The Apprentice 2026 candidates net worth spans a wide range, from candidates with established businesses generating six-figure revenues to those pitching early-stage ideas that exist largely on paper. Series 20, which premiered on BBC One on 29 January 2026 and concluded on 16 April, featured 20 candidates, the largest cohort since series ten in 2014. Karishma Vijay, a beauty brand owner from Surrey, won Lord Sugar’s £250,000 investment for her skincare brand Kishkin. Runner-up was Pascha Myhill, a 22-year-old recruitment consultant from Berkshire, in an all-female final that closed out a series notable as much for its triple firing in episode six as for the quality of business plans that survived to the end.
The Series 20 Candidates: Businesses, Backgrounds, and Wealth
Karishma Vijay, 28, from Ashford, Surrey, won the series with her beauty brand Kishkin, a skincare company she had built before appearing on the show. She is the first female in her family’s long line of business owners and has described supporting her family financially since she began earning. Coming to the show with an existing, revenue-generating business rather than a concept gave her a structural advantage in the final: Lord Sugar was being asked to back a going concern rather than a new venture, and his track record suggests he prefers the former. She secured a 50/50 partnership with Sugar and up to £250,000 in investment. Her net worth before the show is not publicly stated, but running an established skincare brand with genuine market traction implies a meaningful personal financial position for someone at 28.
Pascha Myhill, 22, from Reading, Berkshire, was the youngest candidate in the series and a recruitment consultant seeking investment to launch a private healthcare recruitment company serving care homes, supported living providers, domiciliary care and nurseries. Healthcare recruitment is a high-demand sector, and at 22 with the skills to reach the final of a national business competition, her earning trajectory is clearly upward regardless of whether Sugar’s investment materialises. She has an English father and an Indian mother and described the experience of filming as “one of the wildest things” she had done. As runner-up she walked away without the investment but with the profile of a national television final appearance, which in the Apprentice context is a significant career asset.
Dan Miller, from Richmond in London, started his student recruitment company Young Professionals from his bedroom at 17 and had subsequently worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers and Goldman Sachs as part of building the business. Running a student recruitment operation with contracts from major corporate clients at that age represents genuine commercial achievement. He made the final five before being fired at the interview stage. His net worth is not confirmed but a business that has partnerships with firms like Goldman Sachs since he started from scratch as a teenager represents a meaningful asset base.
Lawrence Rosenberg, from Watford, is a public relations specialist whose Apprentice pitch focused on reinventing the PR industry through intelligent automation. He made the final five but was fired at interviews after Lord Sugar criticised his attempt to game the process by bringing back a previously fired candidate, calling it a “nasty move.” His pre-Apprentice PR career in Hertfordshire implies a professional income in the standard range for the sector.
Priyesh Bathia, from Harrow, works as a global accounts manager and wanted Sugar’s investment to scale his cocktail business into a national brand available in supermarkets and through a mobile cocktail bar operation. He made the final five before being fired at the interview stage. His combination of a corporate career in global accounts alongside an entrepreneurial side venture is a common profile among Apprentice candidates, and his income from the accounts management role would be solid rather than exceptional.
Among the earlier-fired candidates, Andrea Cooper, 46, from Barnsley, was arguably one of the more remarkable stories in the series. She runs two businesses while also having completed a first-class honours midwifery degree at 40, and came to the show pitching a software system for managing short-term accommodation for landlords and tenants. She was fired in the triple elimination of episode six, one of the show’s most dramatic boardroom sessions. Steve Marsland, also in the mix, had been building what he described as a hospitality-oriented business. Kieran McCartney, an estate agent with ten years of experience, used a dramatic ultimatum during a boardroom session to survive one round before being fired in episode ten.
How the £250,000 Investment Actually Works
The prize is not a salary, a cash gift, or an employment contract. Since 2011, Lord Sugar has structured the Apprentice prize as a £250,000 investment for a 50% equity stake in the winner’s business, channelled through his company Amsvest Limited. The winner and Sugar become equal partners in the new or expanded venture. Previous winners have gone on to build businesses in sectors ranging from healthcare recruitment and corporate events to gym chains and air conditioning installation.
