S07.E21: MobCraft, Beloved Shirts, IllumiBowl, Innovation Pet

[yeswedo]

Two men put going to the bathroom at night in a whole new light when their motion-activated LED light is attached to the toilet bowl; two guys use 21st century technology and the power of crowd sourcing to create an alternative to traditional beer; a self-proclaimed introvert wants to combat blah-looking clothes with vibrant fashions full of unusual flair; and two animal lovers present their interactive and innovative pet toys. Also, an update on the “Lose 12 Inches” workout program that teaches people how to exercise in their heart rate zone, in which Daymond John invested in during Season 4.

[starri]

 

Two men put going to the bathroom at night in a whole new light when their motion-activated LED light is attached to the toilet bowl

I'm sensing an opportunity for some cross-branded synergy with Squatty Potty.  Lori, you know what to do.

[Amarsir]

I'm sensing an opportunity for some cross-branded synergy with Squatty Potty.  Lori, you know what to do.

This is so not a new idea. Over a decade of watching investment & invention shows has taught me that inventors love toilets. But that never stopped Shark Tank before and I agree that it has Lori's name all over it.

[starri]

She's going to call it Potty Stuffins.

[bilgistic]

What's the deal with this episode? My TiVo didn't record it, and it's still not on Hulu or the ABC app. Only three comments...? Did it not air in the U.S.? (I'm in NC.)

[NikSac]

What's the deal with this episode? My TiVo didn't record it, and it's still not on Hulu or the ABC app. Only three comments...? Did it not air in the U.S.? (I'm in NC.)

Mine didn't either. I'm in California and I thought maybe it just was not on this week. Weird.

Edited March 9, 2016 by NikSac

[starri]

They were preempted last week.  It's on this Friday.

[bilgistic]

Thanks for the update!

[cooksdelight]

What a dud of an episode. Kevin gets the toilet gadget, and other than that the only thing I'll remember is Robert holding up the kitten. At first I thought it had peed on him, then it looked like he was trying to figure out the sex.

I was waiting for a kitten to latch itself onto the chicken coop, causing the chickens to squawk.

Those tunnels on the cat thing are way too small for my two tubbos. It's bad enough Sourpuss Seymour lays down to use the scratching post.

[mjc570]

Weird episode.  I wasn't excited about any of it, and I am a pretty regular purchaser of Shark Tank stuff (in fact, my Lumino is sitting right here, getting its battery recharged).

 

I thought the beer guy was absolutely right - once you outsource it, is it still a craft beer?  Or, perhaps I am naive.

The potty guys - that really showed the value of a good sense of humor.  I'm glad they got a deal.  I actually can see illuminated bowls becoming common (or, maybe they are now available, I just don't know).  It sounds like a pretty flexible market, from potty training to novelties.  Also - could it benefit the elderly?

 

The update on that cowboy - ugh, what an awful concept.  His gym looked so junky, I wouldn't go to someplace like that in a million years.  On the other hand, I'm not from or living in Texas, so I guess I'm not his target market. 

 

I didn't get the Beloved clothes thing at all - they sell clothes with designs?  Who doesn't?  I thought they were hideous, although the guy with the beard was kind of cute.  As the guy said, though, wouldn't any clothing line with a range of sizes necessarily have a lot of SKUs?

 

I wasn't impressed with the pet stuff, either, although it was a smart move to bring the live animals (especially since at least one of the cats was trained in mind control).  The cat connection didn't seems all that much fun, except for the part where other toys were triggered.  Was that dog house really designed to be used out of doors?  It didn't look very sturdy (or comfortable).

[augmentedfourth]

I thought the toilet light was priced exactly right for us to consider giving it a try. If we love it, great, we'll get one for the other bathroom. If not, we won't be weeping over that $19.99 we spent.

 

Some of the beers looked interesting, and I went to investigate and was annoyed by their website. Then I remembered there are enough local breweries within an hour's drive from me to no longer care about the guy on Shark Tank.

 

I joked to Mr. Fourth that I'm going to get him one of those shirts with his face and pizza on it for our next gift-giving occasion. Other than that, that guy and his company seemed weird, but apparently he's making money, so what do I know.

 

We both agreed that the pet people belonged on that SNL sketch with the lesbians at the cat shelter. Then again, we're not pet people.

 

...Yeah, that's all I got. Not the greatest episode.

