Military Member takes his dangerous dress shirt to Dragon Den

The fashionable mind behind the “World’s Most Dangerous Dress Shirt” line, Jeff Alpaugh, will be sharing his idea on the small screen this fall after landing an opportunity with CBC’s Dragon’s Den.

After opening his first store last fall in New Brunswick, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) member-turned-businessman decided it was time to take the World Most Dangerous Dress Shirt to the next level.

“We were ready for the whole country to know about our business and we were ready for that demand,” recalled Alpaugh.

After weeks of checking on the Dragon’s Den website, the day finally arrived when the CBC show was taking new applicants.

Alpaugh had his audition for the show on March 2 in Fredericton, NB. He stormed the Crown Plaza, where the auditions were taking place, with several of his fellow CAF members, delivered his pitch with his signature “enthusiastic style,” and came out with a golden ticket to fly to Toronto and present his pitch in front of Dragon’s Den’s well-known multimillionaires.

On April 29, Alpaugh travelled to Toronto, accompanied by eight people from eight different walks of life, including CAF members, to present his pitch and tape the episode.

“I do feel like we represented the military and military families well and I do hope everyone will tune in and they can decide for themselves,” said Alpaugh.

For Alpaugh, a huge fan of the show, the experience of being on set and presenting his idea felt like an out-of-body experience.

“There was just this surreal feeling of feeling like you’re watching Dragon’s Den with virtual reality glasses on and you’re right in the middle of the show,” stated Alpaugh.

The 45-minute experience will be boiled down to a few minute and will air sometime this fall on the 12th season of Dragon’s Den. The exact date has not been announced.

Although, Alpaugh cannot reveal the outcome of the show, he hopes, regardless, that it will help to get the word out about his business.

“For us, personally, I hope it makes more people aware of our existence.

“I also would like for folks in the military to be proud of it as well and say ‘hey that’s pretty cool. These guys are where they are because of military training and experience,’’ noted Alpaugh.

You can order your custom dangerous dress shirt by visiting Jeff Alpaugh Custom  and don’t forget to follow Jeff Alpaugh Custom on Facebook for an update on when the Dragon’s Den episode will air.