A Macclesfield entrepreneur is still aiming for success after just missing out on Lord Sugar’s big money investment.
Jade English was one of 18 contestants to put themselves forward to the test on the BBC TV show the Apprentice in a bid to become the tycoon’s next business partner.
Millions of people tuned in each week, to see how the former Beech Hall pupil coped with the battery of tests.
And despite reaching the final stages of the show, she received her marching order from Lord Sugar, after failing to lead her team to victory in a contest to make the most profit on fashion clothing.
She heard the infamous words ‘you’re fired’ on last Wednesday’s show, one week before the penultimate episode.
Since returning to her hometown, the 25-year-old has become something of a local celebrity, being stopped by supporters in the street.
She said: “Everybody has been really supportive and I couldn’t have had a better response from people. I would like to think that I have done them proud.
“It has been crazy. I am living in Macclesfield at the moment and I am loving it. It’s been a bit weird, with people coming up to me in the street and saying hello and asking how I am.”
She added: “I watched it when it went out on television and we never saw an episode before it went out, so there was a lot of anxiety on Wednesday nights.
“I didn’t even get to speak much to my parents, so when I called them, it was a shock.”
Jade says that she always had a lot of ambition and knew she wanted to go into business.
She started her first job when she was just 15, working as a waitress at Italian restaurant, Briscola, in Bollington.
She said: “I used to work there as a waitress and have always been pretty competitive. I always knew that I wanted to strive to be the best that I could. I also knew that I wanted to start up my own business - I wasn’t sure about what that would be but I knew I wanted to.”
But despite not winning the competition, Jade - who formerly worked as a PR and marketing manager - has plan to build a business around helping people finding careers they are better suited to.
She said: “It can be hard because you feel as though you have failed but I think that in business you have to fail a few times before you can really succeed.
“And right now I am trying to make the most of the opportunity and get my business idea moving.
“There aren’t many people out there talking about how people can have a more fulfilled life and it is something I am really passionate about.”
Looking back, she added: “It was one of the best experiences that I will ever go through and I have learned so much about myself and grown so much as a business person.”
