Episode 3 The Apprentice: You're Fired

This is my boardroom. This is my money. The product sucks, you

screwed it up, who is a waste of space. You're Fired, You're Fired,

Good evening and welcome to The Apprentice You're Fired. As 14

candidates continued the fight for a �250k business partnership with

Lord Sugar, we'll be examining the ingredients needed to triumph in

tonight's task and meeting the one who failed to cut the mustard. This

week we also learn the flat out weirdest way to end a conversation.

The chutney makers woken. I am going to do that all week. I'm

not paying for this, the chutney maker has spoken. Joining us, we

have a potent mix to suit every taste, Reggae Reggae Sauce maker,

Levi Roots and most twisted lieutenants, Claude Littner and

Jenny Eclair. Welcome to You're Fired. Tonight's task of creating a

new condiment was a recipe for disaster for one candidate. I have

to use a instinctive gut feeling whether the candidate's going to

hack it. It is with regret, but I got to say to you, Micheal, You're

Fired. Thank you for the opportunity Lord Sugar.

Micheal, Micheal, Micheal, I would tend to describe this situation as

Micheal we hardly knew it. Because, you were the first two weeks you

were in the winning team, and the ust, the first time you're in the

team you're out. It was brief, mercurial trip through The

Apprentice for you, are you disappointed? Being fired, it is

disappointing, so yeah, I was disappointed to be fair. There's no

other way of answering that question. Did you think it was

going to be you? No to be honest, I thought it may be Ricky, due to the

manufacturing side of it. But, the reason it was me, I don't think I

fought my corner well enough in the boardroom. We're going to go

through all the issues. Who's the waste of space in this group?

blame would fall on Micheal. Do you think you are aout of depth No, all

we got to do is sell 80 bolt, so it should be plain sailing. You only

sold 53 units. I wouldn't want to take this for �1.95. He's made the

call. Micheal didn't pull his weight. I will lead the pitch in

this one. I feel left out, but as long as we sell, that's the main

thing. We're left with 23 bottles. What. I don't know what you were

doing. You solid rubbish figures, I'd be embarrassed. We solid

everything, wicked how did you do that.

APPLAUSE. Genuinely, very sweet thing to do. Good for you, we

thought it was really tough. But well done you. Very sweet. Was it a

tough, long day, traipseing with those bottles. Were people just not

doing it? It was the unit cost, the margins weren't in for trade prices.

Should you have gone for the �1.95. That was the first appointment of

the day. To go in there, and sell all your stock, at a low price, to

start off with, was in my eyes, we had so many more appointments to go

in, that's why I didn't sort of tend to sell them right off the

first start. It would have come back to us, why did you sell all

the products at a lower cost immediately. You were doomed from

the start. You solid God knows how many bottles of sauce. Where were

they going wrong? Marketing, I think, there wasn't enough

marketing, it has to be about the branding. Getting the spelling of

That's bad. We will probably return to that. Why there any pepper, it

is a tomato sauce. I think there's pepper and chilli. It does make it

look like a pasta sauce? You can put it in pasta. Wow, full of menu

ideas now aren't you! The branding is very important. And to have a

sweet pepper on the front, you're saying it's a hot pepper sauce, but

that's a sweet pepper, so you're sending the wrong messages to

people. You can sell nonsense to punters who don't know, but the

trade aren't going to fall? Micheal case, he can do that.

Jenny? It was Michael Copp, Micheal not much cop. You were best out of

it, I don't think you were enjoying yourself. I think you were lucky to

sell any of it. Sometimes, maybe, getting the taste right for a sauce

is quite important. Only for people who got tastebuds. Bellissimo with

one "L" well,.: Genius.

Claude Claude, you are a trouble shooter, how would you cut through

this? Everything was wrong, the Wolves wrong, the margins were

wrong, techniques of selling were wrong. I struggle to find anything

that you did right really, but, it wasn't just you, it was everybody

on the team. I was worried from the very first moment we saw you on the

boardroom. Back in week one, this was before the task. Is everything

clear? Yes. Lord Sugar. You're not nervous are you? Not at all.

you sure! I'm looking at you now, you've excellent pore control?

was genuinely coming down with the flu. And that's why I was quieter

in the first two weeks. I thought that, when I saw you, he looks

poorly. I'm so glad it was that. It is such a great excuse. That's, you

did, you looked poorly. What flu was it? Gastric flu.

