S08.E09: Barbell Apparel, PupBox, LineCutterz, Energybits

[chocolatine]

10 minutes ago, ClareWalks said:

Dear Christ Jesus on the cross. HARD PASS.

Do the sharks ever voice their opinions on aesthetics? As in, "I'm out because the clothes are hideous"?

[lh25]

16 hours ago, lordonia said:

Well, I thought to myself, shorts already have fairly roomy thighs since the typical Bermuda or board shorts silhouette flares out a bit.

But no! Barbell actually put this on their site as an example of a great fit.

Given the way the pants fit the guys doing the pitch, I'm not that surprised to see this.  They seem to have confused comfortable fit with showing off all they've worked for.

Speaking of the algae lady, has anyone else caught the commercial with Ted Danson and Kristen Bell?  Ordering smoothies where Spirulina is a choice to add in ?  Thought of this episode when I saw it.  Maybe she's right and algae is getting ready for another moment.  Still wouldn't have invested, she had no clue what she was doing.  "Skinny bits" that don't help lose weight indeed!

[ClareWalks]

31 minutes ago, lh25 said:

Given the way the pants fit the guys doing the pitch, I'm not that surprised to see this.  They seem to have confused comfortable fit with showing off all they've worked for.

I think you're right and that's what they're going for. The terrifying part is that these men don't understand that THIS is not showing off a woman's body. These shorts are so tight they would make any woman look fatter, because it cuts off around the thigh and creates a bulge. I guess this is what happens when stupid men design women's clothing. I can buy shorts that fit horribly just like that at any store in the country. What needs to exist are shorts that have a smaller waist and bigger leg holes. When shorts are tight around the thighs like that they look absolutely disgusting.

[Jersey Guy 87]

On 11/20/2016 at 0:54 AM, wings707 said:

Blue Green Algae was a huge fad in the 90s. I am shocked she didn't know that. The craze faded when most realized it did nothing and had bad skin reactions to it after taking it for a long time. 

Given how overall delusional that woman was I'm not surprised at all that she didn't know anything about it.

I knew Robert would be all over the puppies (and grabbing an extra one was a classic Robert move), I just can't believe it took those guys so long to say yes to his offer.  He was asking for less equity than Kevin and Damon and you know he's going to be into the company.

The fishing line thing seemed like a throw-away item.  If he's successful it will soon be in the bottom of lots of tackle boxes along with the other 37 tools fishermen have for cutting lines.

I wasn't that impressed by the jeans guys.  $150 for a pair of jeans is way more than I would ever pay (regular Levis work fine for me).

[MoreCoffeePlease]

On a shallow note, how I would love for a cool stylist to give Lori a new look when it comes to dresses and shoes.  She always wears form-fitting dresses, some with strange color-blocking, and then chunky, platform-type sandals.  I'd just love to see her in something a little more hip or fashionable, or just different.

[MakeMeLaugh]

Totally agree that Lori needs a makeover. I see in a Google search that they actually all wear the same clothes for editing continuity, but maybe she should wear some more subdued dresses in that case. 

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

Shark Tank Asks, 'What's It All About, Algae?'

And the answer is, it's about filling time between commercial breaks, as someone with no hope in hell of a deal is allowed to flail around while the Sharks twiddle their thumbs, waiting for a real business to come along.

[Wings]

3 hours ago, MoreCoffeePlease said:

On a shallow note, how I would love for a cool stylist to give Lori a new look when it comes to dresses and shoes.  She always wears form-fitting dresses, some with strange color-blocking, and then chunky, platform-type sandals.  I'd just love to see her in something a little more hip or fashionable, or just different.

I totally agree.  The blue dress she is wearing this season has a tacky edge to it.  And those shoes! She has a nice body so I get why she likes to look sexy but there are current ways to accomplish that.   I would like to see her in a black jumpsuit.    

Extensions are out and have been for about 3 years now.  Something like this would look good on her. 

[Wings]

6 hours ago, lh25 said:

Speaking of the algae lady, has anyone else caught the commercial with Ted Danson and Kristen Bell?  Ordering smoothies where Spirulina is a choice to add in ?  Thought of this episode when I saw it.  Maybe she's right and algae is getting ready for another moment.  Still wouldn't have invested, she had no clue what she was doing.  "Skinny bits" that don't help lose weight indeed!

Spirulina is algae.  This woman clearly has no idea that it is already on the market and being used and has been for a long time.  

Edited November 21, 2016 by wings707

[LotusFlower]

Re: the Bantam Bagels update - I think I've only seen one "Beyond the Tank" episode, but I could have sworn Lori convinced the couple to rename them "Stuffed Bagels" or "Bagel Stuffings," or something like that.  Am I remembering wrong?  Cuz the update showed the boxes sold in stores as Bantam Bagels (although "stuffed bagels" is next to it in smaller print).  Also, has anyone seen them at Starbucks?

[starri]

Lori TRIED to convince them to change the name to "Bagel Stuffins" and she was pretty much roundly mocked by the Internet.

[Amarsir]

To be fair, they went a different (and probably better) direction. Lori wanted them to be as common (and as commoner) as Pop-Tarts and sell in every Walmart freezer section. Instead they seem to be a Starbucks semi-exclusive. I'm not sure the first way wouldn't have worked but it's very much a bundled strategy.

[starri]

I mean, not that Starbucks is exactly high cuisine, but they started on Bleeker Street in the West Village.  They're trying to be aspirational.

[chocolatine]

43 minutes ago, starri said:

I mean, not that Starbucks is exactly high cuisine, but they started on Bleeker Street in the West Village.  They're trying to be aspirational.

I think the product is better suited for mass consumption. They're not in the same league as cronuts or the other pretentious baked goods that Manhattanites are into.

