Lord Alan Sugar and his first-ever The Apprentice business partner, Tom Pellereau, have officially ended their 14-year commercial relationship. Pellereau, who won the BBC show in 2011, has purchased Lord Sugar's 50 per cent stake in their joint venture, the beauty-tech company StylPro.
From TV Show to Business Empire
The partnership began when Tom Pellereau, then a 46-year-old inventor, impressed Lord Sugar and his aides, Baroness Karren Brady and Nick Hewer, on the 2011 series. His victory marked a pivotal change in the show's format, as he became the first winner to receive a £250,000 investment into his own business idea, rather than a salaried job within Lord Sugar's empire.
Together, they built StylPro into a successful brand specialising in electrical beauty technology, such as LED face masks. The products are now stocked across the UK, US, Europe, and Australia.
A Mutually Beneficial Split
Lord Sugar, 87, confirmed the amicable separation in a statement, praising Pellereau's journey from a "naïve inventor" to the head of "one of the UK's fastest-selling electrical beauty-tech brands." He stated, "Fourteen years after investing in Tom, I have agreed with Tom's decision to purchase back my shares and return sole ownership to him... It's now the right time to part ways."
In response, Tom Pellereau expressed profound gratitude for Lord Sugar's initial faith and ongoing mentorship. "I will always be so grateful for the investment Lord Sugar made, and the potential he saw in me and my inventions," he said, acknowledging that the billionaire's "time, knowledge and guidance have been invaluable."
Reflecting on a Landmark Apprentice Deal
This split closes a significant chapter in The Apprentice history. Pellereau was the trailblazer for the show's current investment model. Prior to 2011, winners were handed a £100,000-a-year job working for Lord Sugar.
The partnership wasn't without its challenges. Pellereau previously admitted they had "some ups and some downs," describing Lord Sugar as a "headmaster that just gives you a hard time." Despite this, the collaboration proved highly successful, establishing a durable business that now transitions to being a 100 per cent founder-owned company.
With StylPro now entirely under his control, Tom Pellereau and his team are poised to take the brand to its next phase of growth, marking the end of one of British reality TV's most notable business alliances.