I'm loving the noise off the audience. At the end of the day, it

is a massive opportunity and I didn't realise I was coming down

with something, I was wondering, why am I sweating so much, I wasn't

nefbous, but not that nervous, sweating-wise, and the next day I

realised, I thought not too well. First impression in this situation.

I thought he was playing the part of just trying to disappear in the

background. At first he didn't say much. I was wondering is on the

show or not. But then he came alive when he got fired. It is all about

timing. The sweats wasn't due to the sauce. Our first view of you,

is in the audition stage of it all. And you're very different character

at that stage. It was, we wouldn't describe you dynamic for what we

saw of you, but on the audition, you're firing on all sill linders.

The apprentice is me, when he sees me, it is like he won't be able to

take his eye off me, it will remind him of me at his sage. Me and Lord

Sugar have the same mind set. I make money, I've naturally got this

gut instinct and get up and go, and I'm the real McCoy. Which is great.

It is probably the cruel irony of the show that you went, my gut, my

gut instinct N my gut, and my gut saleman and it was the gut that let

you down when you finally got here. Tell us, you left school at 15, did

you go in the business you're in now? I done a little bit of work in

between, and started up my company. What company is it? We, sell and

design kitchen and bedroom furniture. Wow, bathrooms as well?

Not yet. I got this thing for bathrooms, it is like a riot shield,

and it stops the splashing. We can have a chat, we can bring it to

market. Claude, anything to be taken from this? You clearly are a

nice guy, but I didn't think you were tough enough. In order to be

with Lord Sugar or any business, you have to be tough and I didn't

get the sense you were walking the walk, you were talking the talk,

and I didn't get the feeling of toughness about you. I think you've

had a lucky escape, leaving the prose, because had you made it to

end and got with Lord Sugar you'd have soon found it unbarable.

I wasn't tough enough I agree. Under, being in this situation like

The Apprentice, is extremely intense. I didn't fight my corner

well enough. I should have been a lot more tougher. It might not have

been you. It was time for the one that got away. Ricky was in charge

of the factory and loved the challenge but nearly came a cropper

when it came to take stock. looks to me the production is all

screwed up, one batch gets messed up because there's not the correct

ingredients. Two times 20, tick, tick. Something wrong with it,

something is not right, something is missing. He said he ticked

everything off. It is mot pouring, unbelieveable. I sat there and my

heart dropped in my hands. failure of this task was absolutely

down to the factory, not enough was produced. You don't know pressure,

until his finger points you in the face. He proper had me for a minute.

I have to say to you, Micheal, It is my favourite piece of spin of

the week, which "I made as many as we solid. If I made more than that,

then they would have gone to waste, therefore I was some incredibly ESP

way knew exactly how many to make. When we screwed up that batch, that

was God telling us that we only needed so many bottles of stuff" he

can talk his way out of a corner. think so, and he overplayed his

hand to a great extent and almost came under the spotlight of Lord

Sugar, but fortunatelyly he ganged up on you and you were the fall buy.

The boys show off, don't they? During the process and when the

light shows on them it wasn't me they say. If they had made more,

they couldn't have solid them so expensively, am I right. The unit

cost is �1.17 a bolt. But that's ludicrous. It is, especially if

you're going for a trade part of the business. It was absolutely the

wrong thing to go for. The other thing was 65 pence, so they really

screwed up. Ricky,about,about, at one time he said "employ somebody

that makes people happen". You should have saids yeah makes sauce

map, that would be cool". Nobody told me you had to make as many as

possible, why do you need to be told that. No, we're selective here

in the Bellissimo co-operation, only a tiny although of them. Katie

led the boys' team, although Adam doesn't know how she got that in

her head. I'd like to put myself up for product manager. It is a lot to

take on. All right. We're behind you 100%. She's got a good team of

lads looking after her all the time. Are you OK Katie, do you need a

hand with anything. Do you need a hand with anything. No thank you.

