DO YOU THINK THE SHOW WILL SPUR ON CREATIVITY AND BUDDING ENTREPRENEURS?
I think there's a budding entrepreneur in everybody; I really believe there's been a time in everybody's life where you've gone, 'Oh this would be brilliant'. The entrepreneurs that we actually meet in the studio are these people. But some of them have taken it to the next level where they've re-mortgaged their houses, they've borrowed money, and their products are still not perfect. But the three people [in each episode], by the end of it, they're like family. We have tears and we have highs and lows; it's quite a roller-coaster, but I love it.
WERE YOU INUNDATED WITH APPLICATIONS FOR THE SECOND SERIES?
Yeah, it's funny, it's exactly like Homes Under The Hammer. When I first started that, we were scratching around for properties, and then ahead of the second, people would actually come up to you!
WHAT'S YOUR FAVOURITE PART OF THE SHOW?
Meeting the entrepreneurs. I don't watch the customer feedback footage [beforehand]; I like to be neutral, so I don't know what's coming and I also don't know who's going to win. It's a bit of game for me, because the producers were like, 'Do you want to know?' And I go, 'Nope, nope', and then halfway through, I go to my producer, 'I bet it's [so and so]' and she's like, 'I'm not saying!' So I go on the journey with them.
DO YOU HAVE A SERIES HIGHLIGHT?
A lot of my favourites all stem from the people that I love, that come across so well. There was one guy who made a hand cream called Nursem and basically it was for nurses who were constantly washing their hands. He was a nurse himself, and he was the kindest, loveliest man, and I just know the reasons why he did it. And another one was this bread oven – my God, well, I literally wanted to take it home with me. The [inventor] was fantastic and it really made the most unbelievable bread.
HOW DO THE ENTREPRENEURS HANDLE CRITICISM?
People certainly like to know what they're getting is good value for money and, for example, I think the bread oven was quite expensive, but for what you get and for what he displayed, it was worth it. But our YouTubers are very honest and very brutal, and sometimes the people in the studio don't want to hear it. But I used to say to them, 'You'll get no other opportunity ever like this. Even if you don't win, just take away the experience'. You get a chance to sit and watch how your product is perceived – it's just gold dust.
IT'S A SHOW THAT APPEALS TO ALL AGES, TOO.
Yeah, it's good for young audiences because of the YouTuber side, and my dad's generation are really going to enjoy all the products. So, it spans the age groups quite well. It's light-hearted, it's fun, and you can have a laugh whilst watching it, but also, it might just spur ideas.
HAS WORKING ON THIS LEFT YOU DREAMING UP YOUR OWN INVENTIONS?
Because I'm so used to all the inventions, I go, 'Ooh, you should now do this one' and give them other ideas to spring from! But yeah, it does make you think that there are things... Everybody has got that entrepreneurialism in them. I'm hoping people out there will watch this show and it will spur them on to drive their own product forward.
:: The Customer Is Always Right returns to BBC One today