[KaveDweller]

I thought the beer guy was absolutely right - once you outsource it, is it still a craft beer?  Or, perhaps I am naive.

The potty guys - that really showed the value of a good sense of humor.  I'm glad they got a deal.  I actually can see illuminated bowls becoming common (or, maybe they are now available, I just don't know).  It sounds like a pretty flexible market, from potty training to novelties.  Also - could it benefit the elderly?

 

Well Lori mentioned that Squatty Potty may have an "extension" that involves illumination, so I guess maybe it's been thought of before? During their pitch I found myself surprised to be thinking it was a good idea.  Especially when they started talking about little kids. I wouldn't buy one though, because there's a street light that shines through my bathroom window (despite having curtains) and it's never too dark.

 

I am not a beer drinker, but I thought the beer guy's flavors sounded interesting. I'm surprised he didn't get a deal. But I wonder why his two partners didn't pitch with him.

 

Were those clothes from the Beloved guy supposed to be ugly? I don't get the trend of buying ugly things on purpose.

[Jamoche]

Those tunnels on the cat thing are way too small for my two tubbos. It's bad enough Sourpuss Seymour lays down to use the scratching post.

Yeah, I've got a Maine Coon and I hate it when they show cat furniture with kittens - you have no clue how old the kitten is or how big the furniture really is. But that stuff looked *tiny*.

 

My grandfather made his own chicken coops. Lots of 1x1s and chicken wire, way less than $600.

[AndreaK1041]

What happened to Cuban's gluten sensitivity? Food product people often make a big deal about giving him gluten free but on this episode he talks about loving Bud Light?

[marny]

I think Mark does the gluten-free thing because he thinks it's healthier (it's not), not because he can't eat gluten.

[Saylii]

What happened to Cuban's gluten sensitivity? Food product people often make a big deal about giving him gluten free but on this episode he talks about loving Bud Light?

He doesn't have Celiac disease. He's bought into the woo of a gluten free lifestyle. I believe it stems from investments his wife made in that market and of course the believed health aspect.

[Primetimer]

Toilet lights, pepperoni-colored pajamas, cardboard cutout cats riding mechanical magic carpets -- you know, fairly run-of-the-mill stuff for our Shark Tank friends.

Read the story

[starri]

KITTIES!!!!!  The kitties didn't like Lori and loved Daymond.  Kitties have good instincts.  I found myself really hoping that Daymond got to take Darnell home, because that was freakin' adorable.

 

Did Robert invest in a company called Tipsy Elves?

 

I really like Daymond, but for the life of me, he can't find a way to invest with the beehive guy but is willing to pay Cowboy Guy's mortgage which he got behind on because of stupid business decisions?  And I was very impressed by the comments he'd made and how well he'd timed when he was going to cry when he was talking about hard times.

 

I guess Madison is the Brooklyn of Wisconsin?

[seacliffsal]

I really wanted one of the sharks to ask about the beer guy's asking price-$400,000 for a minimum percentage-that alone was crazy. Plus, unless one were voting on the weird flavors, would one really be interested in buying those flavors?

I thought the shirt guy was crazy to not take Daymond's offer. His problem is that his business is about 'customized' products. Well, he wants to expand and go into large retail-there goes the customized aspect. And, when tons of people start wearing the 'iconic' designs, they are no longer 'cool or hip.'

Kevin seems willing to make more offers-I wonder if it was suggested that he needs to be a viable investor...

[Latverian Diplomat]

Weird episode.  I wasn't excited about any of it, and I am a pretty regular purchaser of Shark Tank stuff (in fact, my Lumino is sitting right here, getting its battery recharged).

 

I thought the beer guy was absolutely right - once you outsource it, is it still a craft beer?  Or, perhaps I am naive.

 

 

I think that with a perishable product you need to have capacity available without delay (you can't make beer during a slow period for another brewer and then warehouse it for weeks or months).And it's a premium product so quality control is very important. So brewing capacity isn't as fungible as Kevin seems to think it is. That's probably why capacity is underutilized, as opposed to Kevin thinking brewers are just dumb.

 

 

I guess Madison is the Brooklyn of Wisconsin?

It's a college town (UW is very large and Madison is not that big). So think Eugene, OR. From what I've heard, Austin, TX and Athens, GA would also be similar in many ways.

 

Some of the beers looked interesting, and I went to investigate and was annoyed by their website. Then I remembered there are enough local breweries within an hour's drive from me to no longer care about the guy on Shark Tank.