Do you need me for anything, are you all right. Yeah, thank you.

Jenny if I can come directly to you on this question, how would you

have found Adam's may have your in this situation? I don't think he

would have lasted the day. I find him really offensive, actually,

because he is so unreconstructed. She asked for it as well, because

she said about men being manipulated, which made me

suspicious of her, I don't like women who can cause their youth and

beauty, because it won't last anyway, and it's really, it is

underestimating men, and treating them acid yots. That's dodgy and

weird, and his patronising, oh it was odd. Him taking credit for the

triumph and creation of the sauces. That misfired? The whole thing

misfired because his tone was wrong. I'm not sure what he contributed to

the exercise. He found the spoon. The missing spoon. So he sold well

when he wasn't going "hello darling, how are you, sha shopping heavy is

it." Your husband will appreciate if you cook him something with this.

How did you find him? Annoying, I don't think he contributeed mch to

this task. We can delay this no longer. We have to show you what

Lord Sugar and former colleagues had to say about you. Micheal, on

this particular task was put in charge of the subteam leader this

sales and hardly sold anything. is a nice guy, but this prose is

about winning, he is the weakest. He is dead weight, not contributed.

We forget he is around, no-one sees him, nobody hears much. He didn't

have the belief to make the big decisions. I believe Micheal was

out of his depth, looked to others to make decisions, not a person

that I could go into business with, and that regretfully why Micheal

had to go. You didn't win the show, but you're winning the character

battle well. Disappointed though I presume? I did actually go there to

be a business partner with Lord Sugar, it is a massive opportunity

T can open so many doors. I'm a down to earth guy, I say it how it

is, I don't put spins on things or anything like that. I'm not used to

that, so trying to get the political side of it. I run my

company, I tell people what to do, I'm the chaef, the rest of the

people are Indians. Now you're fighting with lots of other chiefs.

How many Indians do you have at the moment? Six teams of fiters and

sales teams. Not a bad little tribe you have for yourself there?

would want to see the hat I wear at work, it is all right with the

feathers in it. It is good. Levi, I'm not going to guess how much

your sauce company is worth. You're doing exceptionally well. It is a

hard market to break into it? There's a lot to be said from

branding. I don't think people are buying my sauce because of the

sauce. I really believe it is the strong branding it represents.

Have you tried, you tried other parts. We're a licensing company,

so we will have to look at licensee that wants, this merger with a

famous high street and chicken store, and which I think is

fantastic, that they're coming to us, because they want to be cool

because we are a cool brand. APPLAUSE. Thank you very much Lord

have Mersey. I got to say, I spent a lot of money in that chicken shop

over the years, now they're paying It is also, the decade of division

in the southern states of America, to see a federal general comeing to

a Jamaican man and doing business together there's something positive

about that. Let's take a moment to speak to Claude, the first time

you've been with us, it gives us a point to relive the penetrateing

encounters with former candidates. I'm Stewart Bags, the brand, what

are you talking about. You have no idea. Apology is no good. How did

it go? Good luck. You look like a quitter, you don't know where

you're going, or what you're doing. I will rip you to shreds. You are

not a big fish, you are not a big fish, you're not even a fish.

don't even want you, but do you have to be that mean? I think so,

yes. The fact of the matter is and increasingly, this is a significant

investment Lord Sugar's making and the economy is difficult, it is

hard to raise money, banks aren't lending so the opportunity of

somebody getting �250,000 is life- changing, business-changing and

therefore, if you want a quick result, a fast-track to get that

money, you got to go through some pain. So I think, when people meet

me or go through the process, all through the process, they're

learning and go through times they don't find comfortable. That's a

small price to pay for the prize at the end of the �250,000. What was

it like when you started working with Lord Sugar? Terrible. I, even

now, I'm institute tering my words. No the truth is that, if Lord Sugar

gives you a job to do, and you do it well, there's no fineer

opportunity. If you do it badly, then you are in big trouble. You've

got to be straight, honest with him, reliable, conscientious, he

forgives mistakes, but not going to forgive lying or cheating or

anything like that. That's not part of the agenda. Have you made any

mistakes? I permly have not. - personally have not Now to your

winning team. They didn't go with the first recipe. I tasteed the

product. And immediately goocked, - Googleed the nearest Accident and

Emergency hospital. To be in the same room, you would be in danger.

