147research wins ACE Dragon's Den event

Foodservice market intelligence firm 147research saw off competition from big name rivals to win at the Association of Catering Excellence (ACE) Dragon's Den event.

Restaurant Associates, Bartlett Mitchell and Compass Group were among the seven short-listed teams to present their ideas to the five Dragons, including Ego Restaurants chief executive James Horler, and Alistair Storey, chairman and chief executive of independent caterer BaxterStorey.

Each team chose a brief from ACE's suggested list and had four minutes to present them to the Dragons. The 147research team chose the brief 'Which retro product is ready for a comeback and how would you re-launch it into the market?' and they opted to make Gentleman's Relish appeal to a "younger market and to make it sexy".

Jennifer d'Alton, who launched 147research a year ago, said: "The organisation of the whole event was superb, and although we are only a small three man company, we were made to feel really welcome. The ACE motto, 'networking though events' is definitely spot on"

The winning team was awarded an executive-level training course at Disney Institute World HQ in Florida.

Vacherin, Berkeley Scott and Portico were also finalists at the Mad Hatter's Tea Party event held at the British Medical Association in London's Tavistock Square.

The five Dragons, all captains of industry selected for their expertise were:

• Alistair Storey, chairman and chief executive of BaxterStorey
• Jason Leek, managing director (business & industry) for Compass Group
• James Horler, chairman and chief executive of EGO Restaurants
• Sheila McKenzie, consultant and consumer business developer
• Philip Marsden, director of corporate finance at RSM Tenon

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By Janie Stamford

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