S07.E02: Cocotap’s

[Whimsy]

“Coco Vinny” wants to spread the “Coco” love to the rest of the country by selling coconut beverages; if he can’t prove to Marcus Lemonis that he has a valid business concept, then this business could be all cracked up.

[Moose135]

The guy and product looked really familiar, then I remembered he was on Shark Tank a couple of years ago, never got a deal there. Looks like he struck out again. Maybe he needs to learn from these experiences.

[Showthyme]

Watching someone who has to be on stage all the time is tiring.

[BusyOctober]

I thought this product was familiar...I remember him on Shark Tank.  Found him exhausting after 3 minutes back then.  This tap thing is available on Amazon for $28 as a DIY kit.  It's advertised as "zero-waste" in most of the Google search hits.  But it is not!  It's plastic and stainless steel!  Neither of those materials is biodegradable! 

Vinny is someone who only wants to be the "front man" and be on stage.  He is never going to be a business person.  He kept comparing himself to "Colonel Sanders", but Harland Sanders was a savvy business guy who also hustled & had mad marketing skills.  Vinny is a lounge act in an D-list Vegas cocktail joint. 

If while on vacation, I walked by a cart or a poolside bar selling these fresh coconuts, I might try it. But once a Don Johnson-Miami Vice era dude with a douche hat starts "singing" at me about "coco-this" and "coco-that" while strumming a ukulele, I am outta there.

[Gregg247]

I hate to say this, but I was actually rooting against this guy getting a deal with Marcus.  Vinny really rubbed me the wrong way (just like he did on Shark Tank).  He's a big phony, playing a "character" rather than just being a normal businessman.  Is he that incapable of putting aside the schtick, even for a few minutes, when dealing with a potential business partner?

I didn't care about his "insecurities" or how he was a bullied fat kid.  He's a grown man who runs around in a costume, begging for attention from unsuspecting Las Vegas vacationers.

At the end, when Marcus cut him loose, Vinny said that he'd grown so much since he'd met Marcus.  REALLY?  When they first met, Vinny couldn't be bothered to compile his historical financials.  When they last met, Vinny STILL didn't have those financials!  Yeah, that's some maturity and growth.  He failed at every task Marcus gave him throughout the episode.

I'm not sure what's going on with "The Profit" these days.  Marcus has immediately walked out on potential business deals that had their act way more together than this joker.  I want to see Marcus working with real companies, not hanging out with individuals who "need a friend".

[sskrill]

Another crap episode.

"I was the CEO of a major gaming company." Tf you were. You can't put your financials together for Marcus but you ran a gaming company? Let me guess, Vinnie's Gaming, run out of your garage in Hendertucky?

I too find this personality exhausting.  It's like he is just starving for attention.

I would really like an episode worth watching. 

Even if its true that Marcus has too many businesses, and doesn't want to buy more, I would enjoy watching him coach someone worth coaching.  This was not it.

[seacliffsal]

I immediately thought I recognized him from the Shark Tank.  Marcus has recycled a previous Shark Tank contestant-southern cooking (a few seasons back).  I hope he doesn't continue using their contestants as his own.  Once is enough for me to watch them.

Anyway, I couldn't believe it when he told the woman who owned beachfront restaurants that one way he would support a 'franchise' is by showing up and singing/playing.  Nope.  No way.  And, when he was so proud of himself for signing on the stage at that bar in Key West, I was, again, that's a big N-O.  I would have walked out of that bar.  

He seemed to think that his presence and singing about coconuts would be enough for him to be successful.  And he changed his name!  I loved the patent lawyer "um, you know that somebody already submitted this exact plan..."  I think he knew it as he even tried to differentiate his patent by adding that HIS had HIM to sell the product.  I think Marcus humored him enough to get him to go to Key West as a way to remind us of his Key Lime Pie Company.  

$12.99 for a coconut?  No thank you.

[hurrrz]

This dude was incredibly annoying. Did anyone else notice the insane amount of travel they did for this clown? Vegas to Florida to Chicago to LA to Chicago etc.