It is like burning, in temperature. Don't, you will blow your head off,

OK, I think we should taste this stuff. This is on a delightful

cracker there, if you could pass them down. We've seen this. This is

the actual pot and that's there, Bellissimo, we've handed out some

to our audience here. Hands up if you've had a taste there. Fantastic.

First up, let's try the Bellissimo which is the red sauce. Try that.

Now I haven't been given anything, Second one. This is the InFusion

pineapple chutney. Let me find a different finger which has the

You could go on a journey with that one, don't you. A long journey to

the toilet. New things emerging. You've a red and green in front of

you. This is Ready Steady Cook we're doing here. Hold up hireed if

if you want the chutney, and fired, which unfortunately is you, if you

like Micheal's team sauce. Oh, murmur, that is close, I'm going

for hireed. The chutney is just about the winner there.

But that's 51/ 49. Oh, like a mule kicking you in had the nuts.

has removed all the enamel from my teeth. We have 13 candidates left

in the race for investment. The only person that can tell us what

that is like, working with Lord Sugar, is Tom Pellereau. Hello Tom.

Let's take a look at our favourite moments of your time on the

apprentice. Do you think you have the ability to think in a different

And one of Tom's greatest moment which it turns out didn't go to

waste. Emergency biscuits. So something's gone wrong, and you

need an emergency biscuit. OK, lead balloon. See last year you became

Lord Sugar's business partner. What have you been up to since then?

I've been living The Apprentice. You came one a curveed nail file,

no I've put that in a range, and launched that in leading retailers.

There's an emergency file which is part of the range, which is for the

nail emergencies, which, I'd so many people contacted me about the

emergency biscuit and it seemed pertinent. And it's selling

incredibly well. Last week was the top selling beauty accessory for

the big retailers. It is a dream come through. I'm looking at these

candidates fighting for the opportunity, and it is really,

really worth trying to get. What have you learnt, obviously than the

financial assistance, what have you learnt? Very good question. I

learnt a lot from Claude over there, in terms of one, following through

on things. I kind of it tendency to come up with ideas but not

necessarily make those in a range. That's one thing certainly. Second,

belief in my ideas. So you saw that from the emergency

biscuit, a number of times where if I'd made my voice heard we would

have won. So that's very helpful for me personally as well.

Following through is a good thing, unless you've got ghast strck flu.

And what's next? This is the first part of the range. And I said on

the show I'd like to compete with Dyson one day, so maybe this will

be the Dyson of the beauty industry, this as the first thing. Thank you.

OK, returning to our friend Micheal. It is time for the vote. Levi, do

you think Lord Sugar was right to fire Micheal? Yes. You hid a lot.

And as an entrepreneur you have to be out there and state your case.

Hiding you cannot do in business. You were guilty and that's why Lord

Sugar fired you. It was the right decision, but I think there was

mitigating circumstances and being ill was a disaster for you. I think

that Katie's the one who got away with it in my view, and perhaps

Alan could have given you one more roll of the dice, to see if you

were as good as you make out. I personally think it was maybe

premature to get rid of you. OK, well turn to the audience. Hold

up the red card if you think he should be fired and green if you

think he should have been hireed. Again, very difficult. I have to

say it is probably 60/ 40 fired. But, well you voted. Turn around

now and complain. It's your vote. You won't be Lord Sugar's business

partner, but you won't leave empty hard r handed. If you find yourself

in the situation that your tummy is jipy, the one thing you would need

is a monogramed hanky that says Micheal, to dab at your brow. Thank

you very much. Thank you. Three weeks we had,

Micheal to collect your highlights. I'm very successful businessman.

I'm street-wise and business Saphy. I love making money.

So you were a genius. Yes. I aim high and achieve high. What about