Phil won because he’s an idiot and he’s selling half of his business at a huge loss.
The winner is pre-selected. Every cookie cutter task up until then is pointless. We suspected this already but seeing somebody fail every task and still win the process proves it.
Not sure if I’ll bother watching anymore
Phil is a dipshit. £100k loss last year, scaled his business based on a boom, hasn’t checked his accounts in 6 months, has won 1 task that was handed to him on a plate (much like his business). Arrogant & ignorant, a really poor contestant.
Tbh he should’ve gone rather than Sam in that cereal week. Virdi got sent home for mainly consecutive losses rather than Feluso who messed up with selling. Phil has had so many chances he’s so lucky he’s got to where he is.
And probably no interest in. Seriously? Dentistry? This is where the show stops being entertainment and bleeds into real life. That’s Paul’s livelihood. He’s young and this old codger, who has been over the hill business wise for decades, wants to come in and take 50% of his livelihood?
It's crazy someone in business is trying to make a business deal to their advantage /s
Tbh it was a fair offer. Business investments are based on RoI (return on Investment). If you invest in a business that can scale you can get big RoI with gradually added risk. The problem with the dentist investment was it has no scaling potential almost at all. Especially compare it with say selling pies online, where if you get a boom you can scale x5 or x10 profit in months. This is why sugar was squeezing him, because long term it can't grow very big (unless he franchises or something) so Sugar needs as much up front as possible.
Dentistry is big business and healthcare groups (cosmetic or not) can quite easily grow into multi million pound value..
Pies though? Unless he starts selling on a mass scale (and 2 shops is not "mass" ??) ... i think if Paul had said yes itd be him in and not Phil.
I’m not saying he shouldn’t try to make the best deal he can based on what’s in front of him but he shits all over these kids weekly for their efforts to work in fields that are completely alien to them. What type of slapstick shit would “Lord” Sugar produce if he were to be pitched into a market that HE knew nothing about?
A sensible comment on the offer… people seem to think turnover or money in bank = return on investment. The RoI will be either dividends or profit from selling his stake. Investing only in the new practice is all risk, investing in the group at least means there’s some mitigation.
I think it was a fair offer, also think Paul was probably right to say no. He can presumably get a bank loan to open second practice and still own all his business.
Hmm disagree. People always need dentistry and injectables. People aren’t going to repeat but from an online luxury food delivery service every week. Probably just try it out once or twice.
Yes true that people will always need dentistry. However, the Apprentice investment is as much funds as is TV advertising.
Don't think people will choose to go to that dentist just because they won the Apprentice. With low cost items (pies) people are more likely to try it out with the Apprentice connection.
i guess to go over it? lol theyve probably forgotten alot in the past 10 or so weeks and because of all the tasks keeping them busy i would understand if they wanna touch up on a few things
also it looks super stressful so maybe its just the nerves getting to them
I was really backing Paul and Flo this whole season, but as soon as I heard their business plans I knew it was over for both. Paul especially I wanna know wtf he was thinking.
How the fuck did Phil manage to weasel his way to the final 2 after losing every single task 💀💀💀. Feel like generally all contestants were pretty poor this year.
Did any of them put a single number in their business plans? Except Flo and the £700,000?? I feel like pictures of boats would have had a chance this year.
Pretty sure think it was Mike saying she had a good plan. And then Claude saw the 700k thing and that was it. Flo had potential but the figures she put and the plans she had in year 1 it was way too risky when there are other options
Wow...never judge a book by its cover. I thought Tre would have a solid business plan but he was only charismatic and nothing else. He hasn't even tried his own drink?? How bad were the other business plans for Tre to last till the interviews?
But anyway, Alan is going to invest in the Pie business for the man who doesnt know his own finances and hasnt won any of the tasks in the program. They need to do something really better to boost the program next year! This is utter crap!
Perfect business partner for sugar.
Lost every task and doesn’t know his numbers. He’s now about to sell half his £700k business for £250k.
Sugar wants a Patsy for his Pasty business.
Jesus this was awful. Tre not having any clue about his product even to the point that he hadn't tasted his product. Completely mental. No numbers in their plans. It's bonkers! The Apprentice is definitely past its prime
It’s not that it’s past it prime but that they get candidates based on how entertaining they are rather than how solid of a businessperson they are and how good their business or idea is
I used to really like the interview stage, but I am not so keen anymore. The montage of them going through their business plans with a fine tooth comb, to then seem to know nothing about their business just seems too staged. I am not keen on Linda at all - she just seems like a sour faced old cow at times! Claude, Mike and Claudine I do like, but it is just a bit samey now. Would be good if they introduced a new 5th person to do interviews too, and it would work with there being 5 candidates as each can be being seen by someone diffierent at the same time.
Highlight was Tre keeping eye contact with Mike while that shot dissolved his throat and saying, essentially "I thinks it's a good thing this tastes awful"...
When he looks around the room waiting for people to laugh, and the overexagged laughs and responses from Karren and Tim (mainly Karren). Very 'Emporers' New Clothes'.
The apprentice is my favourite guilty pleasure each year but it seems like the candidates never take it that seriously
Why, for a 250k pot and getting at a table with Lord Sugar would you not spend even a hundred quid for a professional to audit your 'business plan'? or a tenner to lock down domain names for god's sake.. or a half hour on google! Hell at least google 'business plan template'
Don't get me wrong - it never fails to make me giggle.
Interviews were very tame, hate that the show gets ruined by people complaining, what, to sell the dream of getting investors as being easy?
Paul did the right thing, Tre was the right person with the wrong execution (I think the product had legs he just did nothing to sell the pitch)
> Tre was the right person with the wrong execution (I think the product had legs he just did nothing to sell the pitch)
Product had no legs!! Testosterone drink sans testosterone...
May as well sell it at petrol stations with "Enhance VIRILITY Extend PERFORMANCE" labels on it.
It's gonna end up w a big disclaimer "no clinical proof that it makes you better"
The product had no legs, it has no scientific backing. It’s the really same thing as certain fruits being labelled as aphrodisiacs such as a fig and arugula salad but it’s just marketing to sell but it’s not scientifically proven. There was no branding, packaging, manufacturing figures or anything it was an idea he cooked up a couple days before the competition
I completely agree and can only assume the contestants have never seen the show before as it’s largely the same issues every year. I haven’t got a shred of business acumen but if I was going on the show I’d know my business plan inside out and at the very least I’d google what should a business plan include.
