Episode 1 Trade Your Way to the USA

The search is on for this year's best young traders.

For months, CBBC has scoured the country,

hunting for Britain's budding entrepreneurs.

They need to know how to buy, how to sell

and how to close the deal if they want to win the day.

Woo-hoo!

'From more than 2,000 budding young entrepreneurs,

'just 14 teams have made it through to the heats.

'Now they battle it out head-to-head in Trade Your Way To The USA.'

'Each team will be given £75 cash and a tough trading challenge.

'They must decide what to buy...'

-What is your biggest seller in the whole shop? MOUTHS:

-Yes.

Anything pretty, really, is going to sell.

'..negotiate the lowest price...'

-Six for 1.95.

-No.

'..and then sell, sell, sell.'

HORN BLARES

High-quality balloons, only a pound.

On sale here!

The best fudge ever!

'The team that makes the most money wins the challenge

'and a place on the all-important leaderboard.'

Get in.

'At the end of the heats, only the top four teams go on

'to fight it out for a place in the grand final...'

Aargh, my arm!

'..and the chance to be crowned this year's best young traders.'

Everything has been reduced. Just there at the red store.

I am Saira Khan and I run my own business.

Follow my top trading tips and, one day, you too could

trade your way to the USA.

Trade Your Way To The USA is back and it is bigger

and bolder than ever.

Today, some Britain's best young traders

will face the toughest challenge of their lives.

Time to meet the two teams

who are brave enough to take on today's task.

'It is Top Dogs versus Treble Clef Traders.

'Top Dogs are Jamie, Alexander and Archie from Edinburgh.

'This bunch of best mates know a thing or two about Moneypennies.'

AS SEAN CONNERY: The name's Dogs...

-ALL:

-Top Dogs. Licensed to sell.

'These smoothsters love making money. Archie does circus tricks...'

I have made money before by busking with my diabolo.

'..for cold, hard cash.'

I made over £300 for charity.

I trade because it gains me respect, responsibility

and I love making money.

To anyone who doubts my leadership skills, I'd like to see you try.

'Musical maestro Jamie is the leader of the pack.'

The reason I love trading is the satisfaction you get once you

have made a sale.

'They also have a sweet sideline in school snacks.'

-Top Dogs do the best deals in town. Come on.

-Thank you very much.

'These top-trading Top Dogs always mean business.'

Message to the opposition -

good luck. You're not staying long. TOGETHER: Yeah.

We are Treble Clef Traders.

Not just musicians.

Watch out, teams.

TOGETHER: We'll destroy our opposition.

'This Cumbrian girl group of Miri, sister Abi and best mate Lydia

'are all violin virtuosos.'

-We are just awesome.

-We are.

'Using their musical know-how to rake in the cash,

'team leader Miri oversees business operations.'

The most money I ever made busking on my violin is around £90.

I exchange my musical notes for five pound notes.

'Gymnastics champion Lydia leaps at any chance to trade.'

I jump at the opportunity to haggle for the best bargains.

'I have made money by selling all my old toys and books at auctions.'

I made £68.

'Youngest member Abi is the team's brains.'

I bring creative thinking and powers of persuasion,

which make the Treble Clef Traders left perfect combination.

'Top Dogs, you'd better watch out.

'These girls are planning to fiddle victory right out of your hands.'

ALL: We are Treble Clef Traders, a threat to you all.

Watch out, opponents, you are heading for a fall.

'So, Treble Clef Traders versus Top Dogs.'

But only one team can win today's challenge

and only they stand a chance of trading their way to the USA

and becoming Britain's best young traders.

'Today's business brains have arrived at the site of some

'of Scotland's fiercest fights.'

'They have no idea what their battle will be,

'but if they want to stand a chance of competing in our USA grand final,

'they know they need to win.'

Welcome to Caerlaverock Castle in Dumfries,

a monument to Scottish pride.

This weekend marks one of the most important

dates in the Scottish calendar,

celebrating the life of national hero and poet Robert Burns

and Dumfries hosts the country's largest Burns night event.

Your challenge is to sell them fudge.

Oh, yes.

You will get to choose which flavours you want to sell,

negotiate the lowest prices then sell, sell, sell.

The team that makes the most money wins the challenge.

Here's your trading fund. I have given each £75 to trade with.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Treble Clef Traders, Top Dogs, are you ready?

ALL: Yeah.

