Harpreet Kaur has revealed that she had to wait six months to find out she had won The Apprentrice.
The 30-year-old was crowned the winner of this year’s series after beating out runner-up Kathryn Burns to secure Lord Sugar’s £250,000 investment in her dessert parlour business Oh So Yum!
Speaking to The Sun, Harpreet told how the final two had to wait quite a while before they were called back to the boardroom to learn of their fate.
Anticipation: Harpreet Kaur has revealed that she had to wait six months to find out she had won The Apprentrice
She said: ‘I’m just ecstatic. I’m so happy. I’m proud of myself. I’ve worked really really hard to get to this point.
‘Since the age of 18 I’ve just been at it full time. I’ve never stopped, and I feel this is the moment I was waiting for.’
The West Yorkshire native was overcome with emotion after she won and described being in the boardroom for the final time as an ‘out of body experience’.
She said: ‘When the other candidates left and it was just me and Kathryn I got quite emotional. I could not believe I was there, and Lord Sugar decided I would be his business partner.’
Overjoyed: The 30-year-old was crowned the winner of this year’s series after beating out runner-up Kathryn Burns to secure Lord Sugar’s £250,000 investment in her dessert parlour business Oh So Yum!
Harpreet added she will always remember the moment that Lord Sugar chose her.
The businesswoman is hoping to use her winnings to upscale her business and she has already launched an online delivery service.
When she joined the show, Harpreet said her goal was to turn Oh So Yum! into a leading brand in the UK.
She said: ‘I’m definitely not in business to make friends, I’m here to make money, and I’m pretty sure Lord Sugar isn’t looking for a new mate.’
Pyjama business owner Kathryn insisted she was happy for Harpreet and said she deserved to win the show.
In the final boardroom before Lord Sugar made his decision, Karren Brady and Tim Campbell described Harpreet as ‘respected’ but questioned whether her business venture would be ‘scalable’.
Interview: Speaking to The Sun, Harpreet told how the final two had to wait quite a while before they were called back to the boardroom to learn of their fate
Tim, 44, said: ‘She’s been a really good candidate. Lots of the other people in the process really respect her, they followed her and she’s delivered several times.’
While Karren, 52, asked: ‘The question you have to ask yourself is, is it scalable? What is unique that turns her from her two stores, to the 100 stores that she has the ambition to be?’
Speaking about Harpreet’s opponent Kathryn, Karren said she considered herself an ‘expert’ when she was only just starting to build her business.
She added: ‘She thinks she’s an expert when she’s really just beginning to build her business – when you questioned the jungle trend, she wasn’t having it – the whole part of being your business partner is to take on board your advice.’
But Tim said: ‘If she listens, takes the wise words, this could be one.’
Finalist: Pyjama business owner Kathryn insisted she was happy for Harpreet and said she deserved to win the show
After a last impassioned pitch from each finalist, Lord Sugar made his much-anticipated final decision, bringing to an end a jam-packed series.
He said: ‘It is a very, very difficult situation for me…Harpreet I’m not sure whether this business is scalable or whether you are trying to do too much and that’s what I’m worried about at the moment.
‘Kathryn, I’m concerned on the longevity of it, and the popularity of it, it’s very hard, this is difficult for me…
‘A lot of the companies that I invest in are a start from scratch situation, basically what Kathryn is proposing, so ladies, I think that I’ve decided now… Harpreet, you’re going to be my business partner.’
Harpreet said: said: ‘I’m just ecstatic. I’m so happy. I’m proud of myself. I’ve worked really really hard to get to this point’
The ‘bossy’ ex-bank manager set to make Lord Sugar millions: How Apprentice 2022 winner Harpreet Kaur worked in her parents’ shop before juggling online degree with a full-time job
She’s bagged herself a £250,000 investment from Lord Sugar, having eclipsed 15 other hopefuls in the latest high-octane series of The Apprentice.
But despite Harpreet Kaur’s assertiveness, decisiveness, and winning record standing out from the rest of the candidates, she claims to have been a ‘quiet’ child who didn’t mind time alone.
