S09.E16: G.O.A.T., The Longhairs, Joe's Gourmet Fish Fry / S09.E17: ZUP, BOOBIE BAR, Pandaloon, Alice's Table

[hoodooznoodooz]

Seafood breading mix; pet communication; re-engineered bathrobe; men's long hair needs; Brightwheel update 

 

Idea for empowering women; way to ease people into water sports; food item for breastfeeding moms; animal-themed pet apparel 

Edited January 15, 2018 by hoodooznoodooz

[ddawn23]

The second hour was the episode of solving problems that don't exist.  Lactation bars and cookies are as easy to make as chocolate chip cookies, and there are a million recipes on Pinterest.  Ain't nobody drinking six cups of lactation tea a day.  And flower arranging classes are like $10 or $20 at your local Michael's or Hobby Lobby.

I'm not sure how the flower class business was actually supposed to work with the stated goal of empowering women to open their own offshoot businesses.  Flower classes was just supposed to be a test market of sorts.  So what, 1: Get women to do MLM-style party flower arranging events.  2: ???  3: Multifaceted women-centric national business with a bunch of non flower-related income streams.  What am I missing?

[hoodooznoodooz]

How is Brightwheel different from ClassDojo? The billing and staff capabilities?

I am curious as to whether or not that GOAT woman was really such a pet product industry expert. I am hoping the deal with Robert falls through during due diligence.

I kept thinking of Weinstein during the robe segment. 

Edited January 15, 2018 by hoodooznoodooz

[LittleIggy]

I have seen that GOAT thing in Petsmart but never gave it more than a cursory glance. I thought maybe it was so you could talk to your pets while you were away from home. I still don’t understand what it does. 

The Shark boys wearing the wigs was hilarious (especially Mr. Wonderful).

As a Big Lebowski devotee, I take umbrage at the use of the term “Dude” to brand that overpriced get up.

[mjc570]

Yeah, I didn't get the flower arranging thing at all.  I understand that what was being invested in wasn't so much the flower arranging thing, but the platform that could allow prepackaging material for other types of businesses, like a mini-franchise.  Buy our stuff and open your own "business' - which in this case, I guess is selling tickets to (and arrnaging)  flower arranging classes. This whole "executive" selling ticket thing seems kind of pyramidish to me. 

I missed the first part of the first episode, came in on the end of the woman in the Sleeping beauty (?) costume, so I didn't quite understand the whole pet speaker thing.  They were cute though.  She seemed kind of tiring to work with,  I thought the name GOAT was pretentious, ridiculous and not related to the product. 

I was almost offended by the "Dude Robe" guy, although I liked both the butler and the model.  They were ill-fitting, looked uncomfortable and unstylish and I can't imagine a more unimaginative name than "dude robe."  I had to laugh because I thought the guy looked a million times better in the old-school robe.

I don't know why Mark, Laurie and Sara gave that nice lactation nurse such a hard time over the lack of clinical trials.  They are tremendously expensive, there is no way she could have that at this stage of her business.  I don't think energy bars do that - I'm looking at a Luna bar right now, which says it is crafted to "give you energy."  Certainly there are "medicinal" teas whose claims haven't been clinically proven.  Sure you can make your own, but there are a lot of people (like me) that would rather buy some bars than make them. 

Speaking of Sara - ugh!  Why is she on this show?  Beside her own, what businesses has she developed?  I can't even imagine what she brings to the table, which I give Damon credit for recognizing when he refused to partner with her.  I guess, given her outfit, this is part of her previous stint, I sure hope there are no more episodes with her.  I don't like to comment on peoples' appearance, but she really needs to smile less, those huge teeth and bright lipstick are so distracting. 

I loved the long-haired guys, and the wigs!  Their hair ties really looked like good quality and the  designs were really atractive.  I'm so glad Laurie didn't make them an offer - saying she would redesign them with skulls to make them 'edgy" was missing the whole point, I think.  I give Robert props for the man-bun. 