 

Craft brewing is indeed everywhere, and there are a lot of creative flavors out there too. Or just really well done classics, which is usually more to my taste, but flavored beer can be fun once in a while.

 

I really wanted one of the sharks to ask about the beer guy's asking price-$400,000 for a minimum percentage-that alone was crazy. Plus, unless one were voting on the weird flavors, would one really be interested in buying those flavors?

Trying to do any sort of mail order with alcohol products is very difficult due to the crazy quilt of regulations. I think that's why they want to go into retail with the flavors that "work" the best. Aside from the social media aspects of the online business (which might be a great hook) they do seem to believe in the "crowd sourcing" idea as a way to develop products; which I think is interesting, but I'm not entirely convinced.

Edited March 12, 2016 by Latverian Diplomat

[AuntieDiane6]

 

Did Robert invest in a company called Tipsy Elves?

 

Yes. They make ugly Christmas sweaters. They're very popular on amazon.

 

 

My grandfather made his own chicken coops. Lots of 1x1s and chicken wire, way less than $600.

 

I'm sure they're marketing to urban chicken farmers with 1 or 2 chickens ... 

[Amarsir]

Well Lori mentioned that Squatty Potty may have an "extension" that involves illumination, so I guess maybe it's been thought of before? During their pitch I found myself surprised to be thinking it was a good idea. 

It's not really a new idea. Glow in the dark toilet seat covers have been a novelty for decades, and of course night lights are older than that. (Plus other variations like Christmas-type lights under the seat, etc.) However, I was surprised at liking the idea too. It's priced right, unintrusive, and the blue light looks good. We're gonna get followups on this (because Kevin doesn't have that many investments to plug) and I wouldn't be shocked to hear them doing a million in sales this year.

 

He doesn't have Celiac disease. He's bought into the woo of a gluten free lifestyle. I believe it stems from investments his wife made in that market and of course the believed health aspect.

To my recollection even that's overstating it. Mark isn't gluten free at all, for Celiac or any other health reason. He's just invested in it several times and knows some of the Mavs players avoid it. The reason we see him get the gluten-free products on the show is because he thinks it's a good market and wants to evaluate the product. Not because he's personally avoiding wheat.

[bilgistic]

The update on that cowboy - ugh, what an awful concept. His gym looked so junky, I wouldn't go to someplace like that in a million years. On the other hand, I'm not from or living in Texas, so I guess I'm not his target market.

Those posterboards with him shirtless looked like ads for a male strip club.

KITTIES!!!!! The kitties didn't like Lori and loved Daymond. Kitties have good instincts. I found myself really hoping that Daymond got to take Darnell home, because that was freakin' adorable.

As a cat mom, I'm terribly biased, and I also love when pets have people names. Darnell!

Yes. They make ugly Christmas sweaters. They're very popular on amazon.

[clunk sound]

On another note, the Innovation Pet man sure was an odd duck, no? (Pun.) He had some Lurch qualities.

Edited March 12, 2016 by bilgistic

[EAG46]

The angry toilet-seat man really sent you an e-mail, Phil? Why? It's not like it's your fault his idea sucked. And yeah the only thing that stuck with me about the episode was "Kitties! Puppies!"

[designing1]

 

The update on that cowboy - ugh, what an awful concept.  His gym looked so junky, I wouldn't go to someplace like that in a million years.

 

The entire concept seemed based on "let's get the cheapest shit we can find to outfit the gym then let a bunch of folks who clearly never exercise flail around with no instruction or attention to form." It all seemed so random.

 

Between this guy, the guy with the bees, and the kid with the bow ties, Daymond seems like a real sweetheart who supports people even when there's little to nothing in it for himself.

[Angeltoes]

This shows up in my Facebook feed all the time so this isn't an original idea.

http://www.glowbowl.com/

[Spunkygal]

 The update on that cowboy - ugh, what an awful concept.  His gym looked so junky, I wouldn't go to someplace like that in a million years.  On the other hand, I'm not from or living in Texas, so I guess I'm not his target market. 

It was an awful concept but why do you say that Texans are his target market? There are "cowboys" in various parts of the country and in fact, gym guy is in Colorado.

[PhilipMichaels]

The angry toilet-seat man really sent you an e-mail, Phil? Why? It's not like it's your fault his idea sucked. 

