The CBC’s Dragons' Den is looking for Atlantic Canadian entrepreneurs just as it airs a pitch from a team that  cut their teeth in the region.

Auditions for The Dragon’s Den are being held around the region this week, and Sage Mixology, a company that grew out of Dalhousie University’s Starting Lean Program, will appear on the show next Wednesday.

Sage, which markets premixed drinks through a bottle-within-a-bottle system, will appear on the show Wednesday, March 11. CEO Cam McDonald said the team is on the first seven minutes of the show.

Dragon’s Den contestants follow the laws of Omerta, so McDonald declined to say whether the team got funding.

SageMixology developed in the first Dal Starting Lean cohort more than two years, with the idea that premixed drinks would be better if the alcohol and the mix were separated until they were poured into a glass. The company’s Elderberry and Pink Lemon products are now being sold by the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, the world’s largest liquor retailer.

Meanwhile, the show’s annual auditions in Atlantic Canada began yesterday in Saint John. (Apologies to New Brunswickers that we didn’t see the announcement until after it had been held.)

The auditions will continue in Charlottetown tomorrow (Friday) at 10 am to 5 am at the CBC office on University Ave.

There will be concurrent auditions Saturday.

In Halifax, they will take place at the Centre For Entrepreneurship Education and Development, or CEED, or the Halifax Shopping Centre from 11 am to 6 pm.

“We are excited to host the Halifax auditions on the CBC Dragons’ Den national audition tour for the fifth time,” said Laurie Cameron, President and CEO, CEED. “Dragons’ Den is a natural fit for CEED given our extensive experience working with business start-ups. Once again this year, we are proud to offer a unique component to the Halifax auditions, providing entrepreneurs with the opportunity to practice and perfect their pitch with CEED.”

In St. John’s, the auditions will take place 10 am to 5 pm Saturday at the Sheraton Hotel.