Finally, I am so glad the last person got a deal, just because her partner was so adorable.  Actually, she seems super smart, super nice.  If I had the money, I would totally invest in her.  The doggie costumes were adorable, and I bet there is a huge market for them.  I have a real dog (not a rat dog), and while we don't get her costumes, she is very well accessorized (actually I am in the market now for more collar covers).  I love that Damon would donate a chunk of his equity to dog charities. 

Edited January 15, 2018 by mjc570
fixed! Damon is not Robert, altho they are often confused

[LittleIggy]

Damon invested in the doggie costume biz. Robert wasn’t there.

[hoodooznoodooz]

Who did she say pays for the flowers? 

Arranging flowers is not that difficult. 

[bilgistic]

What focus group is telling these guys that DudeFillinTheBlank is a good name for a product? DudeWipes are stupid and DudeRobe is stupid. DudeHairbows for the trifecta.

I don't believe that Mark goes to Target to buy his sweats.

Someone needs to tell the band Nelson that Goody has sold a pack of extra-strong black elastic hair bands since the dawn of time. They're, like, $3.99 for 20. They also have some that match shades of hair (blond, brunette, etc.). I'm not a dude, but I've had long hair for 95% of my life. I've never worn pink or purple "girly" hair accessories/fasteners.

I agree that the flower thing made no sense.

[mjc570]

8 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

Damon invested in the doggie costume biz. Robert wasn’t there.

Fixed, thanks

[readster]

10 hours ago, hoodooznoodooz said:

How is Brightwheel different from ClassDojo? The billing and staff capabilities?

 

That's part of it, plus ClassDojo works as classroom management, behavior and reward control. As a tech teacher who has used ClassDojo off and on for the past few years. I have found ClassDojo to work great in K-4, but then it starts to lose students. However, I did try ClassDojo in PK-3-K and half the kids got the concept, but then it went from there. Brightwheel works in the younger classrooms as it does everything: assignments, management, point system, parent contact, and even teacher share. So, if you are looking for the things that ClassDojo can't do, Brightwheel is the answer then go with Seesaw after that and then either Google Classroom or Canvas when students ready high school level. 

[basiltherat]

That flower arranging "platform" is nothing new --Avon Ladies have been around (for I was going to say 50 years, but just Wikid to find out its over 100 years).  But its Millennial, so it must be better.  Flower arranging seems like something so old school that it may be insulting to the "empowered" modern woman, who would rather be dealing with other kinds of STEMs.

I absolutely HATE all the presenters here who put their poor dogs in fur straightjackets or tuxedos or hair bows (unless you're a poodle).  I think that's pet abuse.  Hey, Sarah, how about Spanx for dogs?!

Why would that one guy tell the sharks he blew a deal with Under Armour -- it shows how bad his judgment was then, and by telling this, how bad it is now.

[seacliffsal]

I was shocked that Mark made a deal with flower women at $250,000 for 10%.  I just don't see the market.  Plus, she gets 30% of all ticket sales while the "exec" holding the event still needs to buy flowers and all of the other components for the making of the floral arrangements.  All of the participants would need the cutters, containers, flowers, etc., and that has got to add up as flowers are expensive all on their own.  And the alcohol!  She said they drink while putting the arrangements together.  She seemed so proud of herself and Mark was right there with her.  I actually thought that Kevin might have been able to make it work as he would have the contact lists for all of the people who attend those paint and wine events (and this seems similar).

I was losing patience with the main guy from Zup as he did not answer questions, but rather went on about his four daughters.  When he first mentioned his four daughters and started crying, one of the other guys put his hand on his shoulder and I was really concerned as I thought he was going to say that something horrible had happened to his daughters.  Nope, he cried at the fact that he has four daughters.  He would drive me crazy in business meetings.  

I still don't understand the whole Snow White and your dogs will be able to speak to you thing.  I think one reason that a lot of Robert's deals don't go through is that he is often willing to 'take a chance' on products and people and I would bet that most of them don't clear the due diligence phase of the negotiations.  I would have loved to see Robert interact with the Pandaloon puppy.