That seemed like a lot for something that was fishy from the get go.

Btw - his gaming company was apparently related to online poker tournaments. Good stuff right there. 

[Amarsir]

3 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

Anyway, I couldn't believe it when he told the woman who owned beachfront restaurants that one way he would support a 'franchise' is by showing up and singing/playing.  Nope.  No way.  And, when he was so proud of himself for signing on the stage at that bar in Key West, I was, again, that's a big N-O.  I would have walked out of that bar. 

That was hilarious and really clued me in to the fact that he's never going to get it. He doesn't want to run a company. He wants to be a mascot for one.

Another thing that bothered me is that yeah, you can make a biodegradable tap and that's great. But my association with coconuts is that rainforests are being cleared to get planting space for them. And here you are using them very inefficiently. Process that coconut so that water, milk, oil, flakes, and other products are all coming out of the same ones. That strikes me as more efficient and thus better for the environment.

[tres bien]

This episode annoyed me to no end. Did Marcus see Mr Coco Love on Shark Tank? If he did, why would he think he could get into business with him,

If he didn't see the episode, his staff isn't doing their job.

[silverspoons]

I remember him from shark tank and he also did a pitch Kevin Harrington youtube episode (which was also trying to promote Kevin having an pitch me app). So why would Marcus want a guy that the shark and Kevin Harrington said no to? Doesn't Marcus have 1,000 of applications to choose from and he gives this guy a 3rd chance? I think his producer wanted a shock or entertainment value not a real investment episode. 

I think Marcus has too many businesses to handle (and isn't camping world going through some issues?).  Marcus had the apprentice/partner season so if he does not want 15 new businesses to invest in , why not do a competition type season with 10-12 business trying to get Marcus to invest and then he picks one at the end. 

I guess I have to remember Marcus is not like a shark tank investor. On shark tank you see success stories come back and their business has grown and they feel even though they gave away like 20-30-40% it is still their business. Most cases they are allowed to have ownership in future locations or expansions.  How many business has Marcus invested in that owners still have a majority share or are still under the same name? Marcus seems to either like to invest and then merge businesses (like all the clothing and accessory companies he turned into Marcus L Fashion label) or the company retain the first location but Marcus owns 100% of all the new locations or franchises. 

The second episode: The Profit an inside look, is starting to feel a little bullying? I love follow up episodes but why not get some interviews with the company they are doing the episode on? Or at least let the company they are talking about have the chance to give a statement. Last night it was Marcus, Amber and the skateboarding guy bashing the longboard company. There was no update like the company is still opened, making more or less money, making new boards, it seemed like just bashing? ......I just goggled Kota longboards and the first thing that comes up on their website is 20 companies say their is a dark side to Marcus. So I guess we know why they did not get a chance to talk during the followup.

Edited November 14, 2019 by silverspoons

[sskrill]

I'm a local and was googling to see where this place was located - can't find anything with a current address, but my guess is somewhere off Industrial. 

But during my googling I see he somehow got a contract with Terribles, which is a big gas station chain here run by the longtime local family the Herbsts.  I was just in one this morning but didn't know they were there.  I'm going to try to stop in the next few days and see if they are on the shelves and how much they're selling for.  I can't really imagine a gas station selling a $13 coconut?  And it doesn't really scream upscale treat if its being sold in a gas station.

[Amarsir]

2 hours ago, tres bien said:

This episode annoyed me to no end. Did Marcus see Mr Coco Love on Shark Tank? If he did, why would he think he could get into business with him,

If he didn't see the episode, his staff isn't doing their job.

It wouldn't surprise me if the same characteristics that make one appealing to Shark Tank are ones The Profit producers find appealing as well. Perhaps they just don't care about a "most-likely investment" and want someone dramatic for TV instead.

2 hours ago, silverspoons said:

I think Marcus has too many businesses to handle (and isn't camping world going through some issues?). 

Camping World has been having a bad year (although what retailer hasn't?) and they just restructured their strategy in September to focus on RV sales and not so much on other things like, say, floating tents. Their 3rd quarter revenue was up though so maybe they've turned a corner? But certainly he's not as confident in new projects as he was 4-5 years ago when Camping World was headed for IPO.

