The Loughborough alumnus successfully pitched to the Dragons during an episode last Thursday (27 Feb), alongside his business partner, James Cohen, securing the full investment they had requested for their company Kitt Medical.
All the Dragons thought the emergency anaphylaxis kit was an amazing life-saving product and the pair received three offers. The savvy pair negotiated a joint deal that secured them the financial investment they needed and not one but two Dragons, in both Deborah Meaden and Steven Bartlett.
Described as a defibrillator for allergies, Kitt Medical provides schools and businesses with a consistent supply of adrenaline pens, which are stored in a secure wall-mounted kit, along with instructions for administering the medicine during a life-threatening allergic reaction.
Zak began developing the award-winning concept during the final year of his degree at Loughborough, as his major undergraduate project. It was also a passion project for Zak, as he knew first-hand what it was like to live with a severe allergy and the risk of a reaction. Having seen too many ‘avoidable’ deaths on the news caused by allergic reactions, he started to look at ways he could create a service that would help.
Over the coming months, he designed ‘ana’ (as Kitt was previously known) – an accessible adrenaline pen kit.
After graduating in 2020, he continued to develop his product during lockdown, working with his now business partner, James, to improve the wall-mounted, briefcase-like application.
Assisted by a £15,000 grant from Loughborough University’s Start-up Fund, Kitt Medical launched in 2023 and to date more than 600 kits have been installed at sites across the UK, including schools, academy trusts, private businesses and hospitality venues such as Alton Towers and Edinburgh Zoo. More importantly, by the start of 2025, the equipment had been used to treat 10 life-threatening allergic reactions.
The service also includes online training, which has been completed more than 15,000 times.
Other notable achievements to date include a viral TikTok in June 2023, only a few months after launching, that saw one of Kitt Medical’s videos receive millions of views. This also resulted in over 16,000 website visits in one day.
The company is also currently working with St John’s Ambulance Service – a partnership that Zak has called the most ‘rewarding’ moment in his startup journey so far.
Professor Rebecca Cain, Acting Dean for the School of Design and Creative Arts at Loughborough University commented:
“It is wonderful to see one of our graduates achieve such great success, with a project that started here at Loughborough. We encourage our students to pursue creative solutions that can support challenges we face in society. The impact that Zak’s product is already making for those that live with severe allergies is incredible and I look forward to seeing where his latest success through Dragons’ Den takes his business next.”
Professor Mark Evans, Professor of Industrial Design in Loughborough University’s School of Design and Creative Arts, who advised Zak during the development of his final year project, commented:
“To progress a final year design project to commercial success represents a remarkable achievement. And to do this for a product with the potential to save lives and have Dragons vying to invest is down to Zak’s vision, determination, dedication and drive – personal qualities I remember all too well when he was developing the product as a student".
ENDS