[scootypuffjr]

I didn't understand that GOAT thing at all. It plays your music? I have an mp3 player that does that, or I could do that on my smart phone instead. It takes pictures? So does my phone. It makes my dog "talk" (only not really)? People talk on their dog's behalf all the time, in real time and not in prerecorded(?) remarks. I don't think the dog would appreciate having all this noise so close to their sensitive ears anyway. They were marginally cute, I guess, but I couldn't see the need for something like that at all. I was surprised she got a deal.

I have a short-haired pit/Dalmatian mix with zero body fat, so I understand the need for dog clothes. As in a sweatshirt or jacket, for warmth. Nothing is more unattractive to me than a dog in a dress for some reason. That just doesn't work for me, plus it's only for vanity/silliness rather than really fulfilling a need. I admit I enjoy the Facebook videos of dogs dressed up as "people" - arms, full costume etc but would never do that to my own dogs, even for a short while. Plus they are way too big for that kind of thing. But a lot of people really seem to enjoy doing that to their dogs, so I suppose there is a market for that one, whether I approve or not.

I wish that just once someone would come in, ask for something like $499,000 for 9% and the sharks would say nope, not interested, just turn around right now without even getting to make your pitch and get the free advertising from appearing on the show. Some of these valuations are flat out ridiculous.

[BusyOctober]

Did Sara Blakely just jump of a parade float on the way to the Tank?  What in the name of the fashion gods was she wearing???  All she needed was a pair of mouse ears and she'd be Minnie dressed as a waitress on her way to work at the Downtown Disney Diner.

I didn't like very many of these products in either episode.  The fish fry people were the only people and product I liked.  I don't get the speaking animal collar/app thingy, but I know serious pet people will buy almost anything for their fur babies.  I also think her name/brand is dumb. G.O.A.T may stand for "Greatest Of All Time" these days (Hi Tom Brady! See you in Super Bowl LII!). But unless you see it spelled out as an acronym, it's not "great".  If I hear it out loud, I hear "goat" and assume someone is hawking products for goats or made with goat hair/milk. I would never in a million years think "doggie speakers".

No to the Dude Robe - Hello?? $220 a set?? It's friggin' sweatpants & a hoodie!  Target, Walmart, JC Penney, Old Navy, even every gift shop in every tourist site on Earth ALL sell these already.

No to the Dude Hair Ties - see above locations plus eleventy-million other vendors selling this very basic item.  And if I'm a head-bangin' dude-bro, don't I want my lovely rocking locks to just flow?

No to Flower Pyramid Scheme - everything from paint nights, plant nights, sign or furniture paint classes, cooking instruction, ceramics has been done.  It may be the new fad to do flower arranging, but I don't think it has long term sustainability.

No to Zup guys- you cry and you're dead to me (TM Mr. Wonderful).  

Meh to Boobie Bar - there are lots of lactation specific nutritional items out there.  But like pet parents, some human moms will but anything in the name of doing the healthiest thing for their baby.  I guess as long as it isn't harmful, some women could benefit.

[LittleIggy]

I’m glad I’m not the only one who didn’t understand WTF the purpose of those GOAT things was

Edited January 15, 2018 by LittleIggy

[hoodooznoodooz]

If the GOAT woman could have come up with something that resembled the baby translator, as on The Simpsons, that might be more appealing. If a collar or harness could detect increased heart rate: "Squirrel! Let me at him!" or "Let's take a break from running." Or detect a stomach growl, "When was the last time you fed me?"

In Danny DeVito's voice, of course.

[lexytheblasian]

Most of the products last night sucked. The lady in the Snow White get-up was kinda... kooky. I'm glad the fish-batter couple got a deal. I laughed hysterically along with the sharks during the wig segment and the panda-dog suit segment.

[TVbitch]

The way that water board guy was crying, I thought he was going to say his daughter lost a finger on a badly designed board or something!

Don't mind when Mark goes off on an obvious snake oil product, but there is generally accepted herbal properties in lactation herbs, and like that one woman is going to be able to finance double blind controlled clinically stuides that cost millions and millions of dollars. Plus, herbs cannot be patented, Mark! That is why a lot of them are not "proven" by such studies, no money in it.

I get sad when people dress up dogs or carry them around in bags or treat them like babies. I have several friends who do this, and it seems to have utterly removed the essential "dogness" from the dogs. Their "fur children" seem to have a lot more anxiety and be overly attached to them such that they cannot even enjoy being out of sight of their "parent".  They are dogs --not children or toys to dress up and put on Instagram. That's just my opinion.

Edited January 15, 2018 by TVbitch

[chocolatine]

Maybe I'm just getting more cynical the more I watch this show, but I hated almost every pitch in last night's episodes. Worst offender for me was the flower arranging woman. When she introduced it as "empowering women to start their own businesses" I was prepared to hear about a platform that helps with business plans, IP strategy, financing, state paperwork, etc., as a one-stop-shop, which would be a fantastic resource but really difficult to pull off. But no, all she has is a pyramid scheme around a twee activity. What has Mark been smoking???

Second worst offender is a tie between the Zup dude who couldn't mention his children without crying, and the GOAT woman with her completely useless product.

Long hair guys tried hard and even got blowouts for the occasion, but similar products have been around for ages and cost much less than the ones they pitched. I loved the wigs on the male Sharks though, especially Daymond tying his dreadlocks into pigtails.

DudeRobe: what's the male equivalent to "basic bitch?"* Because that's the only demographic I can see being interested in that product.

Sara Blakely contributes nothing. I want Rohan Oza back, at least his self-deprecation is funny.

*Now that I've given it some thought, I'll say "basic Mitch."

[SnarkyTart]

43 minutes ago, chocolatine said:

Maybe I'm just getting more cynical the more I watch this show, but I hated almost every pitch in last night's episodes.

It's not just you.  This was the first time I could remember that every single product on the show was either completely incomprehensible (GOAT and flower lady), or downright stupid (duderobe).  The only one that seemed like a real product to me was the fish fry batter, even though they didn't tell me much about what made it special or different (just that it's the Best.Evah!) 

[sasha206]

8 hours ago, basiltherat said:

That flower arranging "platform" is nothing new --Avon Ladies have been around (for I was going to say 50 years, but just Wikid to find out its over 100 years).  But its Millennial, so it must be better.  Flower arranging seems like something so old school that it may be insulting to the "empowered" modern woman, who would rather be dealing with other kinds of STEMs.

I absolutely HATE all the presenters here who put their poor dogs in fur straightjackets or tuxedos or hair bows (unless you're a poodle).  I think that's pet abuse.  Hey, Sarah, how about Spanx for dogs?!

Why would that one guy tell the sharks he blew a deal with Under Armour -- it shows how bad his judgment was then, and by telling this, how bad it is now.

The flower arranging platform and her concept just aggravated the fuck out of me.  The woman had the worst voice and irritated me from the get go.  The "empowerment" bullshit and the "Execs" sealed the deal.  And when did having a good time involve a class and alcohol?  Not that I'm opposed to it but there's nothing novel in it.   The drink and painting concept already done.  Other than having Moscow Mules, her concept is essentially no different than any of the marketing schemes currently out there that basically target people who are hoping for a get rich quick scheme and end up buying tons of product they can't get rid of.  I hate hearing this empowerment crap.  You're doing this to line your wallet and you're going to make your money off of people that don't really want to work that hard and likely won't make  much off of this.

Also hate the pet costume stuff.  

The robe guy.  So he's worried about someone's junk being exposed so he creates a rob that doesn't cover your junk and you have to wear sweatpants with it.  Personally, I've never dated any man that even owns a robe.  I don't own a robe.  It seems like a very outdated concept.  You dry yourself off with towels, then you get dressed.  Or if you do own a robe and were worried about your junk exposed, you'd likely just put on some underwear.  Or get dressed.  

The hair tie for men is another completely ridiculous, overpriced product.  When I had long hair, I didn't want to wear some patterned hair tie.  I did the black Goody's version and that was enough for me.  I guess there are people that buy the product but it's a solution for a problem that doesn't exist.