'The teams have £75 to secure their sweet success.

'What they choose today will decide if they win or lose tomorrow.

'The competition is on.'

Top Dogs, Treble Clef Traders, before you start buying,

you need to understand the product you're selling.

So I have brought you here to meet fudge experts

and brothers Giancarlo and Paolo.

Here are your notebooks.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

Remember to ask the right questions

because that will determine how far you go in this competition.

Are you ready?

-ALL: Yeah.

-Let's go.

'For over 60 years, Paolo and Giancarlo's family fudge business

'has been delighting customers.

'Started by their grandfathers, the sweet secrets of fudge

'and Scottish tablet have been handed down from father to son.

'If anyone can tell the teams how to turn soft treats into hard cash,

'it's them.'

-Wow.

-How are we going to choose from all these flavours?

-It looks amazing.

-All of it looks amazing. Yeah.

-It smells amazing.

That's so cool.

Guys, enough sniffing around. Follow me.

'In Scotland, fudge and Scottish tablet are big business.

'The teams have just 15 minutes to learn all they can about it.

'Including how it tastes.'

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-MOUTHS:

-Yum, yum.

So, what sells the best?

Well done for asking the most obvious question - what sells best?

That will help you to choose the right product.

Probably Highland Cream is quite a good choice.

Vanilla and butterscotch keep the Scottish kind of theme.

I hope they have all made a note of that - keep to the Scottish theme.

Theme is very important in this task.

What makes a customer happy and persuaded?

Obviously, letting the customer try the fudge

and a nice smile as well.

Finding out from your experts how they sell to customers is fantastic.

They sell to customers every day. Get their top tips.

How much would you recommend we sell our fudge for?

The most popular flavours, you want to do them at about £2.50.

Those that have a more acquired taste,

we only do them for £2 per bag.

I would suggest about 100% profit.

Well done, guys. You have got the buying price.

Now, the key is you should be thinking

how low can you go in your negotiation?

'With their questions answered,

'the teams now need to decide what flavours they want to buy.'

If I was doing this task,

I would think about where am I selling the product?

In this case, it's a Scottish festival so keep it simple.

Choose a few key flavours,

get the best bulk price to maximise your profits.

'So, what will the boys do?'

With the Burns theme, we are doing a Burns poem for every flavour.

So, strawberry is going to be My Love Is Like A Red, Red Rose.

We are pretty willing to, say,

do some singing or something like that so...

Oh. Give us a bit of a taste then.

TOGETHER: # For auld lang syne my dear

# For auld lang syne. #

That's exactly kind of thing that you will need to do tomorrow.

-Thanks for the singing. Enjoyed it. Good luck.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

'The boys have a secret Scottish weapon,

'perfect for a Burns night feast. How are the girls getting on?'

Treble Clef Traders, what is your strategy?

Well, we are going to buy in bulk

and get quite a lot of flavours so that when we get them

together, people will have the widest possible choice.

This is the most important part. You're going in to buy your product.

It is all done now to your negotiation skills.

-You two are sisters, aren't you?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Is that a strength or a weakness in this team?

-Strength.

-Why?

Cos it means that I can put her straight

and she can put me straight.

-You're OK being stuck in the middle?

-Yeah.

-Good luck.

-Thank you.

Thank you.

'Treble Clef Traders are planning to buy a few flavours in bulk.

'Top Dogs want a lot of flavours

'to tie in with their Scottish Burns theme.'

But it is down to who can negotiate the best prices for their fudge.

'This is the most important negotiation

'the teams have ever faced.

'To win the trading challenge, they must get the best deals now.

'First up, it's the girls.

'Paulo and Giancarlo have been in this business all their lives.

'Treble Clef Traders are up against two tough negotiators.'

First of all, we would like to buy 10 bags of Highland Cream, which

would be £25 but we wondered if you could do that for us for £18.

No.

£20 and call it a deal?

No. Can't do it for £20.

£22.50.

OK, we'll do it for £22.50.

Well done, girls. You have got some top-selling fudge there.

May we have...

Three bags of Rocky Roads, please,

which would be £7.50 and could you do that for us for £5?

Hold on a minute. The girls told me they were going to buy in bulk.

Three bags isn't bulk. 20 bags is bulk.

No, we couldn't do for £5.

I think more like 20 bags for 1.80.

Paolo is being so helpful here. He is saying,

"I will give you a better price if you buy 20 bags."

