Hundreds of budding entrepreneurs have battled it out to become Lord Sugar’s next business partner, many of whom have come from Kent.

Making history with an all-female semi-final and losing out over a paper skeleton, KentOnline speaks to two former candidates about what they did next ahead of the new series.

Stephanie Affleck appeared in the first-ever, all-female semi-final but had only had her business for a month before appearing on the BBC reality TV show.

“People think because you have been in TV you have been in business for years,” she added. "I started up my business as I got made redundant because of the pandemic.”

Stephanie previously worked as an events planner but had always had the idea to create an online store selling pre-loved designer wear for children.

The 30-year-old said: "I had this idea and knew if I did not do it then I never would.

"However, I needed money and had no idea how to raise it so I Googled how to get money for a business and The Apprentice came up.

"I knew there was a slim chance I would win but I knew if I could get near the end I could expose my idea.

“I do not think most people go on the show to win but to get as far as possible.”

Stephanie made it to the interview stage of the programme where candidates are quizzed on their business plans by Lord Sugar’s trusted advisors.

It was the first year that only four people made it through instead of five and the first ever all-female semi-final.

Stephanie was fired after her plan for her Swanley-based firm The Little Fashion House was picked apart and Lord Sugar said he did not “love” the pre-loved market.

However, without the tycoon’s investment the entrepreneur, from Chislehurst, near Bromley, said the show was the boost her business needed.

Stephanie said she went from cold-calling and emailing other business owners to being in the same rooms as them when the show aired.

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She added: "It gave me notoriety in the field I wanted to work in. I found so many people contacted me after.

“I would not have got the opportunities I have had without it.”

For those looking to start up a business, Stephanie’s advice is to know your market and become an expert in it, network early on in the process and work your costs out to see how realistic it is.

She added: “It is a long time until you can start paying yourself out of your profits but believe in your idea.”

Viewers will also remember Kings Hill’s Felipe Alviar-Baquero who was controversially fired over a paper skeleton during the 10th series.

He was famously kicked out of the boardroom in 2014 following a task which saw the candidates negotiate the best prices for different items – including an anatomical skeleton.

Desperate to spend as little as possible, Felipe brought a flatpack, paper model version which ultimately lost his team the task.

Lord Sugar told the Colombian-born candidate he tried to be “too much of a smart person” and was fired for the error in the ninth week.

However, Felipe told KentOnline he did not think he would even get that far.

The now 43-year-old said: “I never really expected to get on the show. It was a massive change and a completely different thing to be on.

“I thought it was one of the only shows to entice the new generation to build a business and have an impact so I thought why not apply?

“It was not about being on the TV, it was more to encourage young people to look at entrepreneurship.

“It was a one-off opportunity in my life.”

The lawyer owned the children’s soft play area Tiny Town, in Larkfield, which was forced to close in 2020 as it could not keep going amidst coronavirus restrictions.

At the time, the company said: "We have run all the numbers, multiplied and divided all possible ways and to run our centre with all the restrictions, provide a safe environment and be commercially viable, we have no other alternative but to close.

"Thank you to all the members who chose us as your second home and kept returning every single week, we loved seeing your children grow and the loyalty that you showed to us."

Tiny Town was created as a play space for disabled children and if he had won The Apprentice, Felipe intended to expand the firm across the country.

Despite the business’ collapse, the dad-of-three said he is still keen to encourage younger people to get involved in the industry.

He added: “It is about understanding how to create value and give back to society.”

This year’s series does not feature anyone from Kent but Lord Sugar, Baroness Karen Brady and Tim Campbell will be returning.

Series 18 kicks off by sending the candidates to the Scottish Highlands to put on high-end days out for corporate clients.

Watch The Apprentice on BBC One and BBC iPlayer from today (Thursday, February 1).