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EPISODE TEN
When
Ivana and Kevin entered the suite, everyone knew that Raj had been fired.
After absorbing the news, the teams got down to business. Because Chris had
complained the previous week that Apex wasn't a cohesive team, Trump decreed
that Chris would be Project Manager for this task. In an interview, Chris
admitted that he put himself on "the chopping block." Chris' first order of
business was to gather his team. With "colorful" language as his aid, Chris
laid out his philosophy. He told the group that no one was there to be
friends. He said that what they were doing was simply business. In an
interview, Jennifer M. privately worried about whether Chris could be an
effective Project Manager when he felt so negatively about the team. On
Mosaic, Kelly offered to be Project Manager and Maria liked the idea. It
looked like Kelly might land the position without objection, but then Andy
jumped in. He said that he wanted to be Project Manager too. In an
interview, Andy said, "They tried to push me out and I'm not going to have
that." So, the team drew a name at random and Kelly won the job.
The next day, the
candidates met with Donald and learned that they would work in the $30
billion dollar a year wedding industry. Each team would have to transform an
empty space into its own bridal shop and then hold an exclusive sale. The
team with the greatest profit would win. The other team would meet back in
the boardroom for the ultimate divorce, where one person would be fired.
Trump told Sandy, a bridal salon owner, that she had a big advantage. But he
also warned, "If you lose this time, it would not be good." Trump joked that
he knew a little something about weddings and got the teams to lighten up
with a laugh. As usual, George and Carolyn would be around to observe
everyone's progress - or lack thereof.
After The Donald
left, Mosaic was all grins. Smiling, Sandy said, "You have got to be kidding
me." In an interview, Kelly said, "We've got a ringer on the team." The mood
on the Apex team wasn't nearly as jubilant. But Chris tried to spin the
situation as best he could. He said that the team had an opportunity to
create a great victory with the deck stacked against them.
Mosaic met back at
the suite where Sandy said she needed to make appointments with bridal salon
owners to talk with them in person. Kelly put Wes and Maria in charge of the
marketing. Their goal was to get as many brides into Apex's new store as
possible. Sandy directed Wes and Maria to a bridal website that they could
work with to send an email out to thousands of engaged women in the New York
area. Sandy outlined the email and told Maria and Wes to put the team's
phone number in the message.
Apex visited their
empty store space and liked what they saw. Chris said that the first plan of
attack was to contact bridal vendors and offer them rent-free spots in the
location to sell their wares. Apex and the vendors would split the profits
on all that was sold. Chris got on the phone and called bridal vendors. But
after many conversations, Chris came up empty. He couldn't convince a single
vendor to come down to Apex's space to sell their products. In an interview,
Ivana said, "Chris is supposedly the guy who can sell ice to Eskimos. Why
couldn't he get anywhere with these vendors?" After enduring rejection after
rejection, Chris finally declared the task to be "impossible." In fact, he
said he wouldn't be surprised if both teams lost money. This attitude of
defeat didn't rally the troops. In fact, Ivana said, "To throw up your hands
that early in the game is pathetic."
On Mosaic, Sandy,
Kelly and Andy visited bridal shops. Sandy had the idea of asking for
discontinued wedding gowns. The owners really liked the prospect of
unloading their old merchandise. By the end of the day, the trio had managed
to get over 300 wedding dresses promised to them. Back at the suite, Wes and
Maria worked on the team's marketing campaign. Wes didn't think it was an
accident that their Project Manager wasn't part of the effort. Wes said that
Kelly left himself out of the "mission critical" aspect of the task so that
if it "…goes wrong, he has someone to point to." For a thousand dollars, Wes
and Maria were able to send out an email to 23,000 brides-to-be. Wes
admitted that marketing was a "huge" component of the task; he said that if
no one showed up to their bridal shop, the team wouldn't sell any dresses.
At
Apex's bridal shop space, Chris sat on the floor and complained how
frustrating the whole experience was. Jennifer M. suggested they try to meet
with vendors. She thought that they might be more receptive in person. So
Chris and Jennifer M. visited bridal salons. Jennifer M. did most of the
talking while Chris stayed in the background. In an interview, Jennifer M.
called Chris, "very, very lackadaisical." But by the end of the meetings,
Apex had secured six vendors. At the same time, Kevin and Ivana met
Bernadette, a bridal salon owner, who offered some of her inventory for
Apex's sale. But Ivana and Kevin didn't stop with just merchandise. They
picked Bernadette's brain to get some insight into the industry. Not only
did Bernadette offer marketing hints, but she went to the team's bridal shop
location and provided an entire plan for how Apex could best organize their
space. Ivana said, "Bernadette was sort of like our Sandy, like our ace in
the hole." Bernadette suggested where to put dresses, accessories and
lights. She even coached the candidates on sales techniques. Chris called
Bernadette "a tremendous help" and said that she helped the team "turn a
corner."