-Yeah, we will go with that.

-We'll go with that.

-Thank you.

Thank you very much.

'Going for 20 bags saved the girls £14.

'They have got £16.50 left to spend.'

Please could we buy five butter tablet packs,

which would be 12.50 but could we please have them for £7.50?

So, that's 1.50 a bag.

No, I couldn't do that for 1.50.

If we increased our quantity, would you be able to do that?

Can definitely bring it down if you increase the quantity.

For 1.50, we'd do 25 bags.

£1.50 each.

Miri, we've spent 58.50.

I know, I didn't...

It's this. You've got the wrong result.

'25 bags will cost them 37.50. They don't have enough money.'

So you have got 16.50 left.

MIRI: That was my mistake. Cos we have spent too much now.

Why don't we go back on number two?

-On the Rocky Road one.

-Yes, please.

We could give it to you for £2.30 a bag for 10.

Could you push that down to £22?

£22.

Yeah, OK, we'll do it for £22.

Thank you.

'Renegotiating the Rocky Road has cost the girls an extra 40p a bag.

'They will have to work hard tomorrow to make that money back

'but at least they have got a deal.'

60, 65, 70, 75.

Pleasure doing business with you.

'The girls got some great prices by buying in bulk

'but losing track of their spending cost them a fortune.

'Next up, it's Top Dogs.

'Can they hold their nerve against Paolo and Giancarlo?'

Before we start,

we'd just like to tell you how much we enjoy your fudge.

Boys, I am liking your style.

Complimenting the product - what a great start.

'Now they need to turn that into great deals.'

One bag of vanilla, a pound.

No, that's too low.

The more you order, the more we'll bring the price down so

if you go for 20 bags for 1.80.

We are only looking for five bags.

'The problem is the boys' strategy relies on buying

'small amounts of lots of different flavours

'so they won't get bulk buy discounts like the girls.'

-Seven bags.

-Seven bags of vanilla.

- For? - 1.80.

No. It's still too low.

-£2?

-£2 a bag, five bags, £10.

OK. Let's do that.

Jamie, you have got the skills to be a really good negotiator.

Keep it up.

Now, got traditional tablet.

If we bought them from you at 1.70

but eight bags.

No. No. 1.70, no.

You would have to come up with the quantity.

Nine bags.

1.70.

No, I'll do them for 1.80.

-I'm sorry, no.

-We can't do that.

Look, 1.75, nine bags.

'Jamie is negotiating hard but you must know when to stop.

'In business, losing a business relationship can cost you

'more than the pennies you save.'

No, I cannot come down that far.

OK, seven bags of triple chocolate, 1.92, please.

So, that's another 13.50.

-Yeah.

-OK.

-OK.

-How much do we have left?

-£1.

-We could give you a few bits of fudge.

-You could use as samples.

-Samples.

-That would be really good.

-If you throw in samples...

If you could throw in the samples for £1, that would be brilliant.

'Result. Giving out free tasters

'is a great way to get those customers to your stall.'

Thank you very much.

Well done. You have got your samples, which means you don't

have to give away your stock and eat into your profits.

70, 75.

-Thanks very much.

-Thank you.

-Thank you so much.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

'Top Dogs were tough negotiators

'and got great deals on seven flavours of fudge,

'including four bags of best-selling Highland Cream,

'five bags of vanilla and two bags of strawberry.

'They also got samples which should entice customers to their stall.

'Treble Clef Traders bought five flavours in bulk,

'including ten bags of best-selling Highland Cream

'and ten bags of Rocky Road but they didn't get any free samples.'

Tomorrow, for one team, it will be the sweet smell of success.

For the other, it will be a sour end to the day.

'Today, Top Dogs take on Treble Clef Traders.

'They are going head to head in the battle for our USA grand final.

'Each team wants to be in with the chance of becoming

'Britain's best young trader.

'But there is a massive problem.

'Storms overnight mean the river has burst its banks

'right where the teams should be selling.

'The Burns Night festival has been cancelled.'

'Instead, the teams will go head to head in Dumfries town centre.'

You have two hours to sell them your fudge.

The team that makes the most money today wins

and only they have a chance of trading their way to the USA.

-Are you ready?

-ALL: Yeah.

-Let's set up the stalls.

I think we should lower the prices then we can say, "Really cheap,"

and things like that.