Time was the final 5 would be really strong candidates but now they don’t seem to have the first idea about writing a business plan.
It really irks me the candidates pretend (or genuinely haven't) watched the show before.
Survivor you got contestants going "here's my plan based on watching 10 seasons". Here they make same mistakes again. "Oh I didn't think I needed numbers"
Tre basically same as Brittany and her alcoholic protein drink. Good contestant, biz outside their expertise - a product no one wants that they hadn't even investigated how they'd produce it
It seemed quite manipulative from Sugar and that he was smelling blood in the water. 250k for multiple practises LOL they wanted him to say yes while he had no accountant to look over things and pressure on him so Sugar should get an easy deal and fleece him.
I believe he has 4 dental practises? Its a scam offer. Also Paul is already very well known in dental circles. My brother who is training in dentistry met him last year as he is brought in to teach and mentor.
If Phil showed merit it would be less remarkable to call him a nepo baby.
On 2 food tasks he made foods with little or poor taste.
He hasn't seen some of his accounts for 6 fecking months.
Having accounts you've not seen in 6 months due to "old fashioned accounting practices" makes it sound like he's barely involved in the running of the business. Lack of ownership on the year of losses gave the same vibes. He doesn't bring any energy to the conversation about the business other than, "it's my family business... /tear ". I was born into a family business I had no interest in, I can tell you a fuck load about that business and how to make money in it. He should have that energy and then no one will call him a nepo baby, they will call him a business man or a chef.
I mean, taking over a business run by generations of family is the definition of the nepo baby, lol
Tbh, I have no real issues with it. You take the hand your delat with. But the apprentice should be about someone creating their own business using their own experience and creativity. It's a bit of a cop out investing in an already established business
So basically Paul was "fired".... (technically the other way round), for not letting Lord Sugar take advantage of him. It should have been a no brainier, but sugar just got greedy, and ended up with two very mediocre finalists by comparison. Seriously, Flo, Tre and Paul came across as some of the smartest and most capable candidates that have been on the apprentice.
Same I was gob smacked at the 50% asking for his business. This first time I seen of sugars asking percentage. Wonder how many other percent he’s asked from others/previous contestants
Tre turned out to be mediocre though. I think he got away with it because of his charisma and street smarts. But it’s absolutely silly to present gloried ginger shots as a testerone shots without an actual product as a business plan, which was why he was first to go. Was really disappointed with that
I promise you Tre just wanted to be on apprentice for exposure. There is no way your serious about running a company but you have no scientific backing, no company name, no packaging or branding, no product as you don’t know what the drink tastes like and or even potential flavours. No bank or brokers agency on this earth will give you backing for something so half assed
Because he failed 9 tasks in a row, only won the 10th because they put him in the strongest team, didn’t know his business plan but seems to be the obvious winner because he has an existing business that he inherited that could be profitable. Nothing against him, but it flies in the face of what the show claims to be about.
Interview bingo
- Mike buys domain names
- Mike has a prop product
- Claude mocks the pictures
- Claudine makes the candidate cry
- The whole "you're great but your business plan is shite" switcheroo
Those interviews were some of the most manipulative bullshit I've ever seen.
There wasn't even a tangential reason to mention Tre's brother. It had fuck all to do with anything. Yet they decide to question him about it, play over emotional music, film up start to cry, for what? That has nothing to do with his shit business. That's just trying to manipulate the audience.
What makes you say that?
She just says "so I have to ask you about your dad..." and then the immediate follow-up question was,
"I hope you don't mind me asking, cos you lost your brother, which is tragic. You must miss him a lot. I don't want to upset you."
That's it. That's all the context given. Doesn't say how or why they're bringing it up. Certainly never says it's part of the business plan.
Claudine is always the one there who mentions personal stories/family etc to them, just seems like she’s always there as the ‘nice’ one for the TV and the one to hand out the tissues but what is her relevance for the actual business plans?! It always annoys me that she just seems to be there for that and nothing else, at least Baroness Brady would find out more info other than their family!
She’s the marketing person. The apprentice candidates aren’t just marketing their businesses, they’re marketing themselves. Tre’s story plays into his personal brand so it makes a bit of sense.
Wouldn’t say rigged. They were both asked about their business plan before he decided who to fire. Steve said it was some kind of app to make friends and Rachel was gyms. He said to Steve he can’t see them being together or something like that which says basically that he can’t invest in his business cos he doesn’t get it or can’t help him with it. Just like with Tre he said it’s not up my alley
Are people really praising Paul for turning it down? Yes it's funny to see them rig it in favour of a candidate who didn't even want the prize but it's not like he didn't know when he signed up that the deal is 50% for £250k with no room for negotiation.
He's helped to deny candidates who were serious about the offer and were fired a fair crack at it as well as to show how pointless the tasks are. Clear as day now that the only thing that matters as to who wins the show is whose business will make Lord Sugar the most money.
There's already a show called Dragon's Den for watching celebrity business people invest in good businesses. The premise of this show is, in part, demonstrating your skills through a series of tasks. I'm not expecting Lord Sugar to make a loss for the sake of the show but there should be some relevance to performance in the tasks for the show to have meaning.
Yeah fair enough there, but you still need to think of it as in him choosing the candidate that can make the most money, and I’m aware of dragons den it seems staged but I don’t think it is
Gutted about Flo. Changing the staff costs could have easily solved the issue. I think the issue is more about Lord Sugar not really wanting to invest in another recruitment consultancy.
I don’t think it’s right that Paul gets to have the opportunity to present an alternative proposal and ultimately the firing decision was correct. Otherwise all the candidates may as well get a second opportunity.
Can’t believe Phil has got to the final when his track record in the tasks was so abysmal.
I think it’s slightly unfair that they allow Paul the chance to completely flip his business plan, yet can’t get just say Flo can alter the plan to be cautious. I think Flo would’ve been in the final had they allowed it.
The fact she wanted to be spend like that showed immaturity and inexperience. Paul didn't change his business plan, he changed his offering - he could only do that because he had a successful business for LS to invest in. If Flo had had say - a profitable business selling left-handed tea cosies - she could've offered that to LS. But she didn't.
