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Foregone conclusion? |
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#1 |
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Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 1,228
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Foregone conclusion?
Is it a foregone conclusion that Joseph will win? He has a credible business and Sugar likes sticking it to the big boys so will be keen to steal market share from British Gas, Home Team etc for commercial and domestic heating contracts.
Vana's business plan on the other hand... is it just me that doesn't get it? You literally 'play games' in order to eventually get to view a photo of somebody on a dating site?? Why hasn't Sugar dismissed this gameification nonsense? We live in a world of instant gratification. We want to look online for members of the opposite sex and make an instant decision. Who wants to play electronic scrabble for hours on end only to find out your opponent looks like a moose? As much as I've warmed to Vana her business plan sounds worse than Gazza's mobile disco. They say online dating and online games are the two most lucrative dotcoms at the moment so merging them could create a synergy and create millions, but that's like saying Vodka and Whisky are the 2 best selling spirits and merging them would somehow be amazeballs when obviously it just wouldn't work. |
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#2 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Ireland
Posts: 7,470
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Quote:
Is it a foregone conclusion that Joseph will win? He has a credible business and Sugar likes sticking it to the big boys so will be keen to steal market share from British Gas, Home Team etc for commercial and domestic heating contracts.
Vana's business plan on the other hand... is it just me that doesn't get it? You literally 'play games' in order to eventually get to view a photo of somebody on a dating site?? Why hasn't Sugar dismissed this gameification nonsense? We live in a world of instant gratification. We want to look online for members of the opposite sex and make an instant decision. Who wants to play electronic scrabble for hours on end only to find out your opponent looks like a moose? As much as I've warmed to Vana her business plan sounds worse than Gazza's mobile disco. They say online dating and online games are the two most lucrative dotcoms at the moment so merging them could create a synergy and create millions, but that's like saying Vodka and Whisky are the 2 best selling spirits and merging them would somehow be amazeballs when obviously it just wouldn't work. her plan though as you say is a massive risk. that said I don't think Joe was ever not winning this process anyway since week 6 regardless But yeah, fully agree, as close to a foregone conclusion as you can get in a final |
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#3 |
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Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 22
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I agree its a foregone conclusion but not for the reasons you state. Joseph's plan is already a very crowded business and I cant really see where there is room for him and what he provides.
Vana plan is excellent as I have written on my own thread. People do want to get married and stay married and that doesnt happen in an 'instant'. The best way is to 'know' the person before seeing them. That 'beauty' doesnt cloud the brain. The question is only how to go about it and what she can bring to the table. We may see more in the next task. I am quite sure it will be copied immediately by one of the big dating sites, maybe even the many free ones. |
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#4 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: UK
Posts: 2,345
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This time last year, many people thought Bianca was a shoo-in to win - only for her plan to be proven to be much poorer than it first appeared.
I find Joseph's plan distinctly unexciting. Safe, absolutely. But it's now basically just an expansion of his existing business - it's not even a new venture as such. Vana's plan is hugely risky, it's a very competitive space (there are dozens if not hundreds of dating apps launching and dying every year) and it has a horrendous burn rate. But the potential rewards are enormous if it does work. What she needs to address is the fact she will clearly need a second round of funding from a venture capitalist to take the concept and launch it properly. It's an added complication but if Sugar is willing to be open to that route, it's a strong prospect. |
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#5 |
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Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 1,228
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Quote:
Vana plan is excellent as I have written on my own thread. People do want to get married and stay married and that doesnt happen in an 'instant'. The best way is to 'know' the person before seeing them. That 'beauty' doesnt cloud the brain.
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#6 |
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Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: UK
Posts: 2,345
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I agree people want to make meaningful relationships but playing a silly online game isn't going to teach you anything. And who finds people with a competitive streak attractive? Oh look, this bird just beat me at connect 4. I'm such a dumbass, she'll feel so superior to me before we even met. Much better to just see a picture of someone and then get to know them, not the other way round. None of us would date someone 'nice' who looked like the back end of a bus, and Vana knows that.
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#7 |
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Join Date: Dec 2014
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She mentioned psychometric tests amongst other things. My mate has been through these to join the forces, it's not exactly a romantic matchmaking process. Oh and e-harmony already pedals this 'compatibility' line, same as most dating sites. Vana's bringing nothing new.
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#8 |
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Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: UK
Posts: 2,345
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Quote:
She mentioned psychometric tests amongst other things. My mate has been through these to join the forces, it's not exactly a romantic matchmaking process. Oh and e-harmony already pedals this 'compatibility' line, same as most dating sites. Vana's bringing nothing new.
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#9 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 1,228
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We're in the realm of if it was that obvious, any of the myriad other dating providers would have done it. Same as Biancas skin coloured tights last year. Clearly there's no money in it or it would have been done. I suppose those online bingo/games sites with chatrooms could lead to like minded people meeting, just without a formal 'dating' vibe about it.
Heating and plumbing is boring but trading on the negative 'what if' like BG have done could be a market Joseph could tap into with Sugars investment. Like Jo said, everyone needs a plumber! |
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#10 |
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 17,385
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Lord Sugar has been won over by Joseph's charisma and overflowing sexuality like the rest of us.
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#11 |
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Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 1,228
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Lord Sugar has been won over by Joseph's charisma and overflowing sexuality like the rest of us.
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#12 |
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Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 900
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Quote:
This time last year, many people thought Bianca was a shoo-in to win - only for her plan to be proven to be much poorer than it first appeared.
