Marnie Swindells, 29, impressed Lord Sugar with her business plan for boxing gym Bronx Boxing Club back in 2023 – ultimately receiving the coveted £250k investment.
Since then, she has worked closely with the famed business tycoon – and has now shared some behind-the-scenes insight that may surprise some fans.
Ms Swindells, who lives in Camberwell, south London, said: “I think a lot of people who watch the show think, ‘How on earth did these people get on here?’
“But I’d like to dispel the myth that we’re all idiots. The show is really challenging and everyone on there is ambitious and hardworking.
“As for what would surprise people, I think people would be most shocked by how true to form the show is.
“What you see is what you get.
“A lot of people think there’s all this TV magic but our day actually plays out how it does on screen.
“You wake up at the crack of dawn. You have 20 minutes to get ready – which a lot of fans don’t believe but it’s true!
“And then you’re whisked out of the door and spend nearly the whole day doing your task.”
Ms Swindells said one thing that is different than on screen is the time in The Boardroom – because it is “even more tense” than it seems.
She said: “Being in The Boardroom was terrifying. I’d say that’s even more tense than it seems on screen.
“Everything can fall apart if you say the wrong thing. The stakes are just so high.
“Viewers also obviously only see 10 minutes or so – but they can last a couple hours.
“Although Lord Sugar never took long to decide who he was firing. He’s very decisive and he’s got a good gut instinct.
“He knows what he wants.”
Ms Swindells has met with Lord Sugar every month since winning the show – and says he cares more about young businesses than people might think.
She said: “Lord Sugar, like you see on TV, is direct and doesn’t mince his words. He cuts through a lot of the crap. But that isn’t to say he doesn’t care.
“I really feel that he is invested in my business – and I can tell he wants to see young businesses do well.
“I have a meeting with him monthly, I speak to his team nearly every day, and he’s even been to visit the gym twice – which he didn’t have to do.
“I can’t speak highly enough of the support I’ve received.”
Discussing the other business moguls on the series, Ms Swindells joked that Karen Brady and Tim Campbell play the roles of ‘fun parent’ and ‘strict parent’.
She said: “Karen Brady is a very hard woman to impress. She’s there for Lord Sugar and her whole mindset surrounds making sure he gets the most accurate version of what’s going on on the ground.
“She’s a huge inspiration to me, particularly in terms of what she’s done in football.
“I used to say, I want to be for boxing what she is to football. But it is daunting to be in the same room as her.
“Tim Campbell on the other hand I felt I could talk to more and build a rapport with.
“He was more the fun parent.
“I think that’s probably because he understands what it’s like to be in that situation.”
Ms Swindells described the moment Lord Sugar chose her to be his business partner as “one of the best” of her life – and says she is “so grateful” for the boost the investment has given her business.
She said: “When I found out I won, it really was in the moment – it all happens in real time.
“And when he pointed at me, I honestly was just speechless. It was indescribable.
“When you’ve worked so hard and then you feel that it’s paid off… It was one of the best moments of my life.”
Lord Sugar’s £250,000 investment enabled Ms Swindells to expand her boxing gym and take on a second floor – which hosts a sauna, weights gym, and a cafe.
She is also currently working on a campaign with Office Freedom.
She said: “Having Lord Sugar’s advice and the boost from the investment has meant we’ve been able to push the business in the direction we want to.
“That funding allowed us to expand into a second floor and has helped us to keep appealing to more customers and break down the idea that boxing is intimidating.
“Our business is fully profitable, we’ve been able to employ around 50 coaches, and the gym is growing every day.
“I hope in the future we can keep expanding and open more and more gyms.”
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As the nineteenth season of The Apprentice gets into full swing, Ms Swindells urged viewers to be mindful of what they say on social media.
She said: “The people who watch the show maybe don’t realise the impact of what they say.
“But it can be damaging. So I’d urge people to consider that.”
