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The Packet & Times
A local nurse came face to face with the Dragons — but she can't say yet how it went.
Olwen Redwood was selected as one of 220 aspiring entrepreneurs to appear on an April taping of CBC's Dragons' Den.
Redwood pitched JambeAdore, a belt that holds a cellphone and bank card and fits on a woman’s ankle, calf or thigh.
She was inspired on a trip to the Mayan Riviera when she didn’t want to take a purse or fanny pack out in the evening and still needed to carry some items.
"I thought, 'There's got to be something out there. It started to become very evident that phones aren't supposed to be worn on your body," especially near the abdomen, she said.
That rules out putting it in your pocket, she said, and women shouldn't be sticking their phones in their bras when they're out without a purse.
Redwood wants to change the way women carry their cellphones.
What started out as a product intended to be convenient, she said, turned into a matter of public health.
Redwood said she worked on the product for about two years to get it right and, with the help of some Georgian College marketing students, designed her product.
"I want to make them affordable and fashionable," Redwood said, adding she hopes to make a donation to the Canadian Cancer Society to help get information out about the dangers of carrying a cellphone close to the body.
Redwood would be satisfied if women carried their cellphones in their purse, but if they don't, she wants them to be aware the electromagnetic radiation is a potential carcinogen. She asked the Dragons for $50,000 to help with manufacturing and advertising costs.
The experience was nerve-racking, but also exciting.
"You have to know the answer to everything," said Redwood, who presented the health concerns as part of her pitch.
The episode will air during the reality show's seventh season, which starts in September.
Redwood recently launched her business at www.jambeadore.com
