This week the task was to sell on a TV shopping channel. Yasmina Siadatan led one team constisting of Debra Barr and James Mcquillan and Howard Ebison led the other team consisting of Lorraine Tighe and Kate Walsh.
Each team had to choose products to sell and then present them. Yasmina's team went for fairly low priced products hoping to get volume. Yasmina shrewdly put Debra on her own to sell, saying that she felt she did best solo, while she herself paired with James in a double act.
Howard on the other team was preoccupied with Lorraine and how she would perform. Despite Lorraine feeding back that she thought he did well solo in the training session, he allowed Kate to go solo, while he paired with Lorraine. They had several high priced items in their portfolio, one of which, a chip fryer was a top seller.
In the event, Howard's team lost. In the boardroom this was blamed on his and Lorraine's poor selling skills, in particular they talked too much about the product and didn't give enough information on the price. However I felt this was down to lack of direction from Kate in the studio. She simply didn't bother to tell them that they only had x number of minutes left and what they should be emphasising. All the other contestants were great in the studio, providing cover for the person in front of the camera by prompting them when necessary.
However, neither Howard nor Lorraine brought up this point (perhaps because they feel awkward attacking Kate?). Howard got sacked for being too cautious.
Going forward, I feel that Kate, Yasmina and Debra stand a very good chance of winning the show. All the contestants seem to feel awkward about attacking both Kate and Yasmina (they clearly have the likeability factor and get on well in teams). Debra Barr might just win because she is a good sales person and Sir Alan likes her.
Wednesday, 27 May 2009
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
The Apprentice UK, series 5 episode 9
This week the task was to pick two products and sell them at a baby show. James McQuillan and Lorraine Tighe were team leaders, picked by Sir Alan because they were parents.
James had the bigger team and split them in two, with himself and Yasmina in one sub-team and Ben Clarke and Debra Barr in the other. James picked a birthing poll to sell, and Debra and Ben were adamant that a very expensive rocking horse would sell.
Lorraine's team consisted of Kate Walsh and Howard Ebison, both of whom were glad to work with her. Lorraine had been to one of the baby shows before and advised her team that people bought the stuff they came to buy, but also left with impulse buys. Her team picked a baby's buggy and a child's helmet to sell.
Lorraine took some time to get the hang of how to open and close the buggy, and her team also found that an independent retailer was selling the same pram at a cheaper rate. However, her team managed to sell both the buggy and the helmet.
James' team made good work selling the birthing pool especially as most expecting mothers don't go for home births. But they were let down by the rocking horse. At the very end it looked like Debra might make a sale, but the terms of their agreement with the manufacturer meant they couldn't offer discounts.
James lost and brought back Debra and Ben back into the boardroom. It was clear that the reason they lost was because they didn't negotiate any ability to discount at a show where the people expect discounts. James was also at fault for going for the birthing pool which was a niche market.
It was touch and go as to whom would get fired. In the end Sir Alan chose Ben Clarke, though it was clear he quite liked Ben.
The field has now narrowed considerably. Lorraine has been improving as the show went on, but it's also clear that Kate Walsh hasn't put a foot wrong apart from in the episode where she spent too much time flirting with Phil. I personally think Kate has a very good chance of getting to the final. The question is whom she will be up against.
James had the bigger team and split them in two, with himself and Yasmina in one sub-team and Ben Clarke and Debra Barr in the other. James picked a birthing poll to sell, and Debra and Ben were adamant that a very expensive rocking horse would sell.
Lorraine's team consisted of Kate Walsh and Howard Ebison, both of whom were glad to work with her. Lorraine had been to one of the baby shows before and advised her team that people bought the stuff they came to buy, but also left with impulse buys. Her team picked a baby's buggy and a child's helmet to sell.
Lorraine took some time to get the hang of how to open and close the buggy, and her team also found that an independent retailer was selling the same pram at a cheaper rate. However, her team managed to sell both the buggy and the helmet.
James' team made good work selling the birthing pool especially as most expecting mothers don't go for home births. But they were let down by the rocking horse. At the very end it looked like Debra might make a sale, but the terms of their agreement with the manufacturer meant they couldn't offer discounts.
James lost and brought back Debra and Ben back into the boardroom. It was clear that the reason they lost was because they didn't negotiate any ability to discount at a show where the people expect discounts. James was also at fault for going for the birthing pool which was a niche market.
It was touch and go as to whom would get fired. In the end Sir Alan chose Ben Clarke, though it was clear he quite liked Ben.
The field has now narrowed considerably. Lorraine has been improving as the show went on, but it's also clear that Kate Walsh hasn't put a foot wrong apart from in the episode where she spent too much time flirting with Phil. I personally think Kate has a very good chance of getting to the final. The question is whom she will be up against.
Wednesday, 13 May 2009
The Apprentice UK, series five, episode eight
The task this week was to re-brand Margate, the faded Kent seaside town. The teams were led by Debra Barr and Yasmina Siadatan.
Debra's team decided to go for a gay theme, reasoning that the gay community had more to spend, and set about obtaining photographs and producing posters and leaflets. Mona Lewis and James McQuillan were despatched to obtain photos and Howard Ebison and Debra Barr stayed back to produce the poster and leaflets.
Yasmina's team went for a family theme, to attract families to the resort. She sent Lorraine and Ben to get the photos, while she and Kate assembled the posters and leaflets.
The teams were assessed by branding experts, as well as Margate's town officials. The verdict was that though Debra's team had a great idea, the execution was poor and Yasmina's team won.
