After 12 tough weeks, the final of The Apprentice arrived as the remaining two candidates went head-to-head in a battle to win Lord Alan Sugar’s investment.
Earlier this year, a whopping 20 candidates entered the infamous boardroom, all armed with stacked business plans and dreams of becoming his next business partner, as well as a £250,000 cash injection into their business.
But as the weeks went on, the candidates began to drop like flies until just two – Pascha Myhill and Karishma Vijay – remained in the running.
And after much deliberation in the boardroom, Karishma Vijay was crowned the winner of this year’s This Apprentice.
Tonight’s episode saw the finalists launch their business to a room full of industry experts and some legends from the last 20 years, including Margaret Mountford and Nick Hewer and three incredible past season winners, Dr Leah Totton, Ricky Martin and Dean Franklin.
They then returned to the boardroom one last time, as Lord Sugar, Karren Brady and Tim Campbell all deliberated and offered their thoughts on the finalists and their pitches before the hiring finger was pointed.
After hearing one last pitch from Pascha and Karishma as to why they thought they should become his business partner, Lord Sugar made his final decision, saying: “Ladies, here it is. Karishma, you know that I’ve been in this business before, it’s a very, very slippery pole to climb and I’ve done it before and I’ve made people into very, very significant business people, and I do like skincare.
“Pascha, I’ve got recruitment companies and I know the recruitment world but you say this market for care homes is quite buoyant and so, after deep consideration and listening to you and following you for 12 weeks, I’ve come to a conclusion – and the conclusion is that I’ll be investing in Karishma.”
Heading into the process, Karishma was seeking investment to elevate her current business – Kishkin – into a global obsession.
Speaking of how it felt to be hired, Karishma said: “I can’t believe it. I feel like I’m going to be calling Lord Sugar every other day, saying ‘what do I do now? I don’t know what I’m doing’. Because when I was doing it by myself, I was going at my own pace. Now, there’s a bit more pressure, because I have to really convince him that he made the right decision to have picked me. I feel like I will never get over this experience. Nothing in my life will ever compare. I just got engaged – so what?!”
In an exclusive interview with Radio Times, Karishma explained that the final boardroom moment was “so surreal”.
“Not to sound cliche, but for me, it was [in the] very first boardroom Lord Sugar told me to get to the point, and then a couple of boardrooms [later] Lord Sugar was like, trying to remember my name,” she said.
Karishma continued: “So I always used to think whatever it’s okay. And so to point to me and say those words and say my name and have a smile on his face and be so happy about his decision, he knows I’ll make him money! So I feel like we both, in that moment, connected, and he was like, yes.”
But taking the investment out of the conversation, Karishma believes she and Lord Sugar have “so much in common” in terms of background, their starting roots and where they are now.
“I know he’s been in the game longer than I’ve been alive, but I see a little part of me in him,” she told Radio Times. “I feel like we’re both just so real and we keep it very real in business… And I just feel so proud that he’s seen me in that moment. He’s seen my potential, he’s seen what I can do.
“He saw my personality come out as well in the final and he chose me, and I was so happy.”
The Apprentice is available to watch on catch-up on BBC iPlayer.
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