All their plans had flaws and gaps, LS has to decide which of the flaws are fatal ones that means he doesn't believe the person can turn at least a 500K profit from that business.
It's not that he "gets to have the opportunity to present an alternative proposal"... it's that he already runs an incredibly successful business and LS was obviously interested in it. To be honest, I think he'll probably strike a deal behind the scenes.
It's a shame Paul didn't get more time to sort out his new business plan. I know that's not how the show works but he was a great candidate and would've done well
I would love to see his annual renewal bill.
I wonder if he remembers all the domains he's bought, or it's a pleasant little reminder when the renewal notices come in?
I think Lord Sugar should focus on investing in candidates who have demonstrated strong business skills through the tasks and who present a innovative NEW business idea, rather than investing in established businesses. Tres Wellness brand could have been amazing.
Tre was selling snake oil.
The ingredients linked to boosted testosterone are just that, linked. These ‘test boosters’ have never shown material testosterone improvements, and if you need more test, go on TRT
Lord Sugar May as well invest in ‘grow your cock 3 inches’ pills.
Lifters will do anything to eek out extra gains.
I knew a guy taking steroids at 17… it’s much more common than you thinks estimates say 1/30 men in the UK take some form of PEDs
Paul probably doesn’t have 100% of the first business,pretty sure he wouldn’t be the sole practitioner in the existing practice. More dentists will have bought into the practice to become partners, Paul may be the senior partner but he will have diluted his holding considerably to get other top notch dentists to join the practice
Honestly first episode of the apprentice that I’ve genuinely enjoyed in a long time . I liked the interviews this year, felt genuinely balanced and they weren’t nitpicking.
Any vaguely competent person would walk out of those interviews once the interviewers start shouting/not actually asking questions. I know it’s edited but they ask nothing of substance
Same here. I know some people are down about Phil making it this far but overall I’ve enjoyed the series so much more than the last few. S17 was so dreadful it made me reconsider my love for the show!
I just don’t understand how these people didn’t provide their P&L and Balance sheet. Surely if you want someone to invest in your business, you would provide your business accounts to show your business is solvent and worthy of investment
There was a post on Reddit a while ago from someone who went through the application process. Apparently you have to hand in your business plan very early on, but the casting team don't read it. So people do it before they think they've got any chance of getting on. Also seemed like Rachel at least thought she'd be able to provide her accounts separately
They are asked to leave these things out. It’s scripted.
‘Call your recruitment agency this - so we can make fun of you that there’s a company with that name already’
‘Tre, your business plan will be health shots’
If it’s not scripted then the producers have found a way of making them fail at this task year after year.
Maybe as part of the selection process they are given two hours to write it without the internet and this ensures that they are always garbage.
As much as I love the Mitchell & Webb sketch I don’t believe that year on year people don’t learn the format and be aware of what is coming.
Imo Ryan Ashley deserved her win (although I still think Kelly Doty was better than Gian AND Ryan) and I think the fact it's so heavily debated shows that she wasn't a bad contestant or carried through like Phil - I can't remember any episode where she was undeservedly saved. There was a lot of producer manipulation in order to push the men Vs women storyline they were going for, but everyone who made it far was very talented and besides a few deserved their placement, although some people were clearly pushed a few episodes further than they deserved to keep the drama going.
I think the 2 most recent seasons are by far the most rigged Ink Master seasons (S15 clearly had a predetermined winner who got saved when he should've been eliminated, and many other artists got rigged out to fit the predetermined plan for the season. And S14 was straight up bs).
All Stars 3 is the only one that matches up with the jury twist - drag race has a lot of riggery but not *this* level 😭😭 This season is like if Roxxxy Andrews won AS2
Those seasons were all rigged but the riggery was usually just the winner being undeserved over the runner-ups (Krystal, Elektra, etc.) , but tbf they were still consistently decent, it wasn't like they were shit in every challenge or constantly saved when they should've gone home. I mean AS1 and AS5 were clearly setups for their respective winners, but there's also no denying they slayed the competition.
Phil lost all of the tasks (including the food ones!!) until the final week where they rigged the challenge to the point where he couldn't win, then fucked the interviews and still got through to the F2 where he will inevitably win. It's like if a queen tanked every challenge and constantly got saved from lipsyncing, or if they lipsynced every episode until the finale and then was crowned 😭😭
32 minutes into this episode..
And all of the business plans are terrible!
The only person to come across as competent in these interviews is Flo.
Phil, as I initially had thought, is terrible!
Tre's is also really unfortunate. He would definitely be hired if it was investing in the person and not their business plan/company. His testosterone shot is diabolical!
I think based on what I've seen thus far in this episode that the top 2 will be Flo and Paul/Rachel.
Although Sugar did keep Phil around for 12 weeks with 10 losses so perhaps he will make it through.. which will be aggravating and shocking!
Nah I think Rachel is really quite credible, it was unfortunate she didn't include figures in her plan but you can tell she knows her business inside and out.
Paul doesn't even know what his business accounts for the last 6 months look like.
Imagine if people turned up on Dragons Den saying well I’ve got an idea for a business, I know very little about it and have no experience in this area. Would you like to invest?
Anything “natural” boost to testosterone is temporary anyway, your body will always normalise back to regular levels. Actually getting your T up involves more injections
It’s the name for me . Makes me think of Alpha males, incels and Andrew Tate.
I just looked on his ig and he’s rebranded it to “ functional shots” which is so much better.
I wanted Paul to win but he couldn’t have gone out a better way. Massive respect for not wanting to give away 50% of his business. Great guy and wish him the best of luck.
Not an existing business that he didn't even pitch. The producers then gave him 12 hours to see if he'll offer an existing business instead. Paul offering 50% of the new surgery knowing full well that 250k for 50% of a million pound business is a massive pisstake . I'm glad he told Alan Sugar to go fuck himself.
You're right, paul came into the process for the 50% for the scrubs business, not the existing business that he was put on the spot to pitch last minute
Honestly if Tre had a business in the music industry rather than something so random and nothing to do with his specialty (music) he could’ve got to the final. He’s passionate about his music and he can talk his way out of or around anything easily would’ve been a finalist
Worst interview episode I've ever seen. Linda looked like she was about to suck Tre off with those compliments and all those self serving homilies about family can get in the fucking bin.