OK, Archie, I want you to start with the signs, OK?

We need to get this. This is our theme of our stall.

'Business is all about adapting to the challenges.

'The teams need to stay focused to get those sales.'

We found an average of how much we bought the bags for

and then we are making a 100% profit on that.

'It is a simple strategy. They have averaged the cost of their fudge

'and are selling for around £4 a bag. What about the girls?'

£7 for the popular ones and then £6 for the less popular ones.

£7? Wow. Are you confident you're going to get that much money?

-Yes.

-Good luck.

'That is almost double what the boys are charging.

'It is a risky strategy. Time to find out if it will pay off.

'Let the fudge fight begin.'

-Teams, are you ready?

-ALL: Yeah.

-Three, two, one, start trading.

HORN BLARES

-May I commend the triple chocolate.

-Is that that one?

-That is.

And we have named this Address To A Toothache.

Delicious.

'Straight off, those samples are pulling in the punters.'

-Here is your change.

-Thank you and good luck.

-Thank you very much.

Archie, that has already paid off.

'The boys are working well as a team

'and have already scored £4 for their cashbox.'

I am absolutely loving it.

It is so much fun. In my opinion, we are doing extremely well.

'And the girls?'

GET YOUR FUDGE!

Nice one, Abi.

We are only here for one day, please may you buy some fudge?

-No, I don't like it.

-OK.

'At £7 a bag, they're struggling.'

I only have £5 to last me until Monday. I'm very sorry.

Abi and Miri take it in turns to go out and drum up business.

-Would you like to buy some fudge?

-How much is it?

She said, "That's a bit expensive," and then she said, "We'll leave it."

'The selling is well under way and lots of people have looked

'but no-one is buying.'

The customers are saying it is too much to have at £7.

You have had quite a few people interested in buying but then

when they have heard the price they have said, "No, no, no."

Sometimes you really have to change your strategy. What do you think?

Yeah, OK.

'There are times when you have to drop your prices.

'This is one of them.'

We can do one for £4 or two for £7.

-I'll take the tablet. I'll just take the one.

-OK so I'll put that away.

-We made a sale!

-We made a sale.

-How much?

-One.

-That's fine.

Where are some older people cos they have more money.

'Great work, girls. Not only have you made a sale

'but you have got a plan.

'Find the people with money. Always useful if you're hoping to sell.

'Both teams are going for it.'

Ladies and gentlemen!

Fudge! Come and get your fudge!

'It is such a horrible day, they can't afford to miss a single sale.'

I have got to hand it to both teams,

they're coping with this weather so well.

It's cold, it's wet, it's miserable, but they are still selling.

Lydia! We made another sale! £4, Rocky Road. I can do this.

I don't mind going out because I've got quite good people skills,

I think, so...

'While Miri is trying to focus on older people,

'Jamie has a different plan.'

I am hoping to target children, to be honest.

Although they might not have money, they will definitely want the sugar.

Buy your fudge!

-Sir, would you like some fudge?

-How much?

-How much is it?

-£4 for a bag.

-Sheesh.

-£4?

'Perhaps sticking to their original plan of a Scottish theme

'is a better idea.'

So, we are going on themes of Burns poems so triple chocolate is

-To A Toothache and tablet is Auld Lang Syne, traditional.

-Cool.

-Can I get some Rocky Road?

-Thank you very much. Take your pick.

Highland Cream.

Three girls bought different fudges and it was fantastic.

'Halfway through, the weather is getting worse.

'The boys are selling well but it's a different story with the girls.'

Would you like to buy some of our fudge? One day only.

-No thank you.

-OK.

'I think I know why.'

The thing about fudge - it is gorgeous when you eat it.

You might have to sacrifice one of your packets for samples.

We'll do that. OK, thank you very much.

Please could you do one bag of Highland Cream as tasters.

Mega small pieces. People are only allowed one.

I think this is a really good tactic because it is good quality

and they will realise that as soon as they have a tiny bit of a taster.

Free samples! The best fudge ever!

-Gie's a bag of the white stuff, please.

-Thank you.

-Can I please have that one?

-Yeah. Highland Cream.

'It's not long before the girls' samples are paying off.

'It is all still to play for.'

What do you reckon? Are they going to win?

'Each team is desperate to win

'and be in with a chance of trading their way to the USA.'

The weather is horrible but the fudge isn't.

It's cold, it's windy but don't let that dampen your desire to win.