When Kelly checked
in with Wes and Maria, he noticed that the email they had sent to over
23,000 engaged women did not include a phone number to call for
appointments. Sandy called that oversight "a big mistake." However, Maria
said that the final version of the email she sent to the website did include
a phone number. Maria blamed the wedding website for removing the phone
number without her approval. That night, there were more problems for
Mosaic. When Wes and Kelly transported the team's wedding gowns in a rented
truck, Wes hit a parked car. In an interview, Kelly worried that the team
could outsell their competition but lose the task because they had to pay
damages caused by Wes' driving. Later that night, at the team's bridal shop
space, Sandy pulled Kelly aside. She told him that she felt like the team
was putting all of the weight of the task on her and that they weren't
hustling like they had on other tasks. Sandy was also not happy that Wes and
Maria hadn't done any additional marketing beyond the email. Kelly agreed
and went back into their storefront to get the troops in gear.
The next morning,
Apex put its marketing plan into action. Kevin and Chris went to Grand
Central Station to hand out fliers. Ivana and Jennifer M. did the same at
Penn Station. Chris said he thought they had a good marketing plan and that
the fliers would definitely get people to their store. On Mosaic, Maria,
Sandy and Andy met with a representative from the bridal website that sent
out their bulk email message. Andy expressed disappointment that the email
hadn't included the team's phone number. Sandy asked if the website could
send out another email. The representative said she could send another email
out, but she also said that she had gotten approval on the original message.
In an interview, Sandy said, "Maria was caught in a boldface lie." Sandy
continued, "I just hate it when people don't take accountability."
When both new
bridal shops opened, Mosaic had a line of over forty women waiting to look
at dresses. On the other hand, Apex opened their doors to just two women.
Each team jumped into action and tried to sell as many dresses as they
could.
Later, everyone
arrived at the boardroom to hear how they had done. Carolyn said Mosaic had
great teamwork and had produced a beautiful bridal shop. But even more
beautiful was their final tally. The team turned a profit of $12,788.94.
George reported that Apex did far less business and brought in a profit of
just $1,060.47. Trump called Mosaic's win "impressive." For their victory,
the members of Mosaic would be rewarded with $50,000 of merchandise from
Graff Jewelers - the same jeweler that Trump used to purchase Melania's
engagement ring.
Back at the suite,
Kevin, Ivana and Jennifer M. commiserated. Kevin called their loss "an
old-fashioned butt-kicking" and reminded everyone that they had lost three
tasks in a row. Ivana said they got "spanked" in every aspect of the task.
Kevin felt that Chris should be fired, but he kept open the possibility that
Trump could fire them all for their incredibly poor performance. At Graff,
Melania met the members of Mosaic and acted as their diamond emissary.
Giddy, Sandy and Maria tried on literally millions of dollars worth of
diamonds. However, each team member took home a more modest piece.
After Apex arrived
at the boardroom, Chris admitted that his team took a "beating," but he
thought that they had gelled. Trump shot back that the team couldn't have
gelled that well because they lost by so much. With some prompting from
Ivana, Chris admitted that at the beginning of the task, he thought the job
would be impossible. Chris said he felt the other team had an advantage with
Sandy in their corner, but Carolyn disagreed. George focused in on one
aspect of the task: marketing. He said that Apex had no marketing plan.
Jennifer M. agreed that Mosaic got onto their marketing quickly and sent out
an effective email. Carolyn thought the Apex marketing plan of handing out
fliers at train stations was a "terrible idea." And Trump said that he
didn't see Penn Station as a place where people thought about marriage.
Kevin said that Chris didn't have a plan. Jennifer M. thought that Chris
lacked energy and focus. Finally, Chris decided to bring Kevin and Ivana
into the boardroom and to send Jennifer M. back up to the safety of the
suite.
After the
candidates left the room, Trump said he thought that all members of Apex
were "terrible" and he called their performance "ridiculous." George said
that he didn't see any fire in the candidates and Trump agreed. Once Chris,
Ivana and Kevin returned, Trump said that Jennifer M. was just as guilty as
the others. He asked Chris why he let her go. Chris explained that Jennifer
M. was a good salesperson on the task. But Carolyn countered that the team
only sold two dresses, so Jennifer M. couldn't have been that good. Ivana
said, "Chris is really good at identifying problems. And when I say that, I
mean he's really good at complaining." Trump told Ivana that she is capable
of the most unbelievable backhanded slaps he has ever seen. Kevin said that
he would fire Chris. Ivana said she would fire Chris as well. Trump said the
team didn't have any spark and that's why they lost. Trump reminded Chris
that the previous week, he complained that his team was a mess, so Trump
gave him the chance to be Project Manager. