Entrepreneur Rachel Woolford has ended her self-imposed ban on certain social media platforms in the wake of comments she received after winning the latest series of The Apprentice.
Viewers saw the 28-year-old owner of Leeds-based boutique gym North Studio secure a £250,000 investment from Lord Sugar.
However Woolford has spoken for the first time about the price of fame and explained her decision to take a break from social media.
Writing on LinkedIn, she said: “In April this year I removed myself from various social media outlets.
“What should have been a very positive time in my life after winning the BBC’s The Apprentice, social media became a very negative and non-beneficial place for me to be.
“After reading comments on LinkedIn posts whereby people (who thought they knew me because they’d watched me on a TV show) were having full blown debates over me, my business and who should and shouldn’t have won the show including comments about my physical appearance and some pretty derogatory language (yes that actually exists on LinkedIn) I decided to take some time away from here.
“The good news is I’ve crossed that bridge and time has improved the situation and people have a lot more interesting issues to discuss.”
The Apprentice winner sells business he set up with Lord Sugar
Hard-working Woolford opened her business during Covid and millions of viewers watched as she beat pie company owner Phil Turner in an exciting final.
However she joked that there was a price to be paid for her social media exile.
“I’ve got a rather large amount of messages to reply to on here,” she admitted.
“If you’re one of those people then I thank you in advance for understanding for receiving a very delayed response coming your way.
“Finally, thank you to anyone who supported me on my time on The Apprentice. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my career for so many reasons, but I’m happy to say it changed my life for the better and the risk of taking part paid off.
“North Studio, a place that 24-year-old me set up four years ago, has become more so much more than I could’ve dreamed of.”