Western alumnus secures $1M investment on Dragons’ Den | News

Western alumnus Devin Powell and his business partner won a $1 million dollar investment for their health food start-up, Protein Candy, on CBC’s Dragons’ Den.

Powell and Michael Delorenzi pitched their company, Protein Candy — which produces low sugar, high protein candy — in an episode that aired Nov. 7, reaching a deal with investors.

Dragons’ Den is a Canadian reality television series where entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of investors, known as “Dragons,” to secure funding and mentorship.

Powell described Dragons’ Den as a stressful experience, but he and his partner successfully pitched Protein Candy.

Dragons Arlene Dickinson and Michele Romanow went in together to offer the pair $1 million in exchange for 15 per cent of the business. 

Ivey Business School alumnus Simu Liu is also a guest judge on this season of the show. 

Powell, a Western University criminology and sociology alumnus and vice-president of retail at Protein Candy, said the idea behind the product was to create high protein, low sugar candy while maintaining good flavour. 

“It’s really difficult to put away isolated protein or a complete protein into a candy. It ends up tasting like burnt milk or chalky protein, said Powell. “It took us several years of research and development to figure it out.” 

Each bag of Protein Candy has four grams of sugar and six grams of fibre, in addition to its protein content.

Powell said he had no intention of entering the consumer packaged goods industry after graduating from Western in 2013. 

“My plans weren’t to be in business,” he said. “But when I got involved in Pulp and Press in 2018, the natural products industry, I realized it was a space I loved.”

Powell said his experiences at Western contributed to his success, even though his career path was untraditional. 

“I credit a lot of my sales skills to my time at Western in the sociology program,” said Powell.  “London is my network, and my time at Western was a huge part of that.”

Protein Candy was started by current president Trevor Lenders in collaboration with food scientists. Lenders had the idea and approached Powell and Deloronzi — who he knew through his business network in London — in order to turn his concept into a marketable product.

“Trevor Lenders had the innovation,” said Powell. “But Michael and I helped take it from an idea to a brand.” 

The Dragons’ Den win is the latest milestone for Protein Candy, with the company expanding to retail stores across Canada and the U.S. since it was founded in 2021.  

“Don’t let anyone stop you or tell you what you can’t do,” Powell said when asked what advice he would give to aspiring entrepreneurs.

“If you have an idea that resonates with you and you’re passionate about it, put in the work,” he added. “Hustle, grind and see it through.”