The 50/50 equity structure means the winner gives up half their business for £250,000 in capital and access to Sugar’s business network, experience, and brand endorsement. Whether that is a good deal depends entirely on the business. For an early-stage venture that needs capital to scale and would benefit from Sugar’s contacts, it can be transformative. For a business that is already generating significant revenue, giving away 50% for £250,000 may undervalue the asset. The most commercially successful Apprentice businesses have typically been in categories where Sugar’s expertise in operational scaling, property management, and distribution is most applicable.
For Karishma, whose Kishkin skincare brand was already trading, the investment unlocks manufacturing scale, retail distribution access, and commercial credibility that the brand would take considerably longer to acquire independently. Whether the 50% stake she gave up was worth that access is a question that will take several years to answer.
What Do Apprentice Candidates Earn From the Show?
The Apprentice does not pay its candidates an appearance fee in the conventional sense. Candidates are not salaried employees during filming and receive no prize money for making it to particular stages of the competition. The only financial outcome available from the show itself is the £250,000 investment for the winner, and that comes attached to a 50% equity stake rather than arriving as personal income.
Filming takes place over several weeks in the autumn, requiring candidates to take extended leave from their businesses or jobs. Unlike MAFS Australia, where a nominal weekly payment is made, Apprentice candidates appear to participate without direct compensation for their time. The return is reputational rather than financial: the BBC audience reach, media profile, and business exposure that comes from appearing on a show with several million weekly viewers can generate leads, speaking invitations, consulting enquiries, and, for the most visible candidates, brand partnership approaches from sponsors.
Lord Sugar’s fee for presenting the show is not publicly confirmed but would be a separate commercial arrangement with the BBC unrelated to the candidate prize structure.
What Happened to the Series 20 Candidates After the Show
Karishma Vijay’s Kishkin skincare brand now carries Lord Sugar as a 50/50 partner, giving her access to capital and contacts that should accelerate the brand’s retail distribution ambitions. The all-female final attracted widespread media coverage and generated significant social media engagement, which translates into brand awareness for Kishkin beyond what paid advertising could have achieved.
Pascha Myhill’s profile as runner-up at 22 in the healthcare recruitment sector is a commercial asset. Private healthcare recruitment is a high-demand, high-margin sector, and her national television exposure will have generated both inbound recruitment enquiries and potential investor interest for the company she intends to build without Sugar’s backing.
The series was also marked by controversy over candidate Levi Hague, who issued a public apology after historic racist and sexist social media posts resurfaced, and was noted for the first ever triple firing in episode six when Andrea Cooper, Carrington Saunders, and Megan Ruiter were all dismissed in a single boardroom session. The series was the twentieth overall and Lord Sugar confirmed he would return for at least two further series, meaning The Apprentice as a format remains active through at least 2028.
The Apprentice 2026 Candidates Net Worth: Frequently Asked Questions
Who won The Apprentice 2026?
Karishma Vijay, a 28-year-old beauty brand owner from Ashford, Surrey, won The Apprentice 2026 on 16 April 2026. She secured a £250,000 investment from Lord Sugar for a 50% stake in her skincare brand Kishkin. She beat runner-up Pascha Myhill, a 22-year-old recruitment consultant from Reading, Berkshire, in an all-female final.
What is the Apprentice 2026 prize?
The Apprentice 2026 prize is a £250,000 investment from Lord Alan Sugar in exchange for a 50% equity stake in the winner’s business, structured through his company Amsvest Limited. The winner and Sugar become equal business partners. There is no cash prize for eliminated candidates, and contestants are not paid an appearance fee during filming.
How many candidates were in The Apprentice 2026?
The Apprentice 2026, series 20, featured 20 candidates, the largest cohort since series ten in 2014. The series premiered on BBC One on 29 January 2026 with all 20 candidates flying to Hong Kong for the opening buying task. The series concluded on 16 April 2026.
What business does Karishma Vijay run?
Karishma Vijay runs Kishkin, a skincare brand she founded and grew before appearing on The Apprentice. She is from Ashford in Surrey and is the first female entrepreneur in her family’s line of business owners. Lord Sugar’s £250,000 investment for a 50% stake will be used to scale Kishkin’s manufacturing and retail distribution.