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The bitterest of aftertastes: How a rising food brand went from Dragons’ Den success to liquidation

Dee Collins spent ten years building up the well-loved food brand Dee’s Wholefoods. But in spite of her creativity, hard graft and business nous, the company ultimately failed, taking all investment with it. This is her story

Dee Collins’s brand Dee’s Wholefoods, which she spent ten years building up, became a by-product of the ruthless, sharkish, relentless world of start-up capitalism. Picture: John Allen

In August 2019, an advertisement began to circulate among a small group of a few dozen medium-sized Irish food businesses. It had been drawn up by accounting firm McStay Luby, which was acting as the receiver over a portfolio of assets and was trying to effect a sale.

It was a tempting menu of options. There were proprietary recipes for a popular brand of wholefood burgers, for pre-cooked vegan meals, for vegan sausages and for ...