episode list
| Season | Episodes | Start Date | End Date | Dragons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 8 | October 3, 2006 | August 28, 2006 | Herjavec, O'Leary, Treliving, Wood, Lewin |
| Season 2 | 10 | Herjavec, O'Leary, Treliving, Dickinson, Lewin | ||
| Season 3 | 11 | September 29, 2008 | December 8, 2008 | Herjavec, O'Leary, Treliving, Dickinson, Wilson |
| Season 4 | 20 | September 30, 2009 | March 17, 2010 | Herjavec, O'Leary, Treliving, Dickinson, Wilson |
| Season 5 | 20 | September 22, 2010 | March 30, 2011 | Herjavec, O'Leary, Treliving, Dickinson, Wilson |
| Season 6 | TBA | September 14, 2011 | Herjavec, O'Leary, Treliving, Dickinson, Croxon | |