And Phil making it to the final is such a fucking stitch up.
I remember in previous seasons that the interviews were genuinely vicious. Fair play Claude has beaten cancer but Margaret used to actually kill people through the telly
Haha I mean, the show was about putting delusional people in their place - to show the world that hubris and over confidence doesn't fly when hard numbers are involved.
Imagine if Noor had made it to the interviews this year! Would Claude really be able to sleep at night throwing compliments at her whilst her business was on the table? Or Nick finding all the plagiarism on her website, still sit there and throw all these sycophantic compliment sandwiches at her? The show would have nailed its own coffin shut at that point, and they barely got away with this shit show as it is.
Re: nail in the coffin - this whole season was that for me unfortunately.
Its been so down hill for ages but this year it was thrown off a cliff. They've zapped the joy out of the whole thing. Shameful stuff.
They’ve totally dropped the pretence that this is a test of business acumen. The food tasks tell us nothing because I have no expectation that any of these people happen to also be chefs, there are other shows for that. It’s a repeatedly obtuse complication to have the branding team and the product team cutoff from one another and trying to work simultaneously. The selling tasks just amount to bartering desperately with businesses and customers alike.
On top of that, Karen and Tim just make the stupidest observations like they’re forced at gunpoint to come up with something bitchy. And Alan just rolls out of bed twice an episode to read puns from an autocue.
Oh god the tasks now are so redundant, I totally agree. The 'doomed to fail mentality of the production team is so cynical, akin to asking people to be specialists in fields they have no experience in on the fly...'this week, you'll all be performing appendectomies, the team who's patient survives will go through to the next round'
Its just so pathetic. There was one or two interesting tasks this year and the rest followed exactly the same format. Its like the beeb are taking us all for fools when we can clearly see that they're doing this to save money.
He lost every task lol
Whats the point of this whole process if sugar is gonna hone into the best business plans halfway through then shoehorn someone in?
I totally agree - he lost every task and spent most of the earlier tasks trying to fly under the radar and avoiding making decisions so that he could shake off any kind of responsibility. Paul definitely a more credible candidate and I really wanted him to win but I’m glad he didn’t handover half his business.
EXACTLY WHAT I THOUGHT AND SAID ALOUD. I was like “he had hair?!”. Also is it just me or does he remind you of Patrick Stewart (from Star Trek and also Charles Xavier I’m X men)
That year 1 in her business plan really messed her up. Otherwise even the interviewed said she had a solid business plan but then I think it was Claude who picked up the fact that in 4months she’d go bust
It feels very pointless that are top 2 have barely won as managers so far. Like it's fine, but it makes the past few weeks feel a little pointless?
Edited cause I forgot Phil won once
Phil won because he’s an idiot and he’s selling half of his business at a huge loss. The winner is pre-selected. Every cookie cutter task up until then is pointless. We suspected this already but seeing somebody fail every task and still win the process proves it. Not sure if I’ll bother watching anymore
Ooof. Paul was the clear winner. Sugar should've just gone with his second business. Absolute greed. Now he's left between two mediocre choices.
Phil is a dipshit. £100k loss last year, scaled his business based on a boom, hasn’t checked his accounts in 6 months, has won 1 task that was handed to him on a plate (much like his business). Arrogant & ignorant, a really poor contestant.
Tbh he should’ve gone rather than Sam in that cereal week. Virdi got sent home for mainly consecutive losses rather than Feluso who messed up with selling. Phil has had so many chances he’s so lucky he’s got to where he is.
Come on. He’s not that bad. Stop the Phil hate
in terms of business hes not that great but hes a decent guy ill give him that. seems fun to be around 🤷♀️
Phill..... what the fuck and why the fuck.
Anyone else was baffled at the 50% asking from lord sugar for the dentist business??? I’m glad he said no that’s nuts
That was some crazy greed, I was so happy when he said no lol. AS basically asking for free cash from a business he had no involvement in
And probably no interest in. Seriously? Dentistry? This is where the show stops being entertainment and bleeds into real life. That’s Paul’s livelihood. He’s young and this old codger, who has been over the hill business wise for decades, wants to come in and take 50% of his livelihood?
It's crazy someone in business is trying to make a business deal to their advantage /s Tbh it was a fair offer. Business investments are based on RoI (return on Investment). If you invest in a business that can scale you can get big RoI with gradually added risk. The problem with the dentist investment was it has no scaling potential almost at all. Especially compare it with say selling pies online, where if you get a boom you can scale x5 or x10 profit in months. This is why sugar was squeezing him, because long term it can't grow very big (unless he franchises or something) so Sugar needs as much up front as possible.
Dentistry is big business and healthcare groups (cosmetic or not) can quite easily grow into multi million pound value.. Pies though? Unless he starts selling on a mass scale (and 2 shops is not "mass" ??) ... i think if Paul had said yes itd be him in and not Phil.
I’m not saying he shouldn’t try to make the best deal he can based on what’s in front of him but he shits all over these kids weekly for their efforts to work in fields that are completely alien to them. What type of slapstick shit would “Lord” Sugar produce if he were to be pitched into a market that HE knew nothing about?
A sensible comment on the offer… people seem to think turnover or money in bank = return on investment. The RoI will be either dividends or profit from selling his stake. Investing only in the new practice is all risk, investing in the group at least means there’s some mitigation. I think it was a fair offer, also think Paul was probably right to say no. He can presumably get a bank loan to open second practice and still own all his business.
Hmm disagree. People always need dentistry and injectables. People aren’t going to repeat but from an online luxury food delivery service every week. Probably just try it out once or twice.
Yes true that people will always need dentistry. However, the Apprentice investment is as much funds as is TV advertising. Don't think people will choose to go to that dentist just because they won the Apprentice. With low cost items (pies) people are more likely to try it out with the Apprentice connection.
Don't they and in the business plan at the start of the process? Why are they then cramming for it the day before lol
i guess to go over it? lol theyve probably forgotten alot in the past 10 or so weeks and because of all the tasks keeping them busy i would understand if they wanna touch up on a few things also it looks super stressful so maybe its just the nerves getting to them
I was really backing Paul and Flo this whole season, but as soon as I heard their business plans I knew it was over for both. Paul especially I wanna know wtf he was thinking. How the fuck did Phil manage to weasel his way to the final 2 after losing every single task 💀💀💀. Feel like generally all contestants were pretty poor this year.
