TV Extra – Alan Sugar interview

Flipside caught up with tough-talking tycoon Sir Alan Sugar, who gave us some valuable tips on becoming an entrepreneur, the lowdown on this year’s Apprentice and his hopes of making a teenage version of the show.

What's your feeling on this year's crop of apprentices?
The problem is you've got to make sure they're there for the right reason. There are some people who come into this contest who seriously believe that’s what they want to do, and then they see themselves on the big screen, they get approached on the street, and approached for autographs and they think they're a movie star or something. It gets to them and I can't prevent it – the only thing I can do is be good at recognising it - especially when it’s down to the eleventh hour.

Were you disappointed that last year, Katie Hopkins became more well-known than the winner?
You get people that slip through the net and are after a media career. The fact of the matter is that within a week or so newspapers paid her the amount of money it would've taken a year to earn with me. Now no-one will touch her with a barge pole. So she has had her moment of glory. I keep telling the apprentices this; just look at all those that get offered TV contracts and think they’re the new Catherine Zeta-Jones. They all end up doing nothing. That's why I say to them at the start: ‘If you're here for wrong reason stick your hand up and clear off!.

What effect has The Apprentice had on the business community in The UK?
The thing is it’s certainly created an awareness of enterprise in young people which is quite satisfying to me. A large part of the audience is children aged about 12-15 and it’s woken them up to the facts about some of the very simple basic rules of business.
What never fails to annoy me is that people just don’t seem to do the simple things. There’s a wave of so–called entrepreneurs out there that feel they can come into business at this level. They feel that they’re Richard Branson. He didn’t just wake up one morning and start an airline. He was like me, he worked out of a shop somewhere and he built an empire. He learnt from things going wrong and things going right, and from basic things like; if you buy a lobster for £5 you don’t sell it for £5.

How do you compare yourself to Donald Trump?
Haircut-wise you mean? Actually I'm not going to answer that question.

What would you tell young kids to help them achieve their dream?
It’s what I said earlier - get this out of your head: you’re not going to spring out of bed one morning and own an airline. You’re going to have to learn basic skills, like converting pounds to kilos. To work out if something costs you a pound, you’re going to have to sell it for more than a pound. Simple basics, that's the only way you're going to succeed. Work hard and that's it.

Is firing a decision made on who makes good TV?
The programme’s a success because the BBC gives me a free reign. Because I’m not told what to do. I'm not an actor. It’s based on thoughts and feedback given to me from Nick and Margaret.
 
How do you deal with the increased recognition from the public?
It’s much better than it was when I was the chairman of a football club! The vocabulary of the people shouting at me has gone up tremendously. It’s completely different  to what I experienced in the days of football.

What are your top tips to get promotion?
You get promotion and admiration from results. As simple as that. Nothing else. Do what you're told to do. Do it well, do it efficiently and you will be noticed. as simple as that.

How many series have you signed up for?
The viewing figures and the BBC will decide on whether it’s past it’s sell-by-date or not. Whether I'm doing it forever I don't know. It is a format and maybe there are some aspiring young Sugars who swear better than me and have better hair than me. I don’t know. I’m in positive discussions about a fifth series but that’s based on if it’s success and whether viewing figures warrant that decision.

Would you be interested in making a show for the BBC aimed at teenagers?
I put the idea forward and no one took any notice. I believe it would be an absolute blockbuster if you had a programme running in the six to seven o’clock timeslot where you’ve got 12- 15 year-olds. God knows what they'd call me for firing an 11 year-old though! You’d have to do it where the winning team fights for who’s going to win rather than the team that’s lost. That age group would be glued to their screen.