Winning The Apprentice this year and Lord Sugar's backing, has accelerated her plans to own a gym an amateur or top professional boxer would feel at home in and then maybe elbow her way into the current male dominated world of boxing promotion.
Boxing is a tough sport, what made you get into it
I was 17 when I began boxing, and I can't really give an exact reason why. I wasn't particularly athletic and sports was never my calling, but there was something about boxing, something drew me to it. There was something about the power of it, the way people would look at respected champions, the way they could create a legacy just by being who they are. I think there is something innate about want to punch out when your angry and at the time boxing came into my life all I wanted to do was punch out, it was the perfect collision.
If I may say so you don't have the battered features of a boxer.... you must have been good at it?
I was just good at slipping shots and keeping my hands up! Although I do have some war wounds including a 6-inch-long scar down the length of my arm when I broke it over an opponent's head whilst throwing a big right hook and it landed badly, as well as a slight dink in the bridge of my nose when I fell victim to an 81kg male national champions straight right - again in sparring. The battle scars give me character though, those imperfections remind me what I'm capable of.
Did it ever cross your mind to turn professional?
I think there could have been a career for me in the pro-ranks and this was certainly the opinion of my coaches who said my style was much more suited to longer, steadier paced rounds, where I would have had more opportunity to be selective about punches and land the power shots. That was always my preference over the rapid and relentless style you see in amateurs, which quite honestly, I never had the engine for. I didn't love boxing enough as a fighter to take it all the way, my heart was not in it, like it is for these upcoming stars who dedicate their life to it. I had bigger ambitions than being a boxer.
Did you have any business aspirations before or during your studies at the University of London?
I consider my time at Uni as the time I cut my teeth with business. I spent very little time on the course itself and instead spent all my days either in the boxing gym training or concocting ways I could make money from it. I began offering women's training sessions at the boxing gym to encourage more female participation in the sport. They became very busy, very quickly and I realised I had a knack for it. The Head Coach noticed the popularity of the sessions and how many people were coming in the gym and asked me to put on more, I said "only if I can take half of the money that comes in". I was making about £250 a week which doesn't seem like much now, but it meant a lot to me then, it was more money than I had ever earned before and that was the moment I realised that what you put in, is what you get out.
From boxing to law seems a highly unlikely career transition, how did that come about?
I studied History and Politics at University, but that was more so I could leave my hometown and come to the big city of London, I didn't really have any interest in the degree itself but used it as the tool to ‘get out'. Given my lack of passion for it, after I graduated, I felt completely lost as to what career path I wanted to take. Boxing had been a constant in my life throughout this time, but I also knew I didn't want a career in pro boxing. I was hitting the bag in the gym one evening and venting to a woman I had met that night. I told her I didn't know what was next for me and she said she was a Criminal Defence Barrister, and I could come and shadow her if I wanted. I was always an opportunist, so I said yes. I followed her for a one-week trial and fell in love with it. The way she commanded the room, the power she held, and strength of convictions had all the same elements of what I loved in boxing. I decided then to go to law school, sit my exams to qualify as a barrister and after 3 failed attempts I was Called to the Bar in 2018.
When did The Apprentice first appear on your radar?
I've watched it intermittently for many years, always thinking, like everyone does ‘I could do that' but when you get there you find out it's a lot harder than you first expected. I wanted to apply because I thought how amazing it would be to say you have Lord Sugar as your business partner, imagine the wealth of knowledge I could source from being around him and his team, and here we are!
There must be hundreds of applicants in such a high-profile show competing for Lord Sugar's £250,000 investment. How did you get included in the lucky 18 picked?
It wasn't luck it was hard graft! I put together a business plan that was bullet proof - it was about 70 pages long and it answered every question an investor could want. I spent around 3 years writing it as a working document, editing and amending almost weekly to reflect new ideas and changing situations. I think the effort I put in here set me apart from some of the other candidates who by their own admission wrote it in a week before making their applications. From an entertainment perspective, which of course is the other side of things they look for when deciding who makes the cut, I think they put me in as a straight talker, maybe the bossy one who wasn't afraid to stand her ground - they must have been surprised when they saw that more playful side and witnessed me dressed up as Victorian school teacher spanking Avi over the desk as part of the Immersive event task!
And what do you think was key to you beating the other 17?
I was honest. I was honest to Lord Sugar when it came to acknowledging my shortfalls where we failed in a task. I was honest with the other candidates about their ideas or what I felt would work better and most importantly I was honest with myself, I never let my integrity waiver for the sake of making it through another week and I think above all else that's what Lord Sugar is looking for - an honest business partner, with good character and not afraid to work hard.
Full speed ahead on the Bronx Project with Lord Sugar onboard now, what differs Bronx Boxing Club from the other gyms offering fitness programmes through boxing?
That's exactly it! Creating a ‘real' boxing gym with that substance of an amateur gym, but the style and service of those higher end fitness offerings. I want to retain that spit and sawdust spirit whilst ensuring we have the professionalism, the facilities, and the business mechanisms in place to offer people an immaculate service.
Who uses Bronx?
Who doesn't! We have members from every corner of the community, from the young professional high flying city workers, to stay at home mums, to young people from the local estates to NHS doctors and nurses, to the over 60's who are trying to stay healthy. Everyone is on their own individual journey with separate reasons for wanting to take up boxing, that is the most beautiful thing about this sport and the biggest and most important message to get across - that boxing belongs to everyone, always.
You must be incredibly proud to have won the Apprentice and created an incredible destination for amateurs to rub shoulders with pro's male or female in a community environment. Job done or just the start of the journey?
Absolutely the start of the journey - and there is a long road ahead! Bronx is turning 6 months old at the end of August, so we are still very much in our infancy, which is stressful but also incredibly exciting because it means there is so much more room to grow. For now, the focus is on establishing the site on Vicarage Grove in Camberwell and helping that to reach as many people as possible. Once that is done, I will set my sights on new spaces and begin expanding the name, the brand and most importantly the impact! Promoting is definitely something I would like to pursue in the future, and everyone seems keen on me exploring this avenue, but I think it's important I maintain my focus on the initial goal - to make Bronx the name in Boxing Gyms.
