DCU Business students prepare to enter the Dragon’s Den
Over 315 DCU Business School students are putting the finishing touches to their respective plans as they prepare to face a line-up of business leaders from a variety of sectors in this year’s virtual Dragon’s Den on Tuesday, April 6th.
The event which involves students pitching their start-up ideas to a panel of experts is part of the New Enterprise Development module for final year business students in the area of entrepreneurship.
Students have been preparing for the past year on their start-up ideas and will face a thorough examination from the “Dragons” on all aspects of their strategies from market research, accessing capital and product viability.
Start-up ideas include
- A wearable device that detects lactate threshold in athletes (runners)
- Nutrient-rich garden compost created from used cafe coffee beans
- Sensory teddy with fragrant release capabilities for autistic children
- Smart boxing gloves that measure and track your punch performance
- Lifestyle app for long-distance drivers which improves physical and mental well-being
- Virtual supermarket experience from the home
- On-field soccer ball sterilization device
- A device to pour the perfect pint from home
The students, organised across sixty-three groups will be aiming to impress thirty-two “Dragons” from companies such as Google, Bank of Ireland, EBS, Beauchamps and Irish Rail and including Kilkenny Hurler Richie Hogan and Geraldine Freeman, Managing Director Benelux at Johnson & Johnson.
The line-up also includes a number of DCU Alumni including Patrick Thorpe, Founding Partner, Searing Point; Liam O’Halloran, CEO, Alcomis; Fran Egan, COO, ClevaMama; Dr Ui May Tan, Clinical Lead, VHI; Jane Morrin, Director of Marketing, Udemy; Sue O’Neill, Managing Director, Shellcove; Ronan Morris, Co-Founder, Together Digital, and Colin Moran, Director Retail Banking, Bank of Ireland.
Previous New Enterprise Development projects have included DropChef which went on to become a successful business. The start-up collected the Regional Final of Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur and the Regional Final of InterTrade Ireland Investor Readiness Competition awards in 2018 and were shortlisted in the Sunday Independent 30 Under 30 line-up. New Enterprise Development groups have won over €100,000 to date and DCU Business School is recognised in Europe as being among the top undergraduate business schools in winning funding of this scale.
New Enterprise Development module coordinator and Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship Dr Eric Clinton commented,
“The New Enterprise Development Module is of great importance to students in terms of developing their entrepreneurial skills and abilities, as well as developing an understanding of what is involved in setting up a business today.
Students work in a hands-on, practical way moving beyond the theoretical, working in cross-functional teams, culminating in the boardroom pitch to the Dragons. I am inspired with the effort put in by the students and look forward to seeing some of these students as successful entrepreneurs in Ireland over the coming years”.