The Apprentice 2011

[Barton Keyes]

Another thing that doesn't make sense is that His Lordship states every week that he's not looking for another 'bloody salesperson', yet almost all the tasks depend on sales for success. Anyone would think this was an entertainment show rather than a serious project to promote entrepreneurship.

 

[thefab444]

Not sure who will win it - none still shine really. Looks like no interviews this year either

The final show will be interviews rather than the standard 1 vs 1 task with help from the fired candidates.

 

[valenta]

The final show will be interviews rather than the standard 1 vs 1 task with help from the fired candidates.

That's good news, always look forward to the interview week.

 

[thefab444]

Indeed, the final will be on Sunday 17th. I'm assuming Natasha is fired this week, can't imagine Lord Sugar allowing her to escape again!

 

[Barton Keyes]

Mitchell and Webb get it about right:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ss-59fi4nM

 

[Madge Wildfire]

 

[Barton Keyes]

They surpassed themselves for ignorance this week. Columbus discovered potatoes? Caraca's? William Drake?

"Welcome to my pie - have you ever eaten 100% British?"

It's euphemism gone mad.

 

[GB]

I'd like to eat Helens pie though

 

[Class172]

'Welcome to MyPy - have you ever eaten 100% British before?' - hmmm… Columbus… British… Not convinced! I feel compelled to brand that as an EPIC fail!

Also, when all the executives came in to MyPy with Sir Alan Sugar, one of the guys deliberately said yes to the question; I could tell this really annoyed Helen and she had to think of a new line very quickly. What an awkward costumer.

I have to say those cardboard boxes weren't best at all suited to what went into them - gravy; the nacho meal definitely did look like sick.

 

[Oswyntail]

My predictions: Suzie to win, possibly Tom (for an off-the wall experience). Helen to crack in the interviews, and Jim to humiliate himself further.

 

[Class172]

My predictions (or what I want):

4th: Suzie
3rd: Jim
2nd: Helen
1st: Tom

 

[christopher]

Havent seen this for last couple of weeks, So what happend to the rather lovely Zoe?

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Havent seen this for last couple of weeks, So what happend to the rather lovely Zoe?

She was fired in Week Nine - the biscuit task - for not being a hands-on PM. She got fired for not being at the biscuit-making plant, and telling them that what they made was fine, when she really thought it was rubbish.

 

[Class172]

She was fired in Week Nine - the biscuit task - for not being a hands-on PM. She got fired for not being at the biscuit-making plant, and telling them that what they made was fine, when she really thought it was rubbish.

I didn't like Zoe, she annoyed me and she had one of those monotonous voices.

 

[valenta]

Zoe also annoyed me. Agreeing with Oswyntail, I think either Suzie or Tom will win.

 

[WestCoast]

'Welcome to MyPy - have you ever eaten 100% British before?' - hmmm… Columbus… British… Not convinced! I feel compelled to brand that as an EPIC fail!

It was still miles better than the rubbish Mexican brand! Caracas, which is the capital of Venezuela....:roll:.

It was spelled Caraca's too. You don't use apostrophes like that in Spanish!

Terrible.

 

[Class172]

It was still miles better than the rubbish Mexican brand! Caracas, which is the capital of Venezuela....:roll:.

It was spelled Caraca's too. You don't use apostrophes like that in Spanish!

Terrible.

I thought that too, why on earth did they name it after the Venezuelan capital - none of them seem to have much knowledge of places and people abroad. The apostrophe was just annoying! :roll: :-x

 

[Barton Keyes]

If that deluded, patronising tosser Jim wins there'll be a riot. Suzie is brighter than she seems - not difficult, admittedly - and knows how to run a business.

 

[voyagerdude220]

As others have said before, I've seen the current lot of Apprentice candidates as far more bland than previous series. None them really shine to me, although I do like the creative mind of Tom, with all his inventions and creativity which I don't think others match.

 

[jrhilton]

Suzie is brighter than she seems - not difficult, admittedly - and knows how to run a business.

She has also had some experience in beauty products/pharmaceuticals. I am sure there was either a task on the Apprentice or an interview with Lord Sugar where he said he wished he had got into those markets with their margins (or am I not remembering correctly?). Maybe this could be a chance with her.

I'm interested to know what their business plans actually will be.

 

[TicketMan]

I thought that too, why on earth did they name it after the Venezuelan capital - none of them seem to have much knowledge of places and people abroad. The apostrophe was just annoying! :roll: :-x

Fair point - they do come across as a little dim when it comes to General Knowledge. However they are expected to run a business - not necessarily dazzle clients with general knowledge.
In real life much longer than 2 days would be spent branding a restaurant/takeaway - and of course they'd be able to look further than Yellow Pages for inspiration.
Personally I think branding wise Caracas was a good idea - let down by poor presentation and no figures. MyPy took a much simpler idea, and had the figures to back it up. Personally I think the branding was lukewarm, but it evidently did the job.

I must admit I thought their prices were on the cheap side, given the central London locations and what looked like large portions - especially the pies - I'm surprised they were selling meals to eat in for under a tenner... Or have prices come down since my last trek South?
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I'm interested to know what their business plans actually will be.

If you look carefully at the end of Wednesday's episode you catch a glimpse of Jim's business plan document. I swear the words 'ice' and 'eskimos' were there...