 

I refer you to the words of the great man himself, sent directly from his Hotmail account.

[bilgistic]

Custom domain names are $10 a year. He needs to get over himself and his special snowflake potty seat.

Edited March 13, 2016 by bilgistic

[starri]

People still have Hotmail accounts?

[RemoteControlFreak]

Eh.

 

Let's review

 

MobCraft:  Interesting concept but Kevin was right.  The company can't really grow if it insists on brewing all in its own beer. I think there are plenty of available breweries out there that they could contract with to brew up their small custom batches.  The bigger problem is that the novelty of gambling $25 that you'll like a weird brew will wear off as soon as someone gets a flavor that they thought would be good but tastes like cat piss.

 

Printed clothing:  Absolutely nothing unique with this, though the quality seemed pretty low, so there's that.

 

Toilet seat:  A few big problems.  1) There are plenty of these products already on the market, many selling for less than $20.  See http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=motion+activated+toilet+light  2) It only aids navigation within the bathroom IF the toilet lid is up and a lot of people keep the toilet lid down between uses, AND 3) it only works if the toilet is located such that the sensor isn't blocked by, say, a vanity or shower wall or something.   People would be better off getting one of the cheaper toilet bowl illuminators and lighting up the bathroom with a regular old motion-activated LED night light.

 

Animal stuff:  Huh?  I don't have pets but, still, it should not be hard to understand what they have. I didn't understand what they have.

Edited March 13, 2016 by RemoteControlFreak

[LittleIggy]

"Darnell" was so precious snuggling beside Daymond! I didn't know Daymond was a cat guy. Good on him!

[needschocolate]

T-shirt guy confused me with the numbers - I thought he said that he has 22,000 SKUs because each size has its own SKU and the sizes range from XS to XXXL.  That means 7 sizes per design.  That is still over 3,000 designs.  If each design also comes in sweatshirts and pajamas, all of varying sizes, and hats and backpacks, then maybe he is down to "only" 700-800 designs.  Still way too many.  And, unless you are really into pepperoni pizza or like to joke with your friends about unicorns barfing rainbows, the designs are not good.  

 

Did pet guy say that they applied for a patent on the chicken coop door?  A door that more than one chicken can come out of at the same time is patent-worthy?

 

I don't drink beer - I hate the taste.  I have tasted flavored beers, and, to me, they still taste horrible.  I have no idea who was right - beer guy or Kevin, but based on my knowledge of Kevin, I am taking beer guy's side.  

 

Speaking of Kevin, he often throws in these "facts" and stories connected to the product.  I doubt he knows that much information about such a large variety of things (I heard about his Jeopardy appearance).  My question is - does he know what products will be on and researches them ahead of time or are the presentations so long that he has time to sit there and google facts on his phone.   

Toilet seat:  A few big problems.  1) There are plenty of these products already on the market, many selling for less than $20.  See http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=motion+activated+toilet+light  2) It only aids navigation within the bathroom IF the toilet lid is up and a lot of people keep the toilet lid down between uses, AND 3) it only works if the toilet is located such that the sensor isn't blocked by, say, a vanity or shower wall or something.   People would be better off getting one of the cheaper toilet bowl illuminators and lighting up the bathroom with a regular old motion-activated LED night light.

 

All good points.  My master toilet is in a room with the shower, with the sink on the other side of the door/wall, and there is no windows nor electrical outlets in the shower/toilet room.  I have seen many model homes where the toilet has a room to itself, also without windows or outlets. There is no place to plug in a nightlight.  I solved this issue by getting a $5 battery operated light.  

 

I can see how this toilet light could be a cool way to provide lighting - until you sit down and you block all the light.  Perhaps it is only useful as a man's "number 1" light.

 

The idea of projecting an image into the bowl might be fun for parties (a shamrock for St. Patrick's day, A snowman for Christmas, etc.  But would it work if there is already light in the room (from the light in the hallway or from a window in the daytime) or if someone turns on the light? 

[starri]

I was looking over some of Beloved Shirts offerings.

 

They're horrible.  All of them.  There is not a single one that I like, and I'm a man with a large collection of novelty t-shirts.  And honestly, I'd expect this stuff to be pitched with hipster irony, and maybe I just missed it during the episode, but he seemed completely earnest to me.

[bilgistic]

I trust your judgment, starri, and don't need to look. Plus, the pepperoni pizza print looked revolting to me. It all looked so cheap.