Lastly, the GOAT thing was ridiculous.  I really don't want to burden my poor dog's ears with a speaker attached to her collar so I can pretend she talks or to stream music.  It would be obnoxious to walk a dog and stream your music down the neighborhood.  I also don't believe dogs, with their sensitive hearing would feel relaxed with classical music playing on their collar.    It looked bulky, it was stupid.  

Edited January 16, 2018 by sasha206

[SnarkyTart]

7 minutes ago, sasha206 said:

I also don't believe dogs, with their sensitive hearing would feel released with classical music playing. 

They don't, that's a fact.  The Scottish SPCA and the University of Glasgow published a research paper in 2017 that showed that dogs are most relaxed and calmed by listening to reggae music.  It seems weird, but those were their findings.  Since then, I stream a reggae music station whenever I leave my dog alone for an extended period of time.  He's gotten so conditioned to it now that, as soon as I put the reggae music on, he runs into his crate and lays down to wait for me to come home.  Still, I'd never attach a speaker to his collar to play it!

Edited January 16, 2018 by SnarkyTart

[lexytheblasian]

2 hours ago, chocolatine said:

Sara Blakely contributes nothing. I want Rohan Oza back, at least his self-deprecation is funny.

I agree. I didn’t like Rohan Oza at first (I usually dislike guest sharks in general) but he’s grown on me. Blakey is just... I don’t know. Something about her annoys me.

 

2 hours ago, chocolatine said:

 

Maybe I'm just getting more cynical the more I watch this show, but I hated almost every pitch in last night's episodes.

 

I’ve seen nearly every episode of Shark Tank and honestly thought that’s why I also hated most of the pitches. Glad I’m not the only one. 

 

1 hour ago, SnarkyTart said:

The only one that seemed like a real product to me was the fish fry batter, even though they didn't tell me much about what made it special or different (just that it's the Best.Evah!) 

I tweeted to Daymond during the show that I just might try that product (all of the Sharks live tweet during new episodes) and whomever runs the twitter handle for the company responded to me. Lame, I know but I find it slightly amusing when twitter handles with blue checks actually respond back. Long story short I agree with you lol. 

Edited January 16, 2018 by lexytheblasian

[sasha206]

54 minutes ago, SnarkyTart said:

They don't, that's a fact.  The Scottish SPCA and the University of Glasgow published a research paper in 2017 that showed that dogs are most relaxed and calmed by listening to reggae music.  It seems weird, but those were their findings.  Since then, I stream a reggae music station whenever I leave my dog alone for an extended period of time.  He's gotten so conditioned to it now that, as soon as I put the reggae music on, he runs into his crate and lays down to wait for me to come home.  Still, I'd never attach a speaker to his collar to play it!

How funny about reggae music relaxing dogs!  But I agree, the thought of putting a speaker on my dog's collar and streaming music offends me.  

[Gregg247]

I've been watching Shark tank since S1, and I think the G.O.A.T. lady had the worst product in the history of the show (and that includes Jimmy Kimmel's "comedy" products that he sometimes presents).

The "empowering women through flower arranging" lady took the biggest deal (thanks to Mark), but I think Kevin actually had the right idea about it; its more like his "painting classes while drinking wine" company; its just a simple excuse to get people together in a social and slightly interesting atmosphere.  I don't think an all-female version of Google is going to get incubated here.

The fish fry batter looked really good.  I live in Atlanta, and you'd better believe I'm going to hunt this stuff down this weekend!

[hoosiermom]

I just ordered the fish fry batter online. They have a special Shark Tank order which is 5 bags plus 1 free and free shipping for $25.

[augmentedfourth]

I can't believe the flower arranging woman got a deal, as it seemed like such an obvious pyramid scheme. (And I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who thought so.) And is flower arranging really still a thing these days? Do people still do that, let alone take classes to get better at it? There must have been a huge amount left on the cutting room floor for this segment because there was a giant leap between "I have some other ideas for starting businesses" and Mark singing her praises and offering the deal.

