BrewDog CEO launches Dragons' Den-style competition the Next Unicorn

James Watt, co-founder of BrewDog, is set to pour £5m into three companies as part of the launch of his own Dragons' Den-style investment competition.

The competition is called the Next Unicorn and will be open for submissions from European entrepreneurs between 30 March and 14 April.

The trio of successful companies will each receive £1m from Watt on 26 May at BrewDog Las Vegas, with opportunities to unlock a further £4m if they surpass certain milestones.

Watt has partnered with Crowdcube, the world’s largest equity crowdfunding platform, to allow members of the public to invest in the final three companies.

The judging panel features Watt; Matt Hooper, chief executive of Crowdcube; and Evelyn McDonald, chief executive of Scottish Edge, who helped BrewDog 16 years ago.

It comes after the BBC One show Dragons' Den rejected Watt’s beer firm pitch in 2009.

Watt said: “Building and growing businesses is a real passion point for me, and I have learned so much on my journey getting BrewDog to Unicorn status. Given the current economic climate, it’s never been more important to support companies, and I can’t wait to share my experience with some of the brightest business minds across Europe.”

Matt Cooper, co-chief executive of Crowdcube, added: “We’ve transformed retail investing by creating more pathways for investors to invest in high-performing private companies than ever before. Now, with our partnership, the public can invest alongside leading entrepreneur James Watt in the search for Europe’s next unicorn.”