Being fired just before the iconic and brutal 'job interview' episode of The Apprentice could be seen as a blessing in disguise and Greater Manchester's Aaron Willis admitted that he cannot have any complaints after being sent home so close to the final.
In last Thursday's dramatic episode on BBC One, Westhoughton-born Aaron was sent packing by Lord Sugar after the 'Moroccan Medley' baby food that he invented secured no orders. In a rare twist, Akeem Bundu-Kamar was also fired after his team's product 'First Time Foodies' also proved to be a flop.
It means that an all-female line-up will have their CVs and business plans scrutinised in this week's penultimate episode of the series.
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Aaron, who owns Wigan-based business Vulcan Security Ltd, admitted that he had come to terms with Lord Sugar's decision.
"Do you know what, I’m actually quite at peace with it because I do think it was my time [to go]," he said in a question and answer session with PR firm Taylor Herring.
"It was one of those moments where I felt I’d peaked and I’d rather have been fired for something which was justified, so I’ve got no complaints. At the end of the day, I messed it up, so I can’t really argue with that.
"At the end of the day, I tried to do the right thing for the team and put Brittany and Kathryn where they had shown to have the strongest skillset. It just so happened that it left me in the kitchen by myself and ultimately, that’s where it went wrong. But, that was my decision and I’ll stand by it.
"I do like to cook at home. Although I’ve never made baby food before and that’s obviously quite a critical factor, really. I just had this vision in my mind of how I would have cooked it for the family at home, but it turns out it’s not that easy.
"I’m obviously proud of how far I made it, I’m so proud of that.
"I’m also really proud that I escaped the interviews in the next episode! I think that could have been my downfall, so I think I did alright escaping that. It’s a blessing – you’ve got to look at it like that."
Aaron found himself in the bottom three on three occasions throughout the process, including in week two, when he designed the infamous green and brown 'Wiffy the Wizard' toothbrush.
Reflecting on how he made it so far after a bit of a rocky start, he added: "I just think Lord Sugar could see that I had a bit of fight in me.
"When I was in the bottom three, I think the points which I put across were just constructive and honest. I tried to avoid calling fault with others as much as I could and just be answerable for my own mistakes and be humble in taking credit when something had gone right.
"I think he’s just a good judge of character and can see through any waffle, but I was true to myself and authentic – let’s be honest, he could have easily fired me back in Wiffy the Wizard days. If he was going to fire me before now, that would have been the perfect opportunity!
"That toothbrush is going to go down in history, isn’t it! I mean, it’s a colour combination that’s going to stick with me for a long time… I’m looking in my garden now and all I can see is the conifers against the brown fence, honestly my eyes are just drawn to it all the time.
"I had some chocolate limes the other day and it just takes me straight back. Brown and green is officially the new black."
Aaron had to live away from his wife and children for several weeks while staying in a mansion with the other candidates but he said they weren't the only thing he missed during the process.
He said: "Even though it was this luxury mansion, it just wasn’t home to me. It was lovely go back there and relax and I don’t take that for granted for a second, but I would have loved to just be able to relax up north.
"It didn’t have a Greggs on the doorstep… it was just too southern for me! I need a Greggs and a Hungry Horse or something like that round t'corner. Not a Prezza mange-thingy, or whatever they’re called.
"[It was] much harder than I expected. I missed being away from my wife and kids so much, that was really difficult for me."
Despite not securing the £250,000 investment from Lord Sugar, RAF veteran Aaron is hoping that his security business can go from strength to strength.
"It was the business plan which I took on the show, but it’s already developed and taken a slightly different direction than what I’d originally planned," he added.
"But, I think that’s good business; being able to see a better opportunity and adapt.
"Before it was more residential security and I’m now focused on commercial and hospitality security. So, it’s about hotels, bars, restaurant, retail, that arena, really.
"A core factor though, that has become a fundamental part of my business model, is providing a platform for military leavers to transition into civilian life. It’s really daunting coming out of the military; I served 12 years, and there’s just not enough support to anyone who is leaving, so I’ll be guaranteeing an interview with my business.
"It just works because military people are going to be smart, they’re fine-tuned to be punctual and hard-working; they make amazing security officers and it’s my aim to give them a real chance of finding employment."
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