The Apprentice discount buying task series 20: Hong Kong shopping list - nine obscure items for contestants to find
Series 20 of The Apprentice kicked off with the shopping challenge seeing the candidates head off to Hong Kong in search of nine obscure items.
The 20th series of The Apprentice has begun, with 20 new candidates looking to impress Lord Sugar and secure his £250,000 investment. Supported by his advisers, Baroness Karren Brady and Tim Campbell, Lord Sugar will now whittle down the candidates across 12 episodes until there is only one winner.
This year's contestants range from a mortgage broker who counts Kim Kardashian as the perfect role model, to a London-based barbershop owner who says he wants to expand to New York, Dubai and Tokyo.
The BBC show, which sees the candidates undertake a series of tough tasks, saw series 20 kick off with the shopping list challenge in financial hub Hong Kong. As always, the list of obscure objects baffled both Alan’s prospective business partners and viewers alike.
Read on to find out what is on this year’s shopping list and what they all are…
The Apprentice shopping list items series 20
Shrimp paste - Spec: 10 x300g brick
A brick of shrimp paste is a concentrated and fermented condiment made from ground, salted shrimp or krill. It is sun-dried and pressed into solid, dense blocks, serving as a fundamental, umami-rich, savoury ingredient for curries, sauces, and sambals in Southeast Asian cuisine.
Mahjong set - Spec: Hand painted
Mahjong is a tile-based game developed in 19th century China. The game is played with a set of 144 tiles based on Chinese characters and symbols.
Baby corn - Spec: Four catty, picked today
Baby corn is the popular vegetable and in in Hong Kong, a "catty" of produce is a traditional unit of weight equal to approximately 600 grams.
Chinese calligraphy brush - Spec: Brush head length 20cm+
A Chinese calligraphy brush is a traditional writing and painting tool made of natural animal hair bristles with a bamboo, wood or, sometimes, ceramic handle.
Dragon boat head - Spec: Over one metre
Dragon boat heads are intricately hand-carved from camphor or teak wood and feature bulging eyes, flared nostrils, and fierce teeth. They represent a sacred element in traditional Tuen Ng Festival races.
Golden pineapple - Spec: Paper
Paper pineapples are handcrafted, folded, or stacked offerings made from gold foil-decorated paper and commonly used in Chinese, Taoist, and Buddhist rituals.
Erhu - Spec: None
The erhu is a Chinese two-stringed bowed musical instrument that is sometimes known in the Western world as the Chinese violin or a Chinese two-stringed fiddle.
Ding Ding illustration in colour - Spec: A4, commission today
This item refers to an illustration of the Hong Kong tram, affectionately known by locals as the 'Ding Ding'.
Teacake - Spec: Labelled 2005
Hong Kong stored tea cakes - cakes of aged tea leaves - are highly sought-after, often featuring complex, woody, and sweet flavor profiles due to traditional, humid, or dry-humid storage conditions. Common 2005-vintage cakes
Future tasks on the latest series of The Apprentice will include creating a children’s book, selling live on television, and hosting a corporate away day on the Red Sea in El Gouna, Egypt.