The Apprentice UK - Week 4 - Aleksandra walks, Mukai fired

The Apprentice UK - Week 4 - Aleksandra walks, Mukai fired The Apprentice UK Week 4 Aleksandra walks, Mukai fired Image Source: BBCA RELATIVELY smooth task on The Apprentice UK this week at high end London department store Liberty was punctuated only by the drama of Aleksandra King unexpectedly announcing her departure to her teammates at the initial planning meeting for the personal shopping and retail sales assignment.resigned: Aleksandra King // Image Source: BBCIt was a decision that came as a shock to many. A sizeable Aleksandra following had been gathering on Twitter, and were enthusiastic about her chances for success. But as can be seen from this shot of Aleksandra and her mother following the 38-year-old’s appearance on aftershow  The Apprentice: You’re Fired,  Aleksandra is betraying no  signs of regret about her decision to leave.My mommy I at Youre Fired. Lots of questions about the dress. Its the classic wrap Diane Von Furstenberg @DVF pic.twitter.com/enyGkTVnjNâ€" Aleksandra King (@aleksandrabking) October 28, 2016Image Source: TwitterIn the end, Lord Sugar, whose crosshairs h ad hovered and paused over Mukai Noiri for two previous successive boardroom ‘final threes’, fired the man for  influencing his Nebula team leader Grainne McCoy and colleagues to  choose a product, handbags, that had too high a price point  to best their Titans rivals sales in scarves.fired: Mukai Noiri / Image Source: BBCThere was relatively little tension during the task, although the boardroom was a fraught process, with Grainne changing her mind twice before deciding to bring Mukai and Karthik Nagesan into the boardroom for the decisive final showdown with Lord Sugar  and his associates Claude Littner and Karren Brady.With just five candidates gone, 13 remaining, and only eight weeks left in this current season of The Apprentice UK, we can expect multiple firingsâ€"and possibly even voluntary departures like Aleksandra’sâ€"in the weeks ahead. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); The Task  â€˜Department Store’IMAGE SOURCE: BBCTHE Week 4 ‘Department Store ’ task began at Drapers’ Hall, where Lord Sugar told the teams they would each be taking over part of the world-famous department store, Liberty of London. They were to not only introduce, promote and sell a new product line, but also run a personal shopping service for some of London’s most discerning shoppers.In the end, the task  was won by team Titans, lead by Sofiane Khelfa, with total  personal shopping service and retail sales of £5,259.38â€"a figure  greatly boosted by the choice of scarves over bags, and the decision to alternate Jessica between the window display and the sales floor (she was by far the best seller of the two teams, according to Karren).IMAGE SOURCE: BBCHaving chosen designer bags  with higher price points Grainne’s team Nebula  completed the task with a combined total of £4,377.99. Nebula were in no way aided by their window display, which was certainly too abstract for Claude, who, in his latest series highlight, had an extended “I don’t get it!!!” moment to camera.Image Source:  youtubeStandout Characters (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Grainne McCoyImage Source: BBCALTHOUGH on the losing team, Grainne was a decisive, efficient leader. In the boardroom, she showed a tough streak suggestive of  someone who will make it to the final stages of The Apprentice UK. However, her strength was undercut by a deeply uncomfortable moment when she changed her mind twice about who she would bring into the boardroom. Nevertheless, she managed to deflect the blame for  the losing sales result onto the shoulders of Mukai (primarily) and Karthik (which seemed rather unfair on viewing, but business  is business).Karthik NagesanImage Source: BBCVIEWERS had a glimpse of a more mature Karthik than they had seen previously. Although out of his comfort zone on  the personal shopping team, he didn’t complain and won praise from Claude Littner for the way he was engaging with the assignment. However, Lord Sugar took not e of Grainne McCoy’s decision to take him off the sales floor due to his ‘loose cannon’ tendencies (an accusation Lord Sugar had levelled at Karthik in Week 2), and the business mogul’s parting shot was ominous, warning the 33-year-old IT consultants that he was “very much on my radar”. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); The Wisdom of Lord SugarTHIS was a quiet enough week for the veteran entrepreneur. Possibly the lack of acerbic Sugar wit in this edition stemmed from a task that, for the most part, was reasonably well executed by both teams. However, there were at least a couple of highlights that seemed spontaneous and not born of the scriptwriters’ pen.• “If you can’t hack it, you should get out. On the positive sideâ€"Ive saved meself a cab fare.” summing up the decision of Aleksandra to quit the process• “I’m used to dealing with fat cats, not flat cats…” to Sofiane on the Titans’ choice of cat scarves to sell during their r etail task• “You have spent four years in the retail industry, selling bras, for example. Did you give much support to this task?” quizzing Rebecca on her contribution to the team Nebula effortLooking Ahead to  Week  5 on The Apprentice UKON THE next edition of The Apprentice UK, the candidates are tasked with helping two entrepreneurs launch a  new cycling product, and getting the public to invest through crowdfunding. The teams must organise a PR stunt, create a campaign video, and secure orders for the product by pitching to a group of cycling retailers.As ever, AGENT  wishes it was next Thursday already!The Apprentice UK is broadcast Thursdays 9-10pm on BBC One, followed by The Apprentice: You’re Fired, hosted by Rhod Gilbert, on BBC Two, 10-10.30pm.