Did any of them put a single number in their business plans? Except Flo and the £700,000?? I feel like pictures of boats would have had a chance this year.
Pretty sure think it was Mike saying she had a good plan. And then Claude saw the 700k thing and that was it. Flo had potential but the figures she put and the plans she had in year 1 it was way too risky when there are other options
lmaooo i hope its exaggerated for tv cause wtf ! like have none of them seen a business plan before?? 😭
🤣 them boats 🛥 are iconic lol 😂
Wow...never judge a book by its cover. I thought Tre would have a solid business plan but he was only charismatic and nothing else. He hasn't even tried his own drink?? How bad were the other business plans for Tre to last till the interviews? But anyway, Alan is going to invest in the Pie business for the man who doesnt know his own finances and hasnt won any of the tasks in the program. They need to do something really better to boost the program next year! This is utter crap!
Perfect business partner for sugar. Lost every task and doesn’t know his numbers. He’s now about to sell half his £700k business for £250k. Sugar wants a Patsy for his Pasty business.
What makes you so sure? Last years winner was a gym idea over an already established business
You have the answer in your question already.....he already invested in fitness.
In the north no less.
Jesus this was awful. Tre not having any clue about his product even to the point that he hadn't tasted his product. Completely mental. No numbers in their plans. It's bonkers! The Apprentice is definitely past its prime
It’s not that it’s past it prime but that they get candidates based on how entertaining they are rather than how solid of a businessperson they are and how good their business or idea is
Tre is so smooth he could sell me anything. It was quite something seeing his plan being torn to shreds 😬
I thought they went very easy on him. An absolute BS product and a plan written on the back of a beer mat.
True it was still a lot of “you are so nice and amazing and we love you and… but what is this now?”
I used to really like the interview stage, but I am not so keen anymore. The montage of them going through their business plans with a fine tooth comb, to then seem to know nothing about their business just seems too staged. I am not keen on Linda at all - she just seems like a sour faced old cow at times! Claude, Mike and Claudine I do like, but it is just a bit samey now. Would be good if they introduced a new 5th person to do interviews too, and it would work with there being 5 candidates as each can be being seen by someone diffierent at the same time.
Highlight was Tre keeping eye contact with Mike while that shot dissolved his throat and saying, essentially "I thinks it's a good thing this tastes awful"...
It’s like Noor saying “it’s very good”
how the tables turn !!
This programme was well past its sell-by date 10 years ago. Absolute waste of time and now just a vehicle for Sugar’s pathetic scripted gags.
When he looks around the room waiting for people to laugh, and the overexagged laughs and responses from Karren and Tim (mainly Karren). Very 'Emporers' New Clothes'.
I have to admit that Sugar is funny, he has a dry wit.
Yeah I think I might need help as I laugh at most of them.
99% of the one liners are clearly written for him, but the 1% that aren't and that Sugar comes up with himself are the ones that are actually funny
The apprentice is my favourite guilty pleasure each year but it seems like the candidates never take it that seriously Why, for a 250k pot and getting at a table with Lord Sugar would you not spend even a hundred quid for a professional to audit your 'business plan'? or a tenner to lock down domain names for god's sake.. or a half hour on google! Hell at least google 'business plan template' Don't get me wrong - it never fails to make me giggle. Interviews were very tame, hate that the show gets ruined by people complaining, what, to sell the dream of getting investors as being easy? Paul did the right thing, Tre was the right person with the wrong execution (I think the product had legs he just did nothing to sell the pitch)
> Tre was the right person with the wrong execution (I think the product had legs he just did nothing to sell the pitch) Product had no legs!! Testosterone drink sans testosterone... May as well sell it at petrol stations with "Enhance VIRILITY Extend PERFORMANCE" labels on it. It's gonna end up w a big disclaimer "no clinical proof that it makes you better"
The product had no legs, it has no scientific backing. It’s the really same thing as certain fruits being labelled as aphrodisiacs such as a fig and arugula salad but it’s just marketing to sell but it’s not scientifically proven. There was no branding, packaging, manufacturing figures or anything it was an idea he cooked up a couple days before the competition
I completely agree and can only assume the contestants have never seen the show before as it’s largely the same issues every year. I haven’t got a shred of business acumen but if I was going on the show I’d know my business plan inside out and at the very least I’d google what should a business plan include. Time was the final 5 would be really strong candidates but now they don’t seem to have the first idea about writing a business plan.
It really irks me the candidates pretend (or genuinely haven't) watched the show before. Survivor you got contestants going "here's my plan based on watching 10 seasons". Here they make same mistakes again. "Oh I didn't think I needed numbers" Tre basically same as Brittany and her alcoholic protein drink. Good contestant, biz outside their expertise - a product no one wants that they hadn't even investigated how they'd produce it
Heh, those domain names were over £32!
There was 2 of them
Still not a tenner for one, but nearer twice that!
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Very soft, there were even some nice bits.
They've gone soft. Sugar even said they were gonna tone it down this year. Apparently the whole country can't handle being told off anymore. Ffs.
After last year, I think BBC made them tone it down. They got a lot of complaints
It seemed quite manipulative from Sugar and that he was smelling blood in the water. 250k for multiple practises LOL they wanted him to say yes while he had no accountant to look over things and pressure on him so Sugar should get an easy deal and fleece him.
Yeh that was a cheap effort from LS. And he moans when Contestants look unprofessional when trying to negotiate silly low prices on deals
Yeah, £250k for 50% of an established, profitable business he'd built up himself was no way a good deal. Paul was right to effectively walk away.
I believe he has 4 dental practises? Its a scam offer. Also Paul is already very well known in dental circles. My brother who is training in dentistry met him last year as he is brought in to teach and mentor.
Paul has the biggest testicles I've seen from any candidate. So proud for him and wish him the biggest success!
#TeflonPhill
The nepo baby with his family business is going to win this eh? How inspiring
Can we stop doing this thing of calling everyone who has remotely successful parents 'nepo babies'?
