Parched Floral

Amanda Watson, from Ancaster, Ontario, asked for $100,000 for 10% of her company, Parched Floral, which presses and preserves sentimental flowers, such as wedding bouquets, into heirloom artwork. Arrangements come in three standard frame sizes starting at $500, with each frame taking about 10 hours of labour after being cut down from 20 hours, and turnaround times of six to eight months. Revenue was $158,000 last year with a loss of $12,000, and the business was on pace for about $300,000 this year, a 300% increase, with no marketing spend and growth driven by word of mouth and Instagram; Amanda Watson cited comparable US flower preservation businesses generating a few million dollars a year.

All five Dragons passed. Brian Scudamore and Arlene Dickinson both felt it was a good lifestyle business but not suited for investment return. Wes Hall said the niche market lacked enough potential return. Manjit Minhas felt it was not innovative or proprietary and had no barriers to entry. Michele Romanow explained that the market size was too small to generate the outsized returns needed to offset other investment losses, resulting in no deal.

Parched Floral is still operating and sells through its website.