Lord Sugar and The Apprentice 2022 winner Harpreet Kaur have parted ways, 18 months after going into business.
After taking part in the BBC reality show, Harpreet secured a £250,000 investment from Lord Sugar for her dessert parlour business Oh So Yum!.
However, less than two years later, she has bought back the businessman’s shares in the company, and now controls the business with her sister Gurvinder.
A joint statement from Harpreet and Lord Sugar described the move as “a significant achievement in the journey of the Yorkshire-based entrepreneur”.
“With the purchase of Lord Sugar’s shares, Harpreet and her sister, Gurvinder Kaur, are now in full control of the business and its future direction,” the announcement revealed, describing the split as “amicable” and “mutually agreed”.
“Harpreet is an exceptionally bright and driven business woman,” Lord Sugar said. “I’ve enjoyed our time working together and whilst the time is right for us to now go our separate ways, I have no doubts she will continue to flourish.
“I look forward to seeing the Oh So Yum! brand go from strength to strength.”
Harpreet said she was “extremely grateful for the knowledge and support that Lord Sugar and his team of advisors” had provided her with, adding: “It has been invaluable in getting Oh So Yum! to the place where it is today, and I’m excited for the journey ahead.
“I could never have imagined what we would have achieved in such a short space of time, but this is just the beginning. Watch this space!”
It’s an exciting time for Harpreet, who recently announced her engagement to fellow Apprentice contestant Akshay Thakrar, who was the ninth candidate to be fired from the 2022 season.
Sharing the happy news on Instagram, Akshay posted a photo from his lavish proposal on a London rooftop, featuring sparklers, a floral display and a light-up sign which read “Will you marry me?”.
“Our journey began in the most unexpected way,” he wrote in the caption. “Now it’s time to begin our forever chapter. She said yes.”