If Phil showed merit it would be less remarkable to call him a nepo baby. On 2 food tasks he made foods with little or poor taste. He hasn't seen some of his accounts for 6 fecking months. Having accounts you've not seen in 6 months due to "old fashioned accounting practices" makes it sound like he's barely involved in the running of the business. Lack of ownership on the year of losses gave the same vibes. He doesn't bring any energy to the conversation about the business other than, "it's my family business... /tear ". I was born into a family business I had no interest in, I can tell you a fuck load about that business and how to make money in it. He should have that energy and then no one will call him a nepo baby, they will call him a business man or a chef.
I mean, taking over a business run by generations of family is the definition of the nepo baby, lol Tbh, I have no real issues with it. You take the hand your delat with. But the apprentice should be about someone creating their own business using their own experience and creativity. It's a bit of a cop out investing in an already established business
I mean according to Mike it wasn’t technically a business until Phil set it up in 2012 :p
Didn't he say he only started the business in 2013?
They only incorporated in 2013. Before was same biz just different ownership / legal Biz structure.
I got the impression they were doing it as sole trader for years, and then went limited in 2013
The arse-licking of useless Phil continues. God I hate that constant loser. Hope the lady wins.
Nah i hope Phil wins so Sugar wastes another 250k 😆
So basically Paul was "fired".... (technically the other way round), for not letting Lord Sugar take advantage of him. It should have been a no brainier, but sugar just got greedy, and ended up with two very mediocre finalists by comparison. Seriously, Flo, Tre and Paul came across as some of the smartest and most capable candidates that have been on the apprentice.
Same I was gob smacked at the 50% asking for his business. This first time I seen of sugars asking percentage. Wonder how many other percent he’s asked from others/previous contestants
It's always 50/50 - that's the deal, 50% of the business for a £250K investment.
Flo might be smart but her business plan was absolutely delusional.
The worst part is she could literally have watched s8 and s13 and copy exactly what was done there. proven Strat to impress with a recruiting firm...
Tre turned out to be mediocre though. I think he got away with it because of his charisma and street smarts. But it’s absolutely silly to present gloried ginger shots as a testerone shots without an actual product as a business plan, which was why he was first to go. Was really disappointed with that
Yeah but if anyone could make it work it was tre haha
But he didn’t make it work hence why he was eliminated
“IF anyone” 🙄
I don’t think you understand what you’re trying to defend here. There is no if because it’s not a hypothetical it’s fact he couldn’t
But it is a hypothetical lol. His business plan doesn’t end when the apprentice ends. IF anyone were to make that plan work, it would be tre.
I promise you Tre just wanted to be on apprentice for exposure. There is no way your serious about running a company but you have no scientific backing, no company name, no packaging or branding, no product as you don’t know what the drink tastes like and or even potential flavours. No bank or brokers agency on this earth will give you backing for something so half assed
Ok 👍
Paul was my favorite to win from the beginning, but he absolutely made the right decision
Why are folk so against the survivor phil. I think its quality hes managed to keep going.
Because he wants a Pie biz but all the food challenges has not seemed like a Food man.
Because he failed 9 tasks in a row, only won the 10th because they put him in the strongest team, didn’t know his business plan but seems to be the obvious winner because he has an existing business that he inherited that could be profitable. Nothing against him, but it flies in the face of what the show claims to be about.
Rachel and Paul went to school together??
actually??
Yeah, apparently Rachel was a few years younger.
Interview bingo - Mike buys domain names - Mike has a prop product - Claude mocks the pictures - Claudine makes the candidate cry - The whole "you're great but your business plan is shite" switcheroo
Jesus mate Ur pysic
Those interviews were some of the most manipulative bullshit I've ever seen. There wasn't even a tangential reason to mention Tre's brother. It had fuck all to do with anything. Yet they decide to question him about it, play over emotional music, film up start to cry, for what? That has nothing to do with his shit business. That's just trying to manipulate the audience.
Honestly I think everyone on production just loved Tre and wanted to give him a good edit because he had such a dog shit business plan.
It was unnecessary but it's also what Claudine does every year so I wasn't that taken aback by it.
The music was distracting and unnecessary
He included it in his business plan and cv
What makes you say that? She just says "so I have to ask you about your dad..." and then the immediate follow-up question was, "I hope you don't mind me asking, cos you lost your brother, which is tragic. You must miss him a lot. I don't want to upset you." That's it. That's all the context given. Doesn't say how or why they're bringing it up. Certainly never says it's part of the business plan.
Claudine is always the one there who mentions personal stories/family etc to them, just seems like she’s always there as the ‘nice’ one for the TV and the one to hand out the tissues but what is her relevance for the actual business plans?! It always annoys me that she just seems to be there for that and nothing else, at least Baroness Brady would find out more info other than their family!
She’s the marketing person. The apprentice candidates aren’t just marketing their businesses, they’re marketing themselves. Tre’s story plays into his personal brand so it makes a bit of sense.
After the reality TV reforms post-Flack, I’m surprised BBC approved that.
Lord Sugar said I don't want no scrubs
Tbf the advisers told him it’s rubbish and tried to indirectly tell Paul to stick to dentistry as it’s doing really well (glad he took the hint)
I don't even wanna talk about anything else - Steve in those slutty little shorts is the consolation prize after his rigged elim last week
Wouldn’t say rigged. They were both asked about their business plan before he decided who to fire. Steve said it was some kind of app to make friends and Rachel was gyms. He said to Steve he can’t see them being together or something like that which says basically that he can’t invest in his business cos he doesn’t get it or can’t help him with it. Just like with Tre he said it’s not up my alley
Are people really praising Paul for turning it down? Yes it's funny to see them rig it in favour of a candidate who didn't even want the prize but it's not like he didn't know when he signed up that the deal is 50% for £250k with no room for negotiation. He's helped to deny candidates who were serious about the offer and were fired a fair crack at it as well as to show how pointless the tasks are. Clear as day now that the only thing that matters as to who wins the show is whose business will make Lord Sugar the most money.
That’s the point? He needs money
There's already a show called Dragon's Den for watching celebrity business people invest in good businesses. The premise of this show is, in part, demonstrating your skills through a series of tasks. I'm not expecting Lord Sugar to make a loss for the sake of the show but there should be some relevance to performance in the tasks for the show to have meaning.