3 hours ago, silverspoons said:

There was no update like the company is still opened, making more or less money, making new boards, it seemed like just bashing? ......I just goggled Kota longboards and the first thing that comes up on their website is 20 companies say their is a dark side to Marcus.

There's no objectivity to the show so it's hard to tell how fair Marcus is really being. From the beginning I've seen a certain amount of what I'd call "boxing out" tactics, and some like Swanson's Fish Market make a good case that they were misrepresented. On the other hand I'm sure many of the owners have been bad in exactly the way we saw, and Marcus isn't a guy to let himself get walked on.

The question for me is, do successful partners like Sweet Pete have issues with him they just won't say because of the ongoing business? Or do they like him and is it just the bad outcomes that have sour grapes?

[marny]

This guy was terrible and Marcus should have noped out of there at the first glimpse of the ukulele and the fact that dummy was legally changing his name to Coco Vinny. Marcus sticking around so long actually made Marcus look stupid. 

[hoosiermommy]

Now that this episode has aired and has brought attention to the patent issue, how long before Coco Doofus gets served with cease and desist papers from the actual patent holder upon whom he is infringing?

[seacliffsal]

But, but, his product is totally different as it has him...and his ukelele....

[seacliffsal]

The more I think about this episode (which is too much) the more frustrated I am with it.  Marcus' producers/researchers should have known all about this guy just from his Shark Tank appearance.  I also question why they thought this would be an interesting episode as "Coco Vinny" was annoying more than he was entertaining.

I think Marcus wants to keep his t.v. career going without investing in new businesses.  Dante's from the previous week was too small for an investment and there seem to be just as many "inside look" episodes than there are new business episodes.  The Insider episodes would be very inexpensive to produce as they use previously filmed scenes.  There have also been a couple of episodes in which Marcus "investigates" new business opportunities such as legalize marijuana in CA, and the Puerto Rico episode along with his finding his own "roots."  I wonder if Marcus has enough money and resources to continue his investments or is trying to continue his series with more of a "bait and switch" plan (i.e. not investing). 

Con't get me wrong-I watch all of the versions of this show that he puts out, but it just seems the foci have changed.

[Whimsy]

Please take the "Inside Look" discussion to the original thread that aired for that episode.  No discussion of previous/other episodes belong in this thread.  Thanks. 

[toodles]

On 11/13/2019 at 7:59 PM, sskrill said:

I'm a local and was googling to see where this place was located - can't find anything with a current address, but my guess is somewhere off Industrial. 

But during my googling I see he somehow got a contract with Terribles, which is a big gas station chain here run by the longtime local family the Herbsts.  I was just in one this morning but didn't know they were there.  I'm going to try to stop in the next few days and see if they are on the shelves and how much they're selling for.  I can't really imagine a gas station selling a $13 coconut?  And it doesn't really scream upscale treat if its being sold in a gas station.

I'm a local too.  $12 for a coconut at a Herbst?  Hell no.

[TVbitch]

I'm with y'all. There is no fucking way Marcus didn't know all about the patent being bunk and this guy being uninvestable. Some of these scenes were so fake. Does Marcus not know why people watch his show and what they want from it? Know your market, Marcus!!!

[CocoVinny]

To all my Coco haters that have written so many coco loving and kind comments, I kindly ask that you continue criticizing and spreading that hatefulness. Our business is exploding in multiple territories and countries now and we have begun planting out over 40,000 coconut trees this year in Costa Rica and Puerto Rico. Everyone always overestimates what people can do in a year on TV but they completely underestimate what someone can do in 10 years in real life. All you living room bench warming quarterbacks out there have a special place in my heart and in this world. I invite you all to please keep sucking on our coconuts! 

Written sincerely with CocoLove

🥥❤️🌴CocoVinny 

[JayDub1987]

The guy is really so insecure that he waited 3 years to come in here and insult people who pointed out that he's looked like a horse's ass not once, but twice on national TV.