The Apprentice - Season 17 - Thread 2 - The Season With A lot of (Lip) Filler!

[RicciardoPerez]

Thread 2 :)

Looking forward to catching up on tonight's ep! What was it again? A children's cartoon?

Marnie might just clinch it.

I think it's for Marnie to win or lose. Rochelle is the safe fallback option if Marnie's business doesn't look investable next week, with a business that is working as is but without a lot of up side.

Do they have to write their business plan in the house? Otherwise I don't get why they wouldn't get someone to look it over.

Pity they won’t learn how to put a jacket on properly
would like Marnie to win

I would like Rochelle to win.

The businesses are all so samey, even across the different series, and rather stereotyped 'girlie' things. Cakes, sweets, beauty. At least the boxing was a bit different.

I’m for the boxing as Marnie is a bit different

He wasn't going to invest in Megan's dessert cafe idea - that was last years winner. I think a lot of these people apply to be on the show, throw together a quick business plan, thinking they won't get to the final surely, and hey, if they do, what great PR for their brand or business. Doesn't really matter if they win. They gain huge exposure; thousands and thousands of extra followers on Instagram etc, and their business (pick n mix, extensions, personalised PJs from last year) grows anyway.
And then if they are memorable contestants (like Dani for example, they might get a shot at Dancing on Ice, or Celebs go Dating or similar!

That's just what I said to my dh. Why haven't they asked anyone else to check them?

Dani did have a very kind personality, buoys others up

Megan mentioned her business plan being so short as she was snowed under at work so I don’t think the business plans are written once they’re in the process. I have no idea why they don’t have people look over them though. I do wonder if they might sometimes be told to put some errors in there just for the sake of TV.

Yes that makes sense as to why they're so slapdash!

And I thought Lord Sugar was extremely rude and dismissive of Victoria saying to her "Keep it as a hobby". It's not her hobby, it's her business! Even if it wasn't good enough to win his investment, it's still her job.

Marnie said she knew boxing inside out , yet she didn't cost out the wages of the boxer personal trainers. Very important part of the business.
However, she has the funding in place already and is clearly clued up about other things , so I think she'll do well and might even win
'Lord sugar rings '
If they get too many injuries they can always go and see the lady who runs the Botox clinics for a few treatments after wards ! Have a bit of a marry up there and a discount

I think this is it - they probably write them close to the start of the application process and don't bother putting loads of effort into writing dozens of well thought out pages when the document is highly unlikely to see the light of day anyway. Then by the time they have a realistic shot of getting to the interview round they're not allowed to change them.

Apparently none of the actual business people involved in the show get to see the candidates' plans at all until a week before the interview episode is filmed, which explains why so many totally dire ones get through. They only see their CVs, which include a few sentences summarising their proposed businesses.

If I had a boxing gym place I'd call it ' squares'
The boxing ring with a difference.

You could have multiple shaped rings….the better you get at boxing, the more sides to your ring……

Im disappointed by this episode. There’s normally a few corkers but there’s normally also a candidate who sticks out as a better option and tonight none of them did.

Really disappointed with Karen and Linda. At least Mike and Claude, while brutal, a break the plans down by facts and figures. Deep research and it doesn’t get personal.
Karren’s name comment was unnecessary and just plain snobby. Both made female business owners look bad, way too personal, way too far. I’m sure we didn’t hear the full interview but at least hear the candidate out. Linda barely stops talking enough for any candidate to speak. Just showed women up as being bitches to be frank. These two had to start somewhere once upon a time.

The premise is meant to be that these 5 are the best of the whole cohort. To be fair I was amazed Victoria got this far from the previous tasks. But there must have been some who could write a reasonable business plan...? I mean it creates more drama if they pick apart weak or inconsistent, inconceivable business plans and make people cry but then Lord Sugar has supposedly got to back one of them...? It doesn't really make sense.

I can't remember how it went at the interview stage in the original format when they were getting a job with Lord Sugar rather than pitching a business for him to invest in...?

It must just be for show if Marnie is correct. I’m sure the business plans and process for Sport England and other grants at that level are rigorous. Even if she didn’t write it herself or had help she could just have cut it to draft a really good plan for the Apprentice.

I remember former winner Ricky and his business plan being described by Claude as a masterpiece so people are capable of doing it
interesting to note the time on Alan sugars watch during the boardroom it seems to go on for hours

I think they would used to just pick apart their experience and their roles in the tasks etc.

Before the candidates had to have a business plan, the interviewers would pick holes in their CVs - in a forensic sort of way, so pulling apart any of the typical things people say such as 'I'm a team player' and honing in on any inconsistencies or exaggeration in the factual stuff.

One of the ideas from candidates this year was a conditioner for false eyelashes.
Another was a dessert business.
You wonder how they can make money.

Ive been following on this thread from the beginning but not commented till now. Ive always assumed the BBC deliberately choose a mix of candidates those who are capable and competent and have good business plans/sense and those who make good TV being entertaining with the idea that in the end the former prevail in the final. In the last few series it's become increasingly difficult to indentify the competant and capable. But in this series every single candidate appeared to be incompetent none really stood out a few e.g. Simba may have been marginally less incompetent than the others.
The way the women dressed was mind boggling I know we shouldn't be just looking at appearances but how can anyone be serious about anything if they are running around trying to prove they are credible business women wearing extraordinarily high healed shoes and the shortest skirts imaginable. When they pitch to "industry experts" or buyers e.g. the women on the Waitrose panel with the dog food who appeared to be dressed normally it was embarrassing. The business plans were the icing in the cake to all intense and purposes saying women cant do even the most basic math, spell, string a coherent sentence together or come up with a legitimate credible business idea. What message is this sending out?
I also seem to recall that in previous series the candidates were shown frantically brushing up and rewriting their business plans prior to the interview. The fact that Victoria who was clearly only there for her entertainment value was shown reading hers whilst half heartedly jogging on the treadmill sums up how seriously she was talking the whole thing.
I guess Lord Sugar is so wealthy that he can stand to loose £250K or maybe thats what the BBC pay him to do the show so it makes no difference to him who he backs.

I used to get a slight ghoulish satisfaction from watching the incompetent and arrogant fall by the way side and the competent (although still often arrogant) reaching the final/interviews. But this time I was left stunned that any of them were still in the process. From reading around on line the view that all the candidates were frankly bloody useless seems to be the general consent. I wonder if next year the BBC will change this if they don't I cant see the show lasting much longer because in the current format where candidates are clearly only there fro their entertainment value it is going to get very boring and loose credibility very quickly.