 

I thought the G.O.A.T. was absolutely nuts at first, with or without the costume, but she had pretty impressive sales, so good for her, I guess?

 

I agree with everyone who thought Mark, Lori, and Sara were too hard on the lactation bar presenter. It wasn't totally unexpected from Mark, but it's not like her claims were over-the-top and nonsensical, like some other products we've seen pitched. If anything, I don't think she emphasized the percentage of repeat customers she had, as it was fairly high, if I recall correctly. Clearly that's not proof, but with how stressed (emotionally and financially) new mothers can be, I can't see them continuing to shell out money for a product that does absolutely nothing for them (even if it's just a quick way to get something healthy-ish to eat).

[hoodooznoodooz]

Ugh. Lori using a baby voice to thank Daymond for handing her the Boobie Bars. 

I wish these entrepreneurs could pitch without the super-rehearsed arm and hand gestures.

Whenever I see the name Sara Blakely, I think, "Blake Lively--she's so pretty."

Boy, Mark was looking at Sara with such disdain and rage when he was saying, "Lots of claims, not lots of proof," regarding the lactation bars. 

Kevin is so condescending. Why am I still surprised by how he speaks to the entrepreneurs.

So happy Daymond made an offer to the lactation nurse. 

Lori's tomato red dress with the zipper was not horrible!

Huxley looked really cute, and it was extremely fun seeing Daymond laugh and look as if was going to pee in his pants. But I agree with others here that, unless it's to keep your pets warm or comfortable, dressing them in outfits seems cruel and disrespectful. 

[sasha206]

11 hours ago, augmentedfourth said:

I can't believe the flower arranging woman got a deal, as it seemed like such an obvious pyramid scheme. (And I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who thought so.) And is flower arranging really still a thing these days? Do people still do that, let alone take classes to get better at it? There must have been a huge amount left on the cutting room floor for this segment because there was a giant leap between "I have some other ideas for starting businesses" and Mark singing her praises and offering the deal.

 

Agreed.  If I were a shark, I wouldn't want to be involved in something that cheapens my brand.  Not to mention, what is "proprietary" about this idea?  Anyone could start that business on their own without having to give up 30% of ticket sales.  It's no better than the Younique "empowerment" crap.

[cooksdelight]

18 hours ago, TVbitch said:

I get sad when people dress up dog

Well, I’d make you cry, LOL! My dog gets a Halloween costume each year, and we go to a large neighborhood that’s blocked off so the kids can have fun. They LOVE his outfits and look forward to seeing him each year. I snagged a shiny lobster costume on sale at Petsmart for this year’s festivities. And speaking of Petsmart, that GOAT thing is $24.99, no thanks. If I put that on my dog, every time it made a noise he’d bark like crazy and try to outrun it.

Except for the fish fry mix, I hated all of them. I do NOT understand flower lady’s gig, and if I hear the word “empowerment” one more time, I may gag. I’m all for equality, I just get tired of certain catch phrases that are used to death.

The board guys irritated the hell out of me. The long-hair guys were entertaining, to a point. Mark shaking his wig was hilarious.

Hey, I know.... let’s start a business where I teach women or men how to bake my award-winning brownies, chili, etc. They pay me, then they host parties where they show others how to do it, and so on, and so on. Pyramid scheme is right.

[ae2]

Was it April Fool's on Shark Tank? Wtf? What was that?

[dogdays2]

Clothing on dogs isn't cruel, provided the outfit fits properly (i.e., isn't too tight).  My little dogs love to dress up, primarily b/c they get lots of attention and treats.  There are plenty of costumes and dresses and sweaters and just about everything else on-line or at your pet store.  I don't really see what's so special about the stuff we saw -- nothing differentiated it in my book.  Also, the fact that people viewed the video doesn't mean they want to buy the costume for their dog. 

As a dog lover, I did NOT understand what GOAT lady was pitching.  At first, it reminded me of this collar gizmo from about a decade ago that claimed it could read your dog's mood -- it had these pre-programmed comments that were supposedly triggered by . . . something.  Someone bought one for me.  I tried it once and thought it was useless.  Then I found out it was pretty expensive.  And then I felt bad for the person who bought it for me.