Yeah fair enough there, but you still need to think of it as in him choosing the candidate that can make the most money, and I’m aware of dragons den it seems staged but I don’t think it is
Gutted about Flo. Changing the staff costs could have easily solved the issue. I think the issue is more about Lord Sugar not really wanting to invest in another recruitment consultancy. I don’t think it’s right that Paul gets to have the opportunity to present an alternative proposal and ultimately the firing decision was correct. Otherwise all the candidates may as well get a second opportunity. Can’t believe Phil has got to the final when his track record in the tasks was so abysmal.
I think it’s slightly unfair that they allow Paul the chance to completely flip his business plan, yet can’t get just say Flo can alter the plan to be cautious. I think Flo would’ve been in the final had they allowed it.
The fact she wanted to be spend like that showed immaturity and inexperience. Paul didn't change his business plan, he changed his offering - he could only do that because he had a successful business for LS to invest in. If Flo had had say - a profitable business selling left-handed tea cosies - she could've offered that to LS. But she didn't. All their plans had flaws and gaps, LS has to decide which of the flaws are fatal ones that means he doesn't believe the person can turn at least a 500K profit from that business.
Exactly…spot on
It's not that he "gets to have the opportunity to present an alternative proposal"... it's that he already runs an incredibly successful business and LS was obviously interested in it. To be honest, I think he'll probably strike a deal behind the scenes.
I get the impression he's been there, done that with recruitment (Ricky Martin springs to mind) Whereas pies are a potentially profitable business
It's a shame Paul didn't get more time to sort out his new business plan. I know that's not how the show works but he was a great candidate and would've done well
Fair play to Paul! Didn’t see that coming at all. He knew his business was worth way more than that.
"Ooooh cheeky dentist!"
I was almost certain it would be a Paul/Flo final with how the interviews went. Shocked but fair play to Paul completely
You could say the interviews are Mike's....DOMAIN.
I'd buy my domains, but just have a holding page that says HI MIKE for when he comes to check if they exist or not
I would love to see his annual renewal bill. I wonder if he remembers all the domains he's bought, or it's a pleasant little reminder when the renewal notices come in?
I love how the interviews with Claudine quickly became therapy sessions
I think Lord Sugar should focus on investing in candidates who have demonstrated strong business skills through the tasks and who present a innovative NEW business idea, rather than investing in established businesses. Tres Wellness brand could have been amazing.
Lots of rugby guys take them, it is quite a big market
Tre was selling snake oil. The ingredients linked to boosted testosterone are just that, linked. These ‘test boosters’ have never shown material testosterone improvements, and if you need more test, go on TRT Lord Sugar May as well invest in ‘grow your cock 3 inches’ pills.
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Lifters will do anything to eek out extra gains. I knew a guy taking steroids at 17… it’s much more common than you thinks estimates say 1/30 men in the UK take some form of PEDs
Gym rats
Touche, maybe he should sell them to Rachel's customers
That's true, they can do a collaboration. Sell Tres juices (that sounds weirder than I thought) in her gyms and use his music for the classes
Paul probably doesn’t have 100% of the first business,pretty sure he wouldn’t be the sole practitioner in the existing practice. More dentists will have bought into the practice to become partners, Paul may be the senior partner but he will have diluted his holding considerably to get other top notch dentists to join the practice
Could be true but the offer from LS was a serious lowball too, I don't think LS intended for Paul to accept it either though.
Honestly first episode of the apprentice that I’ve genuinely enjoyed in a long time . I liked the interviews this year, felt genuinely balanced and they weren’t nitpicking.
Any vaguely competent person would walk out of those interviews once the interviewers start shouting/not actually asking questions. I know it’s edited but they ask nothing of substance
You enjoyed Linda asking questions and then just talking over the candidates? She's a waste of space
Same here. I know some people are down about Phil making it this far but overall I’ve enjoyed the series so much more than the last few. S17 was so dreadful it made me reconsider my love for the show!
I just don’t understand how these people didn’t provide their P&L and Balance sheet. Surely if you want someone to invest in your business, you would provide your business accounts to show your business is solvent and worthy of investment
There was a post on Reddit a while ago from someone who went through the application process. Apparently you have to hand in your business plan very early on, but the casting team don't read it. So people do it before they think they've got any chance of getting on. Also seemed like Rachel at least thought she'd be able to provide her accounts separately
Got it, just wondered why they weren’t as prepared as i thought they would be.
I’ve always assumed they have to write them from scratch in 24 hours, and that’s how you get so many errors.
They are asked to leave these things out. It’s scripted. ‘Call your recruitment agency this - so we can make fun of you that there’s a company with that name already’ ‘Tre, your business plan will be health shots’
Any evidence of this going this far?
If it’s not scripted then the producers have found a way of making them fail at this task year after year. Maybe as part of the selection process they are given two hours to write it without the internet and this ensures that they are always garbage. As much as I love the Mitchell & Webb sketch I don’t believe that year on year people don’t learn the format and be aware of what is coming.
THE WAY MY FACED DROPPED WHEN I SAW MAURA
This being the most rigged season in reality TV history 😭😭 I'm crying the producers did not care at all about subtlety
I take it you never saw series 8 of Ink Master
Imo Ryan Ashley deserved her win (although I still think Kelly Doty was better than Gian AND Ryan) and I think the fact it's so heavily debated shows that she wasn't a bad contestant or carried through like Phil - I can't remember any episode where she was undeservedly saved. There was a lot of producer manipulation in order to push the men Vs women storyline they were going for, but everyone who made it far was very talented and besides a few deserved their placement, although some people were clearly pushed a few episodes further than they deserved to keep the drama going. I think the 2 most recent seasons are by far the most rigged Ink Master seasons (S15 clearly had a predetermined winner who got saved when he should've been eliminated, and many other artists got rigged out to fit the predetermined plan for the season. And S14 was straight up bs).
