12:50pm Friday 25th July 2008
By David Paine
A WORCESTER couple are hoping to escape unscathed when they enter the Dragons’ Den and pitch their innovative idea to some of the most successful businessmen in the country on national television.
Neil and Laura Westwood have already beaten thousands of other competitors to showcase their idea, Magic Whiteboard, on the popular BBC2 series in front of millions of viewers.
Duncan Bannatyne, James Caan, Theo Paphitis, Deborah Meaden, and Peter Jones will all run their rule over the product which is a statically-charged, re-usable whiteboard that can be stuck up on walls, glass, wood, and wallpaper without the need of any drawing pins, tape, or glue.
Mr Westwood, of Warndon Villages, said internet-based Magic Whiteboard has only been running for about two years.
“We’re both working and we have been running the business in our own time while bringing up a young family,” he said.
“We were inspired by Dragons’ Den because we thought ‘we have got a good product, why not try it on the programme?’”
Thirty-five-year-old Mr Westwood, who is head of continuous improvement at Worcestershire Royal Hospital, said Magic Whiteboard consists of 25 perforated sheets on a roll which can be used singularly or together to create a larger board.
“It’s reusable, recyclable, portable and lightweight,” he said.
“You can write on it and clean it off.
“It’s like a replacement for the flip chart which, we believe, is about 20 years out of date.
“When people see the product they do love it and they have been very positive about it.”
Mr Westwood said Magic Whiteboard is already popular with schools and business who use it for meetings, conferences, training days, presentations, and seminars.
The couple said they thought their appearance on Dragons’ Den was due to be aired sometime next month.
For more information about the Magic Whiteboard, which costs £29.99 per roll, visit www.magicwhiteboard.co.uk
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