BBC The Apprentice star, 50, shares hidden ‘advantage’ as he slaps away ‘ageist’ comparisons with co-stars
The Apprentice has returned for a new series bringing ambition, awkward pitches, cutthroat competition and dreaded firings back to screens.
Lord Sugar is currently assessing his latest crop of largely young entrepreneurs, but 50-year-old Tre Lowe has insisted his age was a key “advantage” in his own campaign that brought him perilously close to a £250,000 investment last year.
Before his time on the BBC show, Lowe was famed as one half of the beloved UK garage duo Architechs alongside his late brother Ashley.
The multi-skilled entrepreneur has worked as a DJ, a PT and a lifestyle and motivational coach with a new podcast on resilience.
His long and varied career meant that Lowe was one of the oldest contestants to appear on The Apprentice.
With his age and background in the underground music industry, the 50-year-old admitted he didn’t necessarily match the template of the “young apprentice and hungry businessperson.”
“I don’t think we have an advantage going into the process,” Lowe added about older people in the business world while speaking exclusively with GB News.
“We may not like it but I think age sometimes does play a part [in the selection process]. As an apprentice, you might prefer someone younger to mentor, rather than someone older and you think, ‘close to the end of their career,'” he explained.
Despite this, he revealed his extra “years” more than “worked in my favour” on The Apprentice.
For the duration of the show, the prospective apprentices are denied regular access to their phones or outside help, meaning “your knowledge is all you’ve got.”
Lowe explained: “I would speak to some of the younger ones, and I thought, ‘I’ve got a huge advantage.’ A lot of them don’t know about stuff, so they can’t pitch [as well].
“When I was pitching, I was able to draw from so many different sources in history,” he continued.
In comparison, the entrepreneur detailed: “Some of the younger generation, I won’t name names, but some of their knowledge of the world seems to have started in the year 2000 and ended in the present day.”
Lowe suggested that dynamic had left some of his fellow contestants “quite shocked” at his hidden ability.
“‘B***** hell. How are we going to compete against this guy?’” he imagined them thinking with a cheeky grin.
Despite his competitive drive, the 50-year-old was also determined to use his experience to mentor some of the younger contestants, particularly Dr. Paul Midha.
“I think Paul probably would have appreciated some of the conversations that we had,” Lowe began.
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“There was an occasion where Paul found things a little bit difficult, as is normal… I definitely gave him as much support as I could do,” he said.
Lowe’s tactics took both him and Dr Paul to the interview stage of the competition.
Despite not becoming Lord Sugar’s apprentice, Lowe still considers the business titan: “probably one of the brightest minds I’ve ever had the privilege of being sat in front of.”
Reflecting on their relationship, the 50-year-old said: “I think he [Lord Sugar] just saw a level of fight and zest and ability that probably surprised him.
“And that’s good because I wanted to be judged on merit, you know, I didn’t want to be judged on anything else.”