Shark Tank at Inovagaia
Dozens of potential new entrepreneurs were at INOVAGAIA to watch the Shark Tank presentation. In fact, INOVAGAIA is the last major acquisition of the program, as a Sourcing Partner.
According to the person responsible for production, Paulo Jorge Marques, “the objective of this program is to make entrepreneurship known to the masses”, and people often do not feel they have enough value to lead a new business idea/project.
Rules, Recommendations and all possible and imaginary tips were given to the audience, with the expectation of presenting differentiating but motivating projects for the ‘sharks’. In return, potential participants asked relevant questions to Paulo Jorge Marques, hoping to present the right candidacy.
Shark Tank is one of the most acclaimed business-oriented television shows. It was nominated for the “Producers Guild Award”, for the “Emmy” and for the “Critics’ Choice Television Award” and won the Emmy in 2014 for “Outstanding Structured Reality Program”.
5 successful entrepreneurs decided to make capital, experience and networks available to entrepreneurs who deserve to be helped to develop their ideas and businesses. They are willing to risk their own money to make their dream come true and believe that, together with you, the business can go further. A television program that will inject money into the country’s real economy and completely change the lives of many people. The program will be recorded in December, but will only air at the end of February/beginning of March.
The ‘sharks’
Mário Ferreira – Executive President of Douro Azul
Mário Ferreira is the typical Portuguese “self made man”. He is the executive president of Douro Azul, a company he founded in the 90s in response to his passion for cruises and which led him to buy his first cruise ship in 1993. Mário Ferreira has several investments in the area of Tourism and Real Estate, in the region of Porto and also in Brazil. He is also the first Portuguese space tourist, having been the first to join Virgin’s Galactic program in Portugal.
João Rafael Koehler – Executive administrator of Colquímica
João Rafael Koehler is the entrepreneurs’ representative. He is president of ANJE – National Association of Young Entrepreneurs and also president of the board of Portugal Fashion, the biggest fashion event in Portugal. He is currently executive director of Colquímica – a leading company in the Iberian market in the production of water-based glues and hot melt glues, which exports 90% of its production and is present in 45 countries. In addition to Colquímica, João Rafael Koehler created his own consultancy company, advising multinationals on real estate projects in Portugal. Involved in several industrial projects, he also stands out for the recent creation of Elastictek. It also has investments in real estate investment funds and is involved in the development of biodegradable products.
Miguel Ribeiro Ferreira – Chairman of the Fonte Viva group
He is a specialist in Business Management. He began his career by creating his own bottled water company for professional use when he was 20 years old. The business grew and ended up creating the company “Bebágua”, which was later sold to Watson Water, and was later acquired by Nestlé. Later he founded the company “Acquajet” in Spain where it is already the market leader in the bottled water business. Today he is Chairman of the Fonte Viva group, one of the largest business groups in the Iberian region, with more than 60,000 water coolers installed. Additionally, Miguel Ribeiro Ferreira supports and invests in several groups of entrepreneurs and start-ups. It also manages a social solidarity institution that helps people with intellectual development problems – Quinta Essência.
Susana Sequeira – MSTF Partners
She is the creative one of the group. She began her career as an advertiser, working for several national and especially international advertising agencies. After 3 years as Creative Director, she decided to found what is now the biggest and best Portuguese agency ever. MSTF Partners. MSTF Partners is in the Top 5 of the largest Advertising Agencies in Portugal and in addition to working with major brands in Portugal and being present in Angola, it exports creativity to different geographies: Angola, Brazil and China. Susana Sequeira also has investments in different sectors of activity, from agriculture and food to technology and sport.
Tim Vieira – Special Edition Holding
Tim Vieira is a successful businessman of Portuguese descent, well versed in the reality of the Media. He began his professional experience in South Africa, the country where he was born and in which he created the country’s first craft beer in a small brewery that he developed in the 90s. He ended up settling in Angola where he is still present today and has one of the most relevant groups of Media – Special Edition Holding – which employs more than 500 employees. Special Edition Holding owns some of the main Angolan advertising, events, brand activations and media planning agencies – TBWA/Angola, Original Brands, Multileme, Onmedia. Tim Vieira also has media companies in Mozambique and Ghana.