So do you program it to say what you want it to say?  Or does it randomly generate statements?  It's certainly not reading your dog's mind.  And what's special about being able to take your dog's photos with it?  It's not as if everyone doesn't already have a cellphone.  Finally, if you have a small dog like I do, the collar would be like wearing a lead weight all day.  No thanks!
 

[cooksdelight]

The GOAT thing reminded me of an episode of The Andy Griffith Show. Opie and another kid hooked a walkie talkie receiver on Goober’s dog, and Goober was convinced the dog could talk.

[ae2]

[Amarsir]

I was surprised Alice (of Alice's Table flower arrangements) didn't use the word "franchise" at all. She acted like this was a concept she just invented. Which it clearly isn't, and avoiding the formality of a franchise label is only inviting comparison to less-savory practices like MLM. I don't think the business is actually bad: she takes about $100 of the $699 fee meaning the profit isn't really in recruiting "execs" like a pyramid scheme. And of the $65 fee she gets $19, which leaves $46 for the operator and supplies. That might be too big of a cut for my taste, but I can see how someone who actually wanted to host these things could make a profit.

Basically I believe Alice wants execs to succeed, and she offers booking services through her site to help the "execs" attract customers. That's better than the Herbalife / Cutco / etc schemes where they are basically making you pay to find them customers. My problem is that I think she's half-assing it. Who's guaranteeing the success of the event? If they are hosted out of homes the experience will be wildly different. (And if not, there's no profit left in it.) Also it's not a new service, although perhaps it's new enough to get a new brand in.

On 1/15/2018 at 4:24 PM, TVbitch said:

Don't mind when Mark goes off on an obvious snake oil product, but there is generally accepted herbal properties in lactation herbs, and like that one woman is going to be able to finance double blind controlled clinically stuides that cost millions and millions of dollars. Plus, herbs cannot be patented, Mark! That is why a lot of them are not "proven" by such studies, no money in it.

I don't think Mark was trying to be that harsh, although everything you say about cost and exclusivity is very true and should have been mentioned. Mark's point sounded to me like "I believe you're good, but if you can't prove it then you have no way of protecting yourself from the next person who claims they're as good as you."

[aemom]

I don't understand why I keep only getting 1 hour here in Canada.

I got the hour with the flowers, boobie bars, surf board, and pet costumes.

The flowers was totally like an Avon pyramid thing. The boobie bars seem harmless. Eat them, if they help you great, then buy some more, if not, finish the box when you need a quick snack and be done with them.  They were acting like she had committed a crime not having those clinical tests. 

The surfers were terrible pitchers, especially Mr. Whiny Pants.

I think it's humiliating to dress up a pet like that unless it's Halloween, but I really liked her, and people will buy the costumes. She probably has a nice little business there.

Edited January 22, 2018 by AEMom
Typos

[seacliffsal]

I still can't get over the flower lady.  Basically, she is using the infrastructure of the wine and design thing.  Kevin should develop other events along the lines of the wine and design company in which he previously invested.  Just think of the possibilities: drink and make a bird house, drink and train your dog to sit, drink and sew a costume for your dog, etc., etc.  The flower lady did not have a new business, only a new activity.  I'm still stymied as to how the 'execs' make money when they have to provide the flower arranging tools for each attendee.  Oh well.  That's why I'm sitting in my living room during a 'snow day' (no school today) and not partnering with a Shark and making millions...

[shksabelle]

Can we have a moratorium on dudebro douche bags?

also on heart-rending immigrant stories and on anyone who tears up during a freaking BUSINESS presentation. 

[bilgistic]

That gives me an idea...

I'm going to start a thread about things we're tired of seeing on this show.

[vinnieprice]

The flower arranging thing drove me crazy because she didn't go into any detail about the flowers themselves. For the demonstration with the Sharks she's using hydrangeas and gerber wahatevers and pretty high end, expensive flowers, are those the flowers your Jill EveryExec is going to get? Or am I going to go to one of these things at 65 dollars a pop to arrange carnations from Trader Joes? I know only from other investment shows like this, but flower logistics are a nightmare, so that seems like a huge piece of the puzzle missing.

