The Apprentice winner Marnie Swindells has revealed that ‘everything came crashing down’ after her show success due to a ‘devastating’ breakup.
The businesswoman, 31, won the show in 2023 and secured Lord Sugar’s £250,000 investment to open Bronx boxing gym, but while her success made her feel ‘invincible’ at first, there were plenty of challenges to come.
After the show her relationship of 11 years came to an end, her boxing gym was broken into and she received death threats online.
She told The Mirror: ‘Life after the show wasn’t as smooth as it might have looked from the outside. You win the show and you feel invincible but for me, everything came crashing down at the same time.’
Opening up about her relationship breakdown she said: ‘Suddenly I was facing life and business on my own, and it was incredibly tough.
‘The pressure was enormous -on one hand, I was Lord Sugar’s new business partner, but behind closed doors I was going through heartbreak and huge personal challenges.’
The Apprentice winner Marnie Swindells has revealed that ‘everything came crashing down’ after her show success due to a ‘devastating’ breakup
The businesswoman, 31, won the show in 2023 and secured Lord Sugar ‘s £250,000 investment to open Bronx boxing gym, but while her success made her feel ‘invincible’ at first there were plenty of challenges to come
She said she knows that a lot of women will relate to ‘putting on a brave face’ while dealing with difficult things in private.
Marnie added that it felt like ‘life was treating her like a punchbag’ when soon after the breakup happened her living situation changed unexpectedly, her gym had a break in and she began getting hate online.
However in the interview she praised Lord Sugar for his support saying they speak weekly and that he is ‘very patient’.
Last year Marnie spoke to The Daily Mail where she hit back at critics who compared the show’s more recent lineups to the cast of Love Island.
Marnie has more than 45,000 Instagram followers and litters her page with racy bikini snaps alongside promotion for her gym.
In an exclusive interview the entrepreneur explained that times have changed and old fashioned attitudes towards social media need to be changed as it has no impact on your business ability.
She said: ‘I’m so bored of hearing The Apprentice/Love Island comparison. Since when did those two things become mutually exclusive?
‘You can be hot, sexy, attractive, care about how you look and be an incredible businesswoman or man! Those two things don’t have to be separated.’
After the show her relationship of 11 years came to an end, her boxing gym was broken into and she received death threats online (seen at her boxing gym)
Marnie continued: ‘I think it’s a very old school, stuck in the past way of approaching business. Some of the tools and avenues to success social media and social media is all about how you look.
‘So how you look is an important tool in business. Of course that would be reflected in how people present themselves.’
She added that while social media is an important tool for getting ahead she didn’t appear on the show to simply boost her follower count.
Marnie confessed: ‘I think Lord Sugar might have thought that was when I first came out of The Apprentice. He said to me, ‘make sure you stay focused going to all these events’ so I think he probably does fear that people will get carried away and swept away with the moment.
‘In fairness to him, it’s a valid concern. I’m sure there were people even on my series that were there for fame. People have different motivations.
‘So of course Lord Sugar and the public would be cautious of that. But once The Apprentice is over and the glitz and glamour of that has subsided that’s the true assessment of what people are really about.’
Marnie told future stars that the most important thing they can do on the show is retain their integrity.
She explained: ‘One of the things I’m most proud of is everything that I did in there, I did with a clear conscience. I know that I was honest and true to myself.
‘If you go in there and you and play a game and be strategic that is on your conscience forever.’
Marnie added: ‘You also have to be prepared to be alone and be independent. It’s such a tense environment at times it’s easy to get swept into the group dynamic and feel like you’re safer in numbers.
‘But standing firm and again going back to being true to what you think rather than what’s easiest and most comfortable and is the most powerful thing.’
She said: ‘Life after the show wasn’t as smooth as it might have looked from the outside. You win the show and you feel invincible but for me, everything came crashing down at the same time’