I find Joseph's plan distinctly unexciting. Safe, absolutely. But it's now basically just an expansion of his existing business - it's not even a new venture as such. Vana's plan is hugely risky, it's a very competitive space (there are dozens if not hundreds of dating apps launching and dying every year) and it has a horrendous burn rate. But the potential rewards are enormous if it does work. What she needs to address is the fact she will clearly need a second round of funding from a venture capitalist to take the concept and launch it properly. It's an added complication but if Sugar is willing to be open to that route, it's a strong prospect. And on the other hand, how safe is Joseph's plan? Can Lord Sugar's property developer mates provide maintenance contracts in suitable locations for Joe's expansion? |
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#13 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: UK
Posts: 2,345
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Quote:
It may be that Lord Sugar will be spending his time trying to quantify how risky Vana's app is -- which probably means asking Claude to run through her cash flow projections one more time. Both Claude and Mike feared Vana would run out of cash. We've seen in series 7, Susan failed because her moon-on-a-stick promises depended on so many assumptions falling her way; none were implausible by themselves but she needed all of them.
And on the other hand, how safe is Joseph's plan? Can Lord Sugar's property developer mates provide maintenance contracts in suitable locations for Joe's expansion? To be honest, I don't think looking at Vana's financial projections again will help (although, of course, this is part of the due diligence process that goes on in the background for the finalists anyway). I know how the business model for this kind of thing works: as mentioned in the ep, at some point there is a 'hockey stick' effect where growth suddenly takes off exponentially - like an story going viral online. Either it will work or (more likely) it won't. No spreadsheet will tell you whether or not the plan will succeed - you either win big or lose big. The situation facing Sugar is a little like that facing venture capitalists in Silicon Valley - you invest in 20 risky start-ups knowing 19 will fail but hoping that the 20th will be the one that makes you mega-bucks. But you have to be willing to take the risk (and the collateral losses) to reap the reward. |
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#14 |
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 4,764
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Sugar sees Joseph as a younger version of himself when he was that age. He likes him a lot!
I don't think he'd touch Vana's business with a barge-pole, quite honestly, and he more-or-less said this in his summing-up. He only let her enter the final because he and/or the production company wanted a boy and girl. He certainly did right to fire Charlene, the other girl left in the final five. I think she should have gone a long time ago. Her turning on the tears for the slightest reason has just got a bit too much. I think Vana will put up a very good fight but, at the end of the day, it will be Joseph who gets the £250,000 investment. |
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#15 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Stockport
Posts: 2,072
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Quote:
As much as I've warmed to Vana her business plan sounds worse than Gazza's mobile disco.
I like the sound of his mobile disco, I reckon it'd have atmosphere. Atmosphere by Russ Abbott. |
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#16 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 2,546
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Quote:
Sugar sees Joseph as a younger version of himself when he was that age. He likes him a lot!
I don't think he'd touch Vana's business with a barge-pole, quite honestly, and he more-or-less said this in his summing-up. He only let her enter the final because he and/or the production company wanted a boy and girl. He certainly did right to fire Charlene, the other girl left in the final five. I think she should have gone a long time ago. Her turning on the tears for the slightest reason has just got a bit too much. I think Vana will put up a very good fight but, at the end of the day, it will be Joseph who gets the £250,000 investment. I like Vana a lot and in the great scheme of things to move a business forward I think she would be a better - but I doubt that she will win. |
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#17 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 2,546
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Quote:
Is it a foregone conclusion that Joseph will win? He has a credible business and Sugar likes sticking it to the big boys so will be keen to steal market share from British Gas, Home Team etc for commercial and domestic heating contracts.
Vana's business plan on the other hand... is it just me that doesn't get it? You literally 'play games' in order to eventually get to view a photo of somebody on a dating site?? Why hasn't Sugar dismissed this gameification nonsense? We live in a world of instant gratification. We want to look online for members of the opposite sex and make an instant decision. Who wants to play electronic scrabble for hours on end only to find out your opponent looks like a moose? As much as I've warmed to Vana her business plan sounds worse than Gazza's mobile disco. They say online dating and online games are the two most lucrative dotcoms at the moment so merging them could create a synergy and create millions, but that's like saying Vodka and Whisky are the 2 best selling spirits and merging them would somehow be amazeballs when obviously it just wouldn't work. |
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#18 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 10,733
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The expansion into another area may be harder than he thinks, just because one of his clients says why can't you come and do some work for me in X location doesn't mean he'll be able to rent a building and a few vans a long with finding enough people with the right gas safe quals at the drop of a hat
I'd bet he might subbie out the work to local teams with him checking on their work etc and fix minor problems (is he actually gas safe registered himself?) But i'm sure LS will have enough contacts to be able to provide him with chance to quote for plenty of jobs especially the bigger landlords who need 50 ancient boilers replacing in a single high rise flat etc. |
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#19 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: UK
Posts: 2,345
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Quote:
Sugar sees Joseph as a younger version of himself when he was that age. He likes him a lot!
I don't think he'd touch Vana's business with a barge-pole, quite honestly, and he more-or-less said this in his summing-up. He only let her enter the final because he and/or the production company wanted a boy and girl. He certainly did right to fire Charlene, the other girl left in the final five. I think she should have gone a long time ago. Her turning on the tears for the slightest reason has just got a bit too much. I think Vana will put up a very good fight but, at the end of the day, it will be Joseph who gets the £250,000 investment. |
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#20 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: UK
Posts: 2,345
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Quote:
The expansion into another area may be harder than he thinks, just because one of his clients says why can't you come and do some work for me in X location doesn't mean he'll be able to rent a building and a few vans a long with finding enough people with the right gas safe quals at the drop of a hat
I'd bet he might subbie out the work to local teams with him checking on their work etc and fix minor problems (is he actually gas safe registered himself?) But i'm sure LS will have enough contacts to be able to provide him with chance to quote for plenty of jobs especially the bigger landlords who need 50 ancient boilers replacing in a single high rise flat etc. Not an insurmountable concern, by any means, but a significant one. |
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