BBC’s The Apprentice is back for another year – bringing with it 18 new entrepreneurs gunning for a shot to impress Lord Sugar and secure a £250,000 investment in their business.
But who are this year’s candidates and what’s their career history? And what business strategies have led to their success? Keep reading to find out.
Amber-Rose Badrudin
Industry: Retail
Location: London
Amber-Rose started her business Oree Mart when she was just 22 years old. Starting as a convenience store and bubble tea shop, Amber-Rose made the decision to stop selling bubble tea in order to focus her efforts on the store.
However, her customers missed the bubble tea – so much so that she plans to launch Oree Tea, a separate bubble tea business.
You might think that running her own shop at the age of 25 would take up all of Amber-Rose’s time – but that doesn’t stop her having side hustles. Alongside her business, Amber-Rose is an influencer in her own right. At the time of writing (and before The Apprentice airs), she has over 700k followers on TikTok.
She also hosts her own business podcast, Tap Water, with friend and fellow business owner Sophia Hannah.
Her deep understanding of influencer marketing has also been beneficial to her business. The Instagram account for Oree Mart shows how to use the store’s ramen bar to make in-store meals.
This is a common practice in Japanese convenience stores but less so in the UK. Japanese videos showing this process often go viral, so Amber-Rose offering in-store meals in her store (and filming videos showing it) is a smart social media strategy.
Anisa Khan
Industry: Hospitality
Location: London
Anisa is the owner of Bombay Pizza – a pizza restaurant which stands out from the competition by offering Indian fusion pizzas. Currently a London based restaurant, Anisa hopes Lord Sugar’s investment will help make Bombay Pizza a nationally recognised brand.
Anisa hopes to achieve this by opening ‘dark kitchens’ in high demand areas. Dark kitchens are commercial kitchens that only offer food for delivery. These kitchens are often shared by multiple brands with the food cooked in the same kitchen by the same staff.
Dark kitchens (sometimes known as ghost or virtual kitchens) can be a low-cost way for restaurants to try new concepts or expand their existing reach.
Aoibheann Walsh
Industry: Beauty
Location: County Donegal
Aoibheann is the owner of G&G Hair & Beauty, as well as an award winning makeup artist. Six months after starting her business, Aiobheann won Best Business Startup 2015 and things have only gone up from there.
But Aoibheann’s goal for winning The Apprentice would be to create a patented utility belt for hairdressers, makeup artists, and costume designers. Having already identified a gap in the market for such a product, Aoibhenn has secured patents and developed prototypes ahead of her TV appearance.
“In my experience within the beauty and hair industry, I noticed a significant problem: the tools that artists typically wear are often not functional, ergonomic, or aesthetically appealing – nor was there any focus on hygiene. This realisation drove me to create a tool belt that is not only ergonomic but also enhances the entire creative process.”
Aoibheann
Carlo Brancati
Industry: Beauty
Location: Middlesbrough
Carlo, who has had two hair transplants himself, has used his personal experience to start a hair transplant consultancy business. He helps customers navigate the complicated, and often sensitive, process – matching them with trusted transplant surgeons who meet their needs.
With over 24k followers on TikTok, and some videos reaching over one million views, Carlo has an understanding of social media marketing as well as the hair transplant industry.
Chisola Chitambala
Industry: Service (virtual assistant)
Location: Essex
Chisola went from being a registered nurse to a project manager for large organisations, before starting her own virtual assistant business. The company covers everything from executive assistant work, operational support, personal assistant tasks, and business concierge services.
A competitor attempted to acquire Chisola’s company just six months in, but Chisola and her business partner declined the offer. She reveals: “Looking back, I am grateful we did, as it allowed us to stay true to our vision and ultimately build a business that is still thriving.”
Dean Franklin
Industry: Air conditioning
Location: Essex
Dean started his air conditioning business during the pandemic and it’s only grown from there. His company was the winner of Best Tradesperson of the Year Award for 2022-23 and now boasts a 9.9 score on Checkatrade.
But will this air conditioning expert be able to keep his cool in the boardroom? Dean thinks he will, revealing: “My aim while applying for this was to put myself in uncomfortable situations and to test myself on how I deal with the tasks at hand. I’m trying to become comfortable with being uncomfortable. To try new things and prove that things are possible if you just give them a go.”
Emma Rothwell
Industry: Retail
Location: Essex
Starting out as a lockdown side hustle from just £600, Emma’s now the owner of a successful online store. Born out of an idea when she was furloughed, Emma’s store sells a range of personalised mugs for gifting.
Emma’s next business goal is to allow customers to upload their own designs to her website, to create a ‘community of creators and consumers’.
Emma Street
Industry: Project management
Location: London
Currently working in tech, Emma’s goal for the future is to ‘redefine coffee culture for the next generation’. This will involve making takeaway coffee healthy.
Emma says her biggest challenge will be branding and creativity – so keep an eye out to see how analytical Emma fares with the show’s more creative challenges.