Plus, my god I don't need one more thing annoying "side hustle" Stay At Home Moms: are shilling on facebook.

Edited January 18, 2018 by vinnieprice

[Jal]

On 1/14/2018 at 11:16 PM, ddawn23 said:

And flower arranging classes are like $10 or $20 at your local Michael's or Hobby Lobby.

This is higher end and has different goals, doesn't it? Sure, I can get Michaels to frame something or show me how to do something, but I'd rather choose a local business run by caring people who have a lot more experience working with their products. The type of quality I'd get from a larger chain store is not the same as a smaller place.

Edited January 20, 2018 by Jal

[LittleIggy]

I was in Petsmart today and saw that those stupid GOAT speakers were now priced half off ($12.99, I think). Not a good sign.

[100Proof]

Good lord... taking a pyramid scheme seriously... then investing in it????!!!

[Ottis]

On 1/15/2018 at 2:18 AM, bilgistic said:

DudeWipes are stupid

Actually, er, those have come in handy a couple of times, in my travels.

On 1/15/2018 at 5:02 PM, sasha206 said:

Personally, I've never dated any man that even owns a robe.  I don't own a robe.  It seems like a very outdated concept

ITA. I've never owned a robe. Only our kids have had them. And my elderly MIL.

[bilgistic]

57 minutes ago, Ottis said:

Actually, er, those have come in handy a couple of times, in my travels.

What I meant was that DudeWipes aren't doing anything that baby wipes weren't already doing. They're just charging a premium.

[cooksdelight]

My husband and I both have robes. I have several, in fact. LOL, it’s coffee on the porch in the morning, in our robes...

[ddawn23]

On ‎1‎/‎19‎/‎2018 at 7:03 PM, Jal said:

This is higher end and has different goals, doesn't it? Sure, I can get Michaels to frame something or show me how to do something, but I'd rather choose a local business run by caring people who have a lot more experience working with their products. The type of quality I'd get from a larger chain store is not the same as a smaller place.

In what way is it higher end?

There is absolutely no way a person who says "I want to start a side hustle.  I know!  I'll join this startup and teach flower arranging" is more experienced than the person the local craft store brings in to teach classes.  I also don't understand how one could be considered more local than the other.  They're both area residents who work for larger companies.  We're not talking about the difference between McDonald's and Joe's Burgers.  We're talking the difference between a woman who sells Mary Kay and a woman who sells Estee Lauder.  They're equally local and the woman behind the counter at Dillard's is almost certainly more experienced.

[roctavia]

I didn't mind Mark going after the lactation bar lady because he was right.... and I dislike the way the too many lactation 'experts' take things to the extreme, and this is just one more thing to tell a mom, you're not doing a good enough job feeding your baby, you have to buy this special bar and you'll finally make more milk... but when it doesn't work, because every woman is different and all the lactation cookies in the world aren't going to increase some women's supply, then what?  Having claims that this bar will increase production without any fact behind it is wrong. 

There haven't been any good studies to prove that things like Fenu greek and other herbs actually help with milk supply, it's mostly anecdotal, and really if you look at the label on something like fenu greek that is recommended for helping with lactation, one of the warnings is to not use if pregnant or breast feeding.... Herbal anything can be a risk due to no regulation of supplements and ingredients, so I very much dislike this sort of woo bar. 

Don't get me wrong, I do think there are a lot of natural remedies out there that can be helpful, and most medicine is based on something herbal that has been tested and refined, but magic herbs that aren't regulated on top of all of the lactation pressure is a bad combo, IMO. 

I see too many mothers feel pressured and stressed and like a failure if they can't breast feed exactly the way the lactation specialist says they can (some le leche people are going as far as to say that pumped breast milk is not as good for baby as feeding directly from the breast... give me a f-ing break!) Clearly I'm biased base on my own personal experiences/ patient's experiences... but I always side eye these sort of products. 

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