 

[WestCoast]

Fair point - they do come across as a little dim when it comes to General Knowledge.

Suzie's "do the French love their children?" seemed very dim in a previous episode. It was probably taken out of context though.

I must admit I thought their prices were on the cheap side, given the central London locations and what looked like large portions - especially the pies - I'm surprised they were selling meals to eat in for under a tenner...

I thought the prices were rather cheap, although of course, many businesses choose that level of pricing initially to build up a base of customers. Then raise the prices if that happens...

Or have prices come down since my last trek South?

No, not really, but there are branches of Home Bargains now, which does shock me a little...

 

[TicketMan]

Suzie's "do the French love their children?" seemed very dim in a previous episode. It was probably taken out of context though.

What she actually said was 'do the French care much for their children?' I sort of see what she meant, as in 'do the French lavish money on products for children?', but the way she said it made her look silly

I thought the prices were rather cheap, although of course, many businesses choose that level of pricing initially to build up a base of customers. Then raise the prices if that happens...

True, but the aim was to demonstrate a sustainable business, not build up a costomer base and bring in revenue - Jim's calculation of 60 people over two hours was probably realistic given serving times, but an average spend of £7 - that wouldn't cover the ground rent in Central London never mind anything else!

No, not really, but there are branches of Home Bargains now, which does shock me a little...

Home Bargains? Surely you jest
I won't accept falling prices in London until I see Poundland's flagship store open on Regent Street

 

[WestCoast]

I won't accept falling prices in London until I see Poundland's flagship store open on Regent Street

Well, at one time, people said Primark wouldn't open a store in Central London, but they did. Who knows...
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What she actually said was 'do the French care much for their children?' I sort of see what she meant, as in 'do the French lavish money on products for children?', but the way she said it made her look silly

Karen made her look even more silly in the boardroom over her various comments...

 

[Crossover]

I thought that too, why on earth did they name it after the Venezuelan capital - none of them seem to have much knowledge of places and people abroad. The apostrophe was just annoying! :roll: :-x

From what I understand they do only have limited resources so if their general knowledge isn't up to scratch (which, for that, I wouldn't have known) then they would never know.

They put a fair bit of emphasis on the "we are Caraca's" bit - pretty much summed it up though really!
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So, Tom has done it!
Doing it for all the geeks out there

When push came to shove, Jim's idea was useless and was very much tagging onto Lord Sugar's brand. Helen's proposal was extremely disappointing too and had she come up with number 2 (allegedly...anyone can suddenly change their mind in hindsight) idea as number 1, she could have got it.

Only a brief synopsis given the time but thought I'd be the first to post about the result :P

 

[Class172]

Tom wins!!!! My predictions at the top of the page were almost completely correct.

 

[me123]

Tom was a worthy winner, and his little story about Wal Mart seemed to seal the deal for him. Had Helen gone into the final round with a credible business plan for her bakery business from the outset (that sounds very similar to Greggs...), she could actually have walked away with it IMHO. She really shot herself int he foot with this bizarre life organiser thingamybob. I honestly don't see why I'd need someone to make a dental appointment for me for example.

 

[ralphchadkirk]

I'm really glad Tom won, I think he is the one that most deserved it.

 

[WestCoast]

Karen made an interesting point that Tom had only done well in the tasks with Helen as the organiser and facilitator. Maybe a partnership with three partners?

Tom was a worthy winner, and his little story about Wal Mart seemed to seal the deal for him. Had Helen gone into the final round with a credible business plan for her bakery business from the outset (that sounds very similar to Greggs...), she could actually have walked away with it IMHO. She really shot herself int he foot with this bizarre life organiser thingamybob. I honestly don't see why I'd need someone to make a dental appointment for me for example.

To me, Tom winning kind of says that you don't need to do well in the tasks to win. This, in my opinion, sends out a confusing message. What was the point of the tasks then in this format, if all his lordship wanted was a "product man" in his own words?

This is a criticism of the process rather than the winner, since Tom seems to be a great inventor and a genuinely nice guy, but I am not sure this year's format was suited to this, because it aimed to test a variety of skills in business. For Lord Sugar though, he was a clear choice because of his skills in product development and desire to see them through unlike many inventors.

If it was the job format, Helen would have got it 100%. Her first idea does appeal to a small amount of people, however companies already exist to do this. Her bakery business did sound a little like Greggs, however I'd have suggested it followed a continental concept of "self-service bakeries" selling fresh sandwiches, coffee, freshly baked breads and desserts, which I have yet to see in the UK. However, you'd have to differentiate clearly from supermarkets.

I had no idea what Jim's idea really was (e-learning) and loved to see him squirm in the interviews! As for Suzie, well, she fell down on her finances. She had an idea everyone could understand, but she was very naive to think the cosmetic giants wouldn't be protective over their market.

 

[Oswyntail]

The role of honour in task winning was interesting this year. Tom was often in the losing team but, like Suzy, was often the lone voice talking sense when others were gibbering. He simply needs to be a tad more assertive, or go into partnership with someone who is. Helen, on the other hand, was successful simply by playing down the middle - very little innovation or flexibility, She looked a good candidate but was emphatically not what was being looked for - a partner, not an employee