Edited November 22, 2016 by chocolatine

[bilgistic]

2 hours ago, LotusFlower said:

Also, has anyone seen them at Starbucks?

I commented on this in the Shark Tank products thread. The Starbucks in my building at work recently started carrying Bantam Bagels. I haven't bought them because I'm not that interested. I'd try a free sample.

Edited November 22, 2016 by bilgistic

[starri]

18 minutes ago, chocolatine said:

They're not in the same league as cronuts or the other pretentious baked goods that Manhattanites are into.

I wasn't sure we were even still doing cronuts.  

[chocolatine]

Just now, starri said:

I wasn't sure we were even still doing cronuts.  

I was just using it as an example for the kind of consumable that gets an "aspirational" following.

[starri]

I actually think there was a bagel ball trend a few years ago.  Either just before or just after cronuts.  Maybe contemporaneous with ramen burgers.

This is why the rest of the country hates us.

[LotusFlower]

2 hours ago, starri said:

Lori TRIED to convince them to change the name to "Bagel Stuffins" and she was pretty much roundly mocked by the Internet.

 

1 hour ago, Amarsir said:

To be fair, they went a different (and probably better) direction. Lori wanted them to be as common (and as commoner) as Pop-Tarts and sell in every Walmart freezer section. Instead they seem to be a Starbucks semi-exclusive. I'm not sure the first way wouldn't have worked but it's very much a bundled strategy.

Thanks guys.  Good for them for sticking with their guns, and going nationwide with Starbucks is certainly a big deal.  Besides, I don't think that precludes them from one day being sold in big supermarkets.  (Or does it?  Maybe Starbucks has an exclusive?)

[Jamoche]

3 hours ago, LotusFlower said:

 

Thanks guys.  Good for them for sticking with their guns, and going nationwide with Starbucks is certainly a big deal.  Besides, I don't think that precludes them from one day being sold in big supermarkets.  (Or does it?  Maybe Starbucks has an exclusive?)

They've been in my local Safeway for a while now. I tried them when they were on sale and decided cream cheese is not something that tastes good warm.

[chocolatine]

3 minutes ago, Jamoche said:

They've been in my local Safeway for a while now. I tried them when they were on sale and decided cream cheese is not something that tastes good warm.

I wonder if it's just their recipe that doesn't taste good, or a matter of personal taste. I'm from Eastern Europe, and I've eaten many warm foods with cream cheese filling, both sweet and savory: strudels, turnovers, kolaches, pierogi, etc. It was always delicious (makes me hungry just thinking about it).

[cooksdelight]

Back in the 80s and going forward, a family-owned grocery store in Richmond sold the bagel nuggets by the dozen. I used to use them much the way the Bantam people are doing, but I've yet to try one of these stuffed things. But reading about thoughts of warm cream cheese doesn't appeal to me at all.

[theatremouse]

14 hours ago, chocolatine said:

I wonder if it's just their recipe that doesn't taste good, or a matter of personal taste. I'm from Eastern Europe, and I've eaten many warm foods with cream cheese filling, both sweet and savory: strudels, turnovers, kolaches, pierogi, etc. It was always delicious (makes me hungry just thinking about it).

Possible difference: cream cheese filling is usually different than just straight cream cheese. To each his own though; this is often a matter of personal taste. If I put cream cheese on a toasted bagel, it'll get warm anyway, but that's not necessarily the same feeling or temp as cream cheese that's been baked in something. Also you made me want pierogi now.

I thought the shift to the Starbucks route was more about focusing on the product as not-frozen. They sell them in their own store still, don't they? So the stupid-name was for a mass-market-frozen-bake-at-home thing, and the store, and what they sell to Starbucks is in theory, not? So there were sort of three potential paths:

1) Focus on the shop and getting distribution in coffee shops (leads to the Starbucks deal)

2) Ditch the shop, focus on becoming a frozen consumer product (sort of like competing to be the next Totinos)

3) Continue to develop both.

The suggested name change was for strategically doing 2. But the owners put the kibosh on that, not just because of the name thing, and they did 1, and landed Starbucks and are now gangbusters. Who knows if 3 is still down the pike, or totally dropped.

[Missy Vixen]

We live a mile and a half from a Starbucks "test store". I haven't seen the stuffed bagel things yet.

[theatremouse]

I've seen them in a couple airport Starbuckses, which is pretty much the only time I go to Starbucks. Makes sense to have in the airport kind since it's an especially travelable food. Or seems like it would be since it's self-contained.

[bilgistic]

2 hours ago, theatremouse said:

I've seen them in a couple airport Starbuckses, which is pretty much the only time I go to Starbucks. Makes sense to have in the airport kind since it's an especially travelable food. Or seems like it would be since it's self-contained.

Thank you for using the proper plural form of "Starbucks"!

[starri]

Sneaky little Starbuckses...

[Lola16]

Bantams are in the Starbucks in the burbs around NYC too. Haven't tried one. Doesn't appeal to me.

[Shellie]

Crab rangoons are filled with warm cream cheese and I think they are delightful.

[Ottis]

On 11/18/2016 at 8:53 PM, WhosThatGirl said:

I'm surprised they never brought up Bark Box as well as it's the same thing. The only difference being that the box features on tonight's episode said they have ages and I think Bark Box doesn't care, but not one of the sharks mentioned that a popular product already exists.

Exactly. We are BB customers (two labs), and we kept wondering why no one asked if there were similar companies already out there.

[LeGrandElephant]

We were noticing how calm all those puppies were, and wondering if they were drugged beforehand. What are the odds of ALL the puppies being relaxed and quiet and not wanting to run around or chew on anything? Or maybe they just made sure to over-exercise them beforehand.