Linda Plant, one of Britain’s successful business leaders and a regular on BBC’s The Apprentice, shared her rags-to-riches story and business advice at a Prince’s Trust online event on 6 August 2020.
The event was the brainchild of Prince’s Trust volunteer and business mentor Hadi Ibrahim, who has volunteered with The Trust since 2019.
Hadi expressed his enthusiasm for Linda’s participation, stating: ‘‘I’m so pleased that Linda has agreed to take part in this event. Linda has incredible experience in the business world and has the ability to inspire young people who may be on the brink of starting their own business or looking to develop their existing business.”
The young entrepreneurs who attended were inspired by Linda’s business expertise while acquiring the confidence to grow or start a business. Known as ‘The Queen of Mean’ for her no-nonsense interviews on BBC The Apprentice’s final five candidates, Linda advised Lord Alan Sugar over 5 seasons. Today, Linda runs highly successful property development and interior design businesses and her Linda Plant Business Academy.
In her own words, Linda Plant commented: ”I am here to empower the next generation of business leaders. I’m passionate about entrepreneurship and believe that young people, whatever their background, can succeed with the right support and guidance. I’m really looking forward to sharing my experience and business knowledge with entrepreneurs across the country.”
The clip below captures the highlights of the event.
Young Entrepreneurs Competition
Off the back of this event, the Prince’s Trust ran a fantastic competition tailored for young entrepreneurs. The prize was one-to-one business mentoring from Linda Plant.
The Prince’s Trust business mentors managed the whole process, whittling down a shortlist of 13 applications to three, leaving the final decision to Linda Plant.
Hadi Ibrahim, reflecting on the experience, remarked: ”It was fantastic working alongside staff and other business mentors throughout the entire process. We, the Prince’s Trust judges, were impressed by Lauren’s business plan and passion for her work.”
Lauren runs Farrow Friends, an award-winning business supporting the older generation and those with dementia. Lauren said: “I couldn’t believe I’d won this opportunity to be mentored by Linda; it was a complete shock! Linda has so much business experience in so many different sectors.
Here’s the moment when we gave the lucky winner the great news!
We were grateful for the opportunity to be acknowledged by Just Entrepreneurs and Grantham Journal. If you or young people you know are interested in setting up a business, The Prince’s Trust Enterprise programme can help.
