Dean Franklin, owner of a mobile air conditioning service business, recently received an investment of £250,000. He managed to shock business tycoon Lord Sugar with his creative use of colour during a high-pressure pitch on last night’s The Apprentice. Franklin’s business, which previously had its ownership split between him, his business partner, and their respective wives, is poised for expansion following Lord Sugar’s decision to become his newest business partner.
Despite the obvious relevance of his company’s climate control expertise, Franklin was put through the wringer in an interview process fraught with uncertainties. Interviewer Mike Soutar pushed him on his claims about climate change. Franklin pressed that there is a growing number of climate control challenges and pointed out that the climate zone is shrinking. We set those statements up amid a riveting conversation on why air conditioning services are essential jobs. We were especially interested in how crucial these services are as weather patterns increasingly shift.
To illustrate his idea, Franklin posted a truly disturbing photo on social media during his pitch. It featured an image of a sex toy affixed to a customer’s air conditioning unit. While this incident was certainly eyebrow raising, it did not stop Lord Sugar from seeing the potential in Franklin.
They know the plan. Well, we’re still married so what’s mine is hers. So it makes no difference, Franklin said, referring to the distributed ownership model and cooperative principles that characterized his company prior to their recent investment deal. His business partner and his partner’s wife used to each own 25% of the business. That ownership structure has since changed.
Lord Sugar added that Franklin had just stayed in the wrong show. He further acknowledged that air conditioning business in turn helped him make a good “honest living.” He added that Franklin needs to prove a “scalable proposition” in order to deliver a robust growth trajectory over the long term.
Lord Sugar bought the 25% stake that Franklin’s business partner’s wife used to own. This strategic decision turned his informal hold over the firm into formal power. Perhaps most interesting of all is that the amount Lord Sugar invests — £250,000 — hasn’t changed since 2011.
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