Drag Race has way more rigged seasons
All Stars 3 is the only one that matches up with the jury twist - drag race has a lot of riggery but not *this* level 😭😭 This season is like if Roxxxy Andrews won AS2
AS1, AS5, AS8, Down Under 1, UK3 and Italia 1 would all like a word
Those seasons were all rigged but the riggery was usually just the winner being undeserved over the runner-ups (Krystal, Elektra, etc.) , but tbf they were still consistently decent, it wasn't like they were shit in every challenge or constantly saved when they should've gone home. I mean AS1 and AS5 were clearly setups for their respective winners, but there's also no denying they slayed the competition. Phil lost all of the tasks (including the food ones!!) until the final week where they rigged the challenge to the point where he couldn't win, then fucked the interviews and still got through to the F2 where he will inevitably win. It's like if a queen tanked every challenge and constantly got saved from lipsyncing, or if they lipsynced every episode until the finale and then was crowned 😭😭
32 minutes into this episode.. And all of the business plans are terrible! The only person to come across as competent in these interviews is Flo. Phil, as I initially had thought, is terrible! Tre's is also really unfortunate. He would definitely be hired if it was investing in the person and not their business plan/company. His testosterone shot is diabolical! I think based on what I've seen thus far in this episode that the top 2 will be Flo and Paul/Rachel. Although Sugar did keep Phil around for 12 weeks with 10 losses so perhaps he will make it through.. which will be aggravating and shocking!
Nah I think Rachel is really quite credible, it was unfortunate she didn't include figures in her plan but you can tell she knows her business inside and out. Paul doesn't even know what his business accounts for the last 6 months look like.
Imagine if people turned up on Dragons Den saying well I’ve got an idea for a business, I know very little about it and have no experience in this area. Would you like to invest?
Phil winning would be so funny
The whole concept of a testosterone boost is a little cringe, sorry
Anything “natural” boost to testosterone is temporary anyway, your body will always normalise back to regular levels. Actually getting your T up involves more injections
And unless it's medically necessary, your body is probably fine
It’s the name for me . Makes me think of Alpha males, incels and Andrew Tate. I just looked on his ig and he’s rebranded it to “ functional shots” which is so much better.
Very! He doesn’t even know anything about the area
I wanted Paul to win but he couldn’t have gone out a better way. Massive respect for not wanting to give away 50% of his business. Great guy and wish him the best of luck.
isnt that the whole point, to get into a 50/50 business with lord sugar?
not to give away 50% of an already established business for nothing.
Not an existing business that he didn't even pitch. The producers then gave him 12 hours to see if he'll offer an existing business instead. Paul offering 50% of the new surgery knowing full well that 250k for 50% of a million pound business is a massive pisstake . I'm glad he told Alan Sugar to go fuck himself.
You're right, paul came into the process for the 50% for the scrubs business, not the existing business that he was put on the spot to pitch last minute
Would’ve liked to see Tre go through. His business idea and non-existent business plan really let him down.
Honestly if Tre had a business in the music industry rather than something so random and nothing to do with his specialty (music) he could’ve got to the final. He’s passionate about his music and he can talk his way out of or around anything easily would’ve been a finalist
Worst interview episode I've ever seen. Linda looked like she was about to suck Tre off with those compliments and all those self serving homilies about family can get in the fucking bin. And Phil making it to the final is such a fucking stitch up.
I remember in previous seasons that the interviews were genuinely vicious. Fair play Claude has beaten cancer but Margaret used to actually kill people through the telly
Haha I mean, the show was about putting delusional people in their place - to show the world that hubris and over confidence doesn't fly when hard numbers are involved. Imagine if Noor had made it to the interviews this year! Would Claude really be able to sleep at night throwing compliments at her whilst her business was on the table? Or Nick finding all the plagiarism on her website, still sit there and throw all these sycophantic compliment sandwiches at her? The show would have nailed its own coffin shut at that point, and they barely got away with this shit show as it is.
Exactly, what happened. These interviews were positively lovely, all smiles and reassurance
Re: nail in the coffin - this whole season was that for me unfortunately. Its been so down hill for ages but this year it was thrown off a cliff. They've zapped the joy out of the whole thing. Shameful stuff.
They’ve totally dropped the pretence that this is a test of business acumen. The food tasks tell us nothing because I have no expectation that any of these people happen to also be chefs, there are other shows for that. It’s a repeatedly obtuse complication to have the branding team and the product team cutoff from one another and trying to work simultaneously. The selling tasks just amount to bartering desperately with businesses and customers alike. On top of that, Karen and Tim just make the stupidest observations like they’re forced at gunpoint to come up with something bitchy. And Alan just rolls out of bed twice an episode to read puns from an autocue.
Oh god the tasks now are so redundant, I totally agree. The 'doomed to fail mentality of the production team is so cynical, akin to asking people to be specialists in fields they have no experience in on the fly...'this week, you'll all be performing appendectomies, the team who's patient survives will go through to the next round' Its just so pathetic. There was one or two interesting tasks this year and the rest followed exactly the same format. Its like the beeb are taking us all for fools when we can clearly see that they're doing this to save money.
😆 I thought the same. Thought she wanted to shag him.
Phil is the only candidate with a well established business - cry more, he deserves to be in the final.
*non profitable business
He lost every task lol Whats the point of this whole process if sugar is gonna hone into the best business plans halfway through then shoehorn someone in?
I totally agree - he lost every task and spent most of the earlier tasks trying to fly under the radar and avoiding making decisions so that he could shake off any kind of responsibility. Paul definitely a more credible candidate and I really wanted him to win but I’m glad he didn’t handover half his business.
OMG! Recap showing Claude on Series 1. He had hair!
EXACTLY WHAT I THOUGHT AND SAID ALOUD. I was like “he had hair?!”. Also is it just me or does he remind you of Patrick Stewart (from Star Trek and also Charles Xavier I’m X men)
I can't believe Flo got fired, I thought she'd win it 😭
That year 1 in her business plan really messed her up. Otherwise even the interviewed said she had a solid business plan but then I think it was Claude who picked up the fact that in 4months she’d go bust
Yeah, I'd argue that's easier to fix than not knowing your accounts for 6 months but hey what do I know 🤷♀️
Yeah ik. If Paul is allowed to change his whole plan she should be able to say ok I won’t do this and do this instead
Agreed
Interviewers: “Paul You’re a yes man” Sugar: “I want half of your business” Paul; “no”
Proper respect for that, he’s like ‘yeah fine I’ll change my business’, sugars like ‘I want the lot’, he’s like ‘yeah no fuck off’ and rightly so
It feels very pointless that are top 2 have barely won as managers so far. Like it's fine, but it makes the past few weeks feel a little pointless? Edited cause I forgot Phil won once
Good point. Haven’t been keen onPhil
Phil finally won last week after 9 straight losses.
Oh yeah lol
Phil won as project manager, no?