Frederick Afrifa
Industry: Motivational speaker
Location: Milton Keynes
Frederick’s motivational speaking sessions help clients overcome their fear of public speaking, which should come in handy on a TV show averaging millions of viewers.
Frederick’s specialties include corporate presenting, keynote speaking, and even coaching for TEDx talks. With a particular focus on overcoming anxiety when speaking, Frederick uses psychology to help his clients.
So far, he’s helped over 10,000 people with their public speaking. But will that make a difference when all that matters is impressing one person: Lord Sugar?
Dr. Jana Denzel
Industry: Dentistry
Location: London
Already a dentist to the stars, Jana hopes to take his dentistry business to the masses by branching out nationally. Jana also hopes to expand his business’s product range – they already offer teeth whitening products but more could be on the horizon with Lord Sugar’s investment.
Jana is also active on social media – a common theme among this year’s contestants.
Jonny Heaver
Industry: Tutoring
Location: Liverpool
Jonny started his tutoring business while still a student at university. This involved heading up a team of over 20 people – all while still studying for his own degree.
Jonny’s tutoring business currently employs over 25 tutors, covering everything from early years tutoring to UCAS applications. But he’s hoping to scale his business even further, ignoring the common trend of online tutors and creating regional teams with a personal service.
Jordan Dargan
Industry: Animation
Location: Dublin
At just 22, Jordan is The Apprentice’s youngest ever candidate. Running his own animation business, Jordan has already collaborated with a popular men’s jewellery brand – gaining over 3 million views on social media.
Currently running his business solo, Jordan hopes his time on the show will allow him to grow his business into a talented team.
Jordan’s work covers everything from CGI renders to mixed reality animations. Prior to starting his own business, he worked in marketing, accounts, and business development.
Keir Shave
Industry: Telemarketing
Location: Leeds
People become entrepreneurs for many reasons, but Keir’s was born out of necessity. After his previous employer went out of business overnight, Keir set up his own telemarketing business in just three days.
That was 18 months ago and the business now employs over 40 members of staff.
However, Keir’s goal for winning The Apprentice is a complementary business to his existing telemarketing one. He hopes to create an online tool to help sales staff on calls. Users will be able to use the chat bot-style tool to get prompts for their sales calls.
Liam Snellin
Industry: Fashion (workwear)
Location: Essex
Liam worked as an electrician for ten years – which is how he knew there was a gap in the market for stylish workwear. His hunch was right, going on to win Best UK Construction Workwear Brand in 2023.
His business plan involves developing his product portfolio and investing in marketing. With 7k followers on his business’s Instagram page before the show airs, maybe his fellow contestants can give him some tips on growing his reach?
Max England
Industry: Accounts
Location: Surrey
Former professional tennis player Max is hoping to capitalise on the fastest growing sport in the world: padel. Max is planning to open a chain of premium indoor padel centres for those looking for quality facilities and coaching.
With a background working with major brands in ecommerce, Max is hoping his experience both online and offline will help him ace his time in the boardroom.
And he’s already building a customer base on social media with his padel content:
Melica Moshiri
Industry: Tech
Location: West Sussex
It’s no secret that AI has made big changes in the business world, which is why Melica has built her recruitment career around it. With candidates across North America, the UK, and Europe – Melica is hoping to get investment and expand her business’s reach further.
Melica has even started her own podcast focusing on AI to share her knowledge further.
Melica also understands the importance of a business plan when looking for investment. When asked why she should win the investment, Melica said “My business is profitable, and costs are minimal. With Lord Sugar’s mentorship, we can only go up and multiply the investment in as little as a year.”
Mia Collins
Industry: Food
Location: London
A competitive bodybuilder, cyber security salesperson, and meal prep side hustler – Mia is a versatile entrepreneur.
Having dedicated her life to exercise and nutrition, she’s sharing her expertise with clients by starting a food prepping business. The business home delivers balanced meals to help people achieve their fitness goals.
And with our research showing that food-related businesses are some of the fastest growing small businesses, this could be a great investment opportunity for Lord Sugar.
Nadia Suliaman
Industry: Beauty
Location: London
Having left her day job one month before the pandemic, Nadia put all her savings into a luxury salon. Now with five locations across London, Nadia’s salon has grown significantly. And with highstreet stores closing at record rates, Forbici is defying the trend.
Now she’s hoping to launch a product range as well as evolving the salons to become a one-stop-shop for all things hair and beauty. She’s also looking to expand to an app where members can interact with hairdressers and barbers in a forum.
What to expect this season…
While this season of The Apprentice boats contestants from a range of industries, one common theme emerges: the power of social media. Contestants are either already well-versed in the benefits of TikTok and Instagram or have expressed interest in developing in this area.
Make sure to tune in to this series of The Apprentice on BBC One to see who becomes this year’s winner.
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- Small business ideas – best businesses to start yourself
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- How to start a business in 9 steps
- How does side hustle tax work?
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