In the boardroom Debra turned on Mona for her "lack of creativity". Even though the problem on the task was the poor execution (which Yasmina and kate on the other team had nailed).
Sir Alan fired Mona for lack of creativity without even bothering to explore the poor execution problems and Debra's culpability. I have written before that I believed that Sir Alan didn't like Mona, and the reason she lasted this long was simply because she was competant enough to be in the winning team so often and wasn't in the boardroom.
I firmly believe this is how Sir Alan operates. He makes his decision very early on, based on his particular likes, and then at the first opportunity he gets when the person is in the boardroom, he fires them. Poor Mona was a victim of this. The wrong person got fired this week.
Debra's team decided to go for a gay theme, reasoning that the gay community had more to spend, and set about obtaining photographs and producing posters and leaflets. Mona Lewis and James McQuillan were despatched to obtain photos and Howard Ebison and Debra Barr stayed back to produce the poster and leaflets.
Yasmina's team went for a family theme, to attract families to the resort. She sent Lorraine and Ben to get the photos, while she and Kate assembled the posters and leaflets.
The teams were assessed by branding experts, as well as Margate's town officials. The verdict was that though Debra's team had a great idea, the execution was poor and Yasmina's team won.
In the boardroom Debra turned on Mona for her "lack of creativity". Even though the problem on the task was the poor execution (which Yasmina and kate on the other team had nailed).
Sir Alan fired Mona for lack of creativity without even bothering to explore the poor execution problems and Debra's culpability. I have written before that I believed that Sir Alan didn't like Mona, and the reason she lasted this long was simply because she was competant enough to be in the winning team so often and wasn't in the boardroom.
I firmly believe this is how Sir Alan operates. He makes his decision very early on, based on his particular likes, and then at the first opportunity he gets when the person is in the boardroom, he fires them. Poor Mona was a victim of this. The wrong person got fired this week.
Wednesday, 6 May 2009
The Apprentice UK, series five, episode seven
In each series of the Apprentice thus far, there is one episode that takes place "abroad" - in the past teams have gone to Marrakesh or France. Ben Clarke was feeling so hopeful he packed his flipflops and sunglasses. But they were sent "oop north" to Manchester and Liverpool instead (this is the recession series after all).
The task this week was to choose some products from budding investors and then sell them on to department stores and individual retailers in Manchester and Liverpool. Mona Lewis put herself up for team leader, as did Lorraine Tighe.
From the start Mona was organised. Her team chose products they knew the two department stores Sir Alan had lined up for them wouldn't buy, but she gambled that they would be easy to shift to the small retailers. She then hit the phones lining up appointments for the next day while Debra and Howard did the pitches to the big retailers.
Lorraine's team was more haphazard. She didn't exert proper control over them. Her sub-team which consisted of Ben, Philip and Kate Walsh goofed off most of the time (apart from Ben landing a big appontment for Lorraine), and it was clear that Philip and Kate were having such a good time they weren't going to make any sales at all.
The result was a foregone conclusion. Mona's team had all made sales, and she herself out-did them all. But in Lorraine's team, three of the five came back with empty order books.
Lorraine brought back Philip and Kate into the boardroom. It was obvious that Kate would survive, she had done well in previous weeks and she was shrewd enough to make a few critcisms of Philip as well as Lorraine. Philip though was like a love-sick puppy who couldn't criticise Kate if his life depended on it. Which meant attacking Lorraine who was in a stronger position because she sold more than him and had been proved right over his judgement for the previous two episodes. She also played the "Kate and Philip" card letting Sir Alan know that they were in a relationship (and Sir Alan dislikes "funny business" as he puts it).
Philip Taylor got sacked. Sir Alan was getting tired of him, and he might have wanted to break up the Kate and Philip thing and Philip was the weaker of the pair.
In this episode, Howard Ebison once again gets away with doing not very much. Mona's hand is strengthened by the way she sold, and Lorraine's card is marked.
The task this week was to choose some products from budding investors and then sell them on to department stores and individual retailers in Manchester and Liverpool. Mona Lewis put herself up for team leader, as did Lorraine Tighe.
From the start Mona was organised. Her team chose products they knew the two department stores Sir Alan had lined up for them wouldn't buy, but she gambled that they would be easy to shift to the small retailers. She then hit the phones lining up appointments for the next day while Debra and Howard did the pitches to the big retailers.
Lorraine's team was more haphazard. She didn't exert proper control over them. Her sub-team which consisted of Ben, Philip and Kate Walsh goofed off most of the time (apart from Ben landing a big appontment for Lorraine), and it was clear that Philip and Kate were having such a good time they weren't going to make any sales at all.
The result was a foregone conclusion. Mona's team had all made sales, and she herself out-did them all. But in Lorraine's team, three of the five came back with empty order books.
Lorraine brought back Philip and Kate into the boardroom. It was obvious that Kate would survive, she had done well in previous weeks and she was shrewd enough to make a few critcisms of Philip as well as Lorraine. Philip though was like a love-sick puppy who couldn't criticise Kate if his life depended on it. Which meant attacking Lorraine who was in a stronger position because she sold more than him and had been proved right over his judgement for the previous two episodes. She also played the "Kate and Philip" card letting Sir Alan know that they were in a relationship (and Sir Alan dislikes "funny business" as he puts it).
Philip Taylor got sacked. Sir Alan was getting tired of him, and he might have wanted to break up the Kate and Philip thing and Philip was the weaker of the pair.
In this episode, Howard Ebison once again gets away with doing not very much. Mona's hand is strengthened by the way she sold, and Lorraine's card is marked.
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