OK, will we help them come to America? There you go.

Thank you, cheers.

'That is 100% profit. The boys are working brilliantly as a team.'

Tell them they're buying for Scotland.

-Be as polite as you can, OK?

-OK.

-You can do it.

'Organised and confident, the boys are a hit with the customers.'

I think our charm definitely works with our customers.

'There's only 10 minutes to go

'and now it is all about shifting the stock.

We will knock our prices down to £3, £3.50.

-How much are they?

-We can do it for £3.50 for you.

I'll give you £3.

-OK. Thank you so much.

-Thank you very much.

We have only made 50p profit now cos we bought them for £2.50.

-Any profit is better than no profit.

-Yeah, fair enough.

'I couldn't have put it better myself, Lydia.

'And with only minutes left, every sale will count.'

We need to go out and use this. They are getting there first.

I'll take handfuls. I am out running.

What is she doing with him?

Drop the price to 3.50. We want to clear all of it.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

-Hope you win.

'With just a few bags left, the race is on.'

Buy a packet of fudge and we will sing to you, ladies and gentlemen.

Buy a packet of fudge and a song.

Please don't buy it from them. They have been plaguing us all day.

-I will have the Rocky Road one.

-OK.

-For £3.

-Thank you.

-Deal.

-Thank you very, very much.

-No worries.

- Aargh. - Get in there.

'Miri may have beaten Jamie to the sale

'but the boys only have one bag left

'and they'll do anything to shift it.'

# We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet

# For the sake of auld lang syne. #

There's a wee bit of silver for you as well.

-Thank you so much.

-Thank you very much, sir. There you go.

'More great teamwork. Top Dogs are in true harmony.'

Yes! The boys have sold out against all the odds, against the weather.

Their determination has paid off. Well done.

-Thank you very much.

-You're welcome.

'But the boys aren't the only ones out of stock.'

-You have sold out?

-ALL: Yeah!

All right! High five. Well done. So proud of you. Excellent.

'With both teams sold out, there is only one thing left to do.'

-Treble Clef Traders, can I have your cash box?

-Here you are.

-COINS RATTLE

-Good luck.

-Thank you.

Boys, could I have your cash tin?

-COINS RATTLE

-Good luck.

-Thank you.

-We sold out! We sold out!

-THEY GIGGLE

'They gave it their all but only one team has triumphed.

'Is it Top Dogs or Treble Clef Traders

'who made the most money

'and are in with the chance of trading their way to the USA?'

I have been watching both teams very closely for the last two days

and I have to say you have done really well.

Especially because in this task the weather was against you.

Well done for sticking with it and you did sell out. Brilliant work.

Remember, over 2,000 top traders applied to be in your position

so you should be very proud of yourselves.

But only one team can win today's challenge

and only they stand a chance of going to the grand final

in the USA and becoming Britain's best young traders.

The cash has been counted.

Treble Clef Traders, you took...

£110.70.

Top Dogs, you took...

£147.50.

Congratulations, you are today's winners.

Well done. Well done.

-Thank you so much.

-Well done.

-Well done.

-Thank you so much.

-You guys did really well.

-Well done. You did really well.

-Well done.

-It has been really fun.

-Yeah.

-My heart is racing. I don't know how to explain it.

-Flustered.

-Flustered.

-I also feel bad for the other team, though

cos they were really nice, as well.

They wanted to win exactly as much as we did

and they put up a really good fight.

I am quite disappointed that we didn't win

but Top Dogs are a really good team, so maybe they will get to the final.

Guys, I am so proud of you.

You did so well in such trying circumstances. Excellent.

Fantastic teams. Thank you.

'The winner of each heat goes onto our leaderboard

'and only these teams stand a chance of getting to the final.

'So, winners of the first heat,

'Top Dogs, with £147.50 go in at the top.

'But will that be enough to keep them in the first place?

'Because only the four teams that make the most money go on to

'fight it out in our semifinals.'

In business, it is essential to have a plan and a strategy

but what is also essential is to be flexible when circumstances

change, and that is exactly what our winning team did today.

And it is a tip well worth remembering

if you want to trade your way to the USA.

'Next time on Trade Your Way To The USA,

'two more teams go head to head.'

-It has come out as 340.

-Have you got the answer?

Let's go!

Ah.

Bargain, bargain.

-Thank you very much.

-That's how I roll.

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