Described by Karren Brady as ‘bossy’, the 30-year-old had her start working in her parents’ convenience shop before juggling an Open University degree with a full-time job in a bank.
Winner, winner! Harpreet Kaur started out in her parents’ convinience store before gaining an online degree while working as a bank manager
Believing she could be her own boss, Harpreet and her sister Gurvinder founded a dessert parlour, which she is convinced can be scaled up with the billionaire’s help.
Harpreet grew up in a ‘loud’ Punjabi family in Birmingham, before her parents and siblings upped sticks to Yorkshire where they ran the corner store.
She said in special BBC programme The Apprentice: The Final Four, ‘I had the shock of my life when I moved up from Birmingham. I completely felt out of my zone.
‘Everything was new to me and because I was so shy at the time I found it really difficult. Having to work in the shop behind the till speaking to lots of different people probably did me the world of good.
Impressive! Harpreet gained an an Open University degree and graduated with a first class
Big plans! Believing she could be her own boss, Harpreet and her sister Gurvinder founded a dessert parlour, which she is convinced can be scaled up with the billionaire’s help
‘I don’t think you could say I’m shy now. I’ve obviously come out of my shell.’
She had her first taste of work when she helped her mum Jasbir behind the counter and by the age of 18, she took on a full-time position at a high street bank while attending university.
Harpreet graduated with a first class degree and by the tender age of 22 she was managing the bank branch.
‘My parents were so proud to finally say, “My daughter is a bank manager.” It’s pretty much the moment all Indian parents wait for.’
Background: Harpreet grew up in a ‘loud’ Punjabi family in Birmingham, before her parents and siblings upped sticks to Yorkshire where they ran the corner store
Changes: She said in special BBC programme The Apprentice: The Final Four, ‘I had the shock of my life when I moved up from Birmingham. I completely felt out of my zone’ (pictured with her family)
Then one day, she decided to break away and start her own business.
She explained: ‘I was working so hard for somebody else but I knew I had the talent and the skill to be able to do it by myself and make some of my own money.’
Together with Gurvinder, Harpreet founded Barni’s dessert parlour. It started in a shopping centre and is now a standalone restaurant in Huddersfield.
During the programme, she explained she hoped to grow her business with six new stores with the help of Lord Sugar’s investment.
She said: ‘We’ve got these two cafes now, I’ve perfected the model, it can be scaled up. It works.’
Childhood: She had her first taste of work when she helped her mum Jasbir behind the counter and b y the age of 18, she took on a full-time position at a high street bank while attending university
She also revealed she hoped to diversify into the savoury snack market, which the advisors warned her against.
Harpreet’s go-getter attitude has shone through in The Apprentice. She has the joint best record in the process, including two wins as project manager.
Now she has her sights set on the future: ‘I feel I’ve got my business to a fantastic level but I’m want to scale up, I want to level up. I want the pressure.
‘I’m really confident Lord Sugar will see the opportunity in me and my business.’
Sister, sister! Harpreet opened her bakery business with her sister
Baroness Brady added: ‘Harpreet has been a solid candidate throughout this process but now, none of that matters, it’s all down to the business plan.’
However during the interviews, Harpreet’s relationship with her sister was questioned by Claude – who accused her of being a liar for saying she was the ‘founder and CEO of the business.
He said: ‘It’s not straight. You’re not the owner…You make light of it, but Lord Sugar could have a problem. He’s seen you and he hasn’t seen your sister. It sounds like one of you is superfluous.’
While speaking to Lord Sugar later in the programme, Claude said: ‘I was impressed with her, but who is leading the business?
‘But maybe the sister is the grafter? We don’t know. That would need to be examined.’
But later Harpreet said the relationship wouldn’t be a problem, saying: ‘If it’s a problem, she is prepared to step down.
‘I’ve already had that conversation with her on a personal level, it wouldn’t affect the business going forward.’
‘If you don’t want to invest in the business with the current structure, I’ve already had the conversation with her. You can invest in it 50 per cent and do it with myself.’
All smiles: However during the interviews, Harpreet’s relationship with her sister was questioned by Claude – who accused her of being a liar for saying she was the ‘founder and CEO of the business
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