[ClareWalks]

I thought the toilet light was such a stupid idea. I was joking that Mark would be like "I'M OUT" as soon as they introduced their product's name. You can get a nightlight at Walmart for $2 if you're that concerned about bathroom illumination. And all this talk about "not waking up" from the light is insane to me. It's not like you're literally sleepwalking to the bathroom to pee. You are awake. You go back to sleep afterward. 

 

The rodeo abs update was interesting. I thought that "12 inches in 12 workouts" sounded way too gimmicky and bullshitty to work. Glad he is sticking with the rodeo gyms, I think that would appeal to a decent number of people. Stay off the internet, though, dude. Nobody needs another DVD with false fitness promises.

[Actionmage]

but on this episode he talks about loving Bud Light?

 

I live in the DFW area and assumed that his publicly stated enjoyment of Bud Lite was prompted by his professional ties through the AAC (American Airlines Center); it is sold in the arena.  It may be more courtesy for a concessionaire than actual personal taste.

[BabyVegas]

Plus, the pepperoni pizza print looked revolting to me. It all looked so cheap.

I don't know, I usually trust noted classic style icon and paragon of good taste, Katy Perry, to advise me on what sort of clothing I should be purchasing. (Just kidding, that stuff looked so cheap and tacky I wouldn't wear it if it were free.)

 

As for IllumiBowl, there's any number of solutions. In the house I grew up in, we had a dimmer switch. If you needed to use the bathroom in the middle of the light, just don't flick the dimmer switch all the way up. As many others have said, a nightlight would work. The special thing about this product seemed to be that it would light the bowl directly. I'm not usually her biggest fan, but I thought Lori got blown off way more than she should have when she asked if this was primarily a male-oriented product. I couldn't see any use for most women for this product. If its primary purpose is to light the way to the toilet, there are plenty of other cheaper solutions. If it was to light up your target, not exactly an issue for most women. To me this product was a solution in need of a problem and I wouldn't have given it a dime.

[LittleIggy]

I was looking over some of Beloved Shirts offerings.

 

They're horrible.  All of them.  There is not a single one that I like, and I'm a man with a large collection of novelty t-shirts.  And honestly, I'd expect this stuff to be pitched with hipster irony, and maybe I just missed it during the episode, but he seemed completely earnest to me.

The only one I liked was one with an upside down sloth on it because I adore sloths. However, I didn't like it $65 worth. The stuff all seemed overpriced.

[columbot]

Going by the first two presenters I thought this was going to be an all-hipster themed episode. Nothing hipper than crowdfunding, craft beer (and the word "craft" in general), and quirky clothing. 

 

Kevin is the butt of every joke from every presenter. How many times have we seen entrepreneurs mess around with pictures of him during their presentations? I guess when people are putting your face in a toilet bowl there's nothing you can do but laugh it off. Of course he invested in them anyway, which seemed like a deal made of desperation from him, just for the sake of getting another deal. If Squatty Potty's already doing illumination, these guys have no chance. Can't compete with that JUGGERNAUT.

 

I don't think the pet people were married to each other or anything, but they both seem like people who call their partners "lovers".

[Jersey Guy 87]

The clothing guy seemed like a waste of time to me - nothing in his designs appealed to me and a 30 day turnaround to order a shirt is way too long.

 

Toilet seat light?  A night light works just as well.

 

The pet supply people were odd and I didn't see anything special in their stuff.

 

The crowd-sourced beer guys were interesting, but I don't think their pitch was as good as it could have been.  Having two sour beers in the tasting flight was excessive for that audience.  Sour beers can be an acquired taste, throwing two sours at the sharks was probably questionable at best.  While the idea of having a different beer each month is interesting it would be nice if they had some regular beers and then rotate in the crowd-sourced choices (maybe that's what they are trying to do with an investment).  Craft brewers who are successful usually do so based on one or two beers that become well known (think of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Stone's Arrogant Bastard, etc.).  Being known as the crowd sourced brewery might be something that catches on but if the winning beer in a given month is one I'm not interested in then I'm not going to buy any beer from them that month.

 

I do agree with them that there's no reason to go looking for renting excess capacity from some other brewery.  Plenty of brewers have been successful doing their own brewing.

[bilgistic]

I don't think the pet people were married to each other or anything, but they both seem like people who call their partners "lovers".

