Lucky Iron Fish

Gavin Armstrong, a biomedical scientist from Guelph, Ontario, sought $175,000 for 5% of Lucky Iron Fish, a social enterprise selling an iron ingot shaped like a fish that fortifies boiled liquids with bio-available iron. The product, developed from Gavin's PhD research originating in Cambodia, sells for $30 online and $6 to $10 in bulk to organizations, and can be reused for five years. The company did about $1 million in sales the previous year, projected $1.5 to $1.8 million for the current year, and had roughly broken even, with about 70-80% of sales online and the rest from bulk NGO and government contracts. Gavin had raised $700,000 to date and was seeking to close a $1 million round.

Jim Treliving went out, saying he could introduce people but could not personally help. Vincenzo Guzzo went out over concerns about the valuation. Michele Romanow initially offered $175,000 for 6%, then matched Manjit Minhas's offer of $200,000 for 5% plus an additional $100,000 as a low-cost loan; Arlene Dickinson offered $300,000 for 8.5% with follow-on capital and NGO connections but stepped back when Gavin preferred to combine with another Dragon. Manjit Minhas offered $200,000 for 5%, and Gavin accepted a joint offer from Manjit Minhas and Michele Romanow at that same amount and equity.

We haven’t confirmed whether Lucky Iron Fish is still operating.