Entrepreneur enters Dragons' Den playing the bagpipes

An entrepreneur made a dramatic entrance to Dragons' Den after emerging from the famous lift playing the bagpipes.

Robbie MacIsaac's product withdraws moisture from a piper's breath so it does not damage the instrument.

During his pitch he looked on as Dragons Deborah Meaden and Sara Davies attempted to strike up a tune.

But although the 21-year-old, from Falkirk, left empty handed he described the experience as "invaluable".

Reflecting on his memorable appearance, Mr MacIsaac told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme: "It is a great way to represent Scotland in that iconic way.

"It might have been quite jarring for the Dragons but I thought it was good light to put Scotland in, playing the instrument."

Robbie MacIsaac comes face to face with the Dragons' Den panel while playing his bagpipes

Asked about his invention on BBC One's Dragons' Den on Thursday, he said: "A lot of pipers have issue with condensation from their own breath.

"It is really difficult to control. What condensation does in the bagpipes is it can be detrimental to the health of the instrument and the sound quality.

"I have engineered an attachment for the bagpipes which extracts moisture directly from the piper's breath and, in turn, prolongs the life span of the instrument."

Mr MacIsaac was just 14 when he came up with the concept and developed it throughout school in his spare time.

He pitched for funding when he was 18 and took it to market a year later when he started university.

An accomplished piper in his own right, Mr MacIsaac closed the final T in the Park at Strathallan Castle in Perthshire with a stirring solo performance.

He told the Dragons there were more than 140,000 competitive pipers who were potential customers.

About 200 bands from across the globe take part in the annual World Pipe Band Championships

One pitfall identified by the panel was repeat sales, as Mr MacIsaac admitted that the product "should last a lifetime".

He did, however, highlight the fact that it required a special cloth to absorb condensation which may need to be replaced every two months.

And Mr MacIsaac said he already had a manufacturing and distribution partnership with the world's biggest bagpipe company, which is based in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire.

But unfortunately he left the show empty handed after failing to secure funding from the Dragons.

'Incredible advice'

Steven Bartlett told him: "You have done incredibly well to create a product, get it to market and even generate sales at 21 years old. So really, really impressive.

"It does beg the question: What do you really need a Dragon for? Because you've got the product and you've got a good partner there.

"I don't think you need me as an investor, to be honest, so I'm going to say that I'm out."

After he left, Touker Suleyman admitted to his fellow Dragons: "The sound of bagpipes always gives me a little tingle."

Looking back on his experience, Mr MacIsaac said the panel gave him some "incredible advice" in terms of who he should seek investment from and how he should expand his product range through innovation.

He now hopes to develop the product for other instruments in the woodwind sector.