This made me laugh and laugh. So on the nose.

[break21]

Craft-beer guy is going to run into a mountain of problems with mail-order.  Some states, you can't ship alcohol.  I'm in MD - you have to order directly from them and someone has to present I.D. and sign,  It's a nightmare at this point.

[Jersey Guy 87]

On their web site they list the states they cannot ship to (8 states total) and indicate that you have to be present to sign for your delivery (they suggest shipping to your office if you aren't home during the day).  Which it typical for mail-order beer and wine so this isn't something unique to them.

 

Their prices actually seem fairly reasonable - $25 for four 22 ounce bottles of beer which is a little over $6/bottle.  I've seen plenty of 22 ounce bottles going for more than that.

 

A local brewery near me currently only sells direct from the brewery in refillable growlers once a month.  Distribution is a tough problem for new brewers to solve as each state as its own set of rules that have to be obeyed, labels submitted, etc.  Mobcraft has skipped that problem.  I may decide to give them a try just to see how their beers are.

[ClareWalks]

Question: is "craft" beer like "artisan" bread/cheese/tampons or something? In other words, is it just a buzzword or does it actually mean something? Is it the same as a microbrew?

[starri]

I suppose there's some esoteric difference, but it's one of those words that gets attached to things to make them sound fancier than they actually are.  Like "small batch" or "single origin."

 

I'm thinking of using my Innovation Pet chicken coop to start a small-batch egg business, which, like an African children's charity, you receive the name and photo of the chicken who laid the eggs.  I'm going to ask for $75,000 for a 5% stake.

[bilgistic]

That reminded me of that stupid-ass Yoplait commercial with the auto-tuned voice that says something like, "I'd like to meet the cow that made this!"

[guilfoyleatpp]

lol @ artisan tampon.  Oh my, if you only knew the things I've seen in the mommy FB groups. I cannot elaborate.

 

I thought the clothes were incredibly cheap looking. Nothing cool about ugly designs on a cheap fabric.

 

There's something about the cowboy guy that creeps me out. I can't pinpoint it.

[Jersey Guy 87]

Question: is "craft" beer like "artisan" bread/cheese/tampons or something? In other words, is it just a buzzword or does it actually mean something? Is it the same as a microbrew?

 

Microbrew and craft beer are essentially the same thing.  There's an official definition used by the Brewers Association (an organization for smaller brewers) that mainly includes how much beer a brewer can brew per year (the limit is currently 6 million barrels) and ownership (less than 25% of the brewery can be owned by an alcohol company that is not a craft brewer).  Microbreweries have a lower annual brewing limit.  There's some debate about the "official" definition as some brewers of great beer are purchased by larger brewers (often for huge amounts of money) - according to the Brewers Association the brewers are no longer craft brewers but their beers are often still of the same high quality.

 

There are tons of craft brewers (including microbreweries and brew pubs).  Some are very, very good, some produce crap, most are in between.  Craft beer is the leading area of growth for breweries right now which is why the "big boys" are buying up craft brewers.

[ae2]

Something amuses me about thinking, "I need to express my personality more in my attire, so let's wear some ugly ass clothing to show who I really am!"

 

Sure, the 30 day wait time is probably hurting your conversion rate, but it also probably has something to do with charging $130 for a hideous adult onesie. It makes me think of Oprah's Favorite Things list this year which included a $200 pair of cotton sweat pants. They're probably your favorite because you're the only person in the world who can afford them.

 

Speaking of Kevin, he often throws in these "facts" and stories connected to the product.  I doubt he knows that much information about such a large variety of things (I heard about his Jeopardy appearance).  My question is - does he know what products will be on and researches them ahead of time or are the presentations so long that he has time to sit there and google facts on his phone.   

 

The show has made it clear that the sharks know nothing about the company before they come in and pitch (unless they have somehow encountered it organically). Interviews with several sharks have confirmed this.

 

The pitches are often 45 minutes to 2 hours real time, so I wouldn't be surprised if Kevin looked up facts or stories on his phone to make comparisons. I also wouldn't be surprised if producers fed him some of those through his ear piece. That said, while Kevin did absolutely awful on his Jeopardy appearance, it's still very possible that he's an intelligent business man with a lot of knowledge in specialized areas of finance and business and wine, but not much general knowledge like Jeopardy requires.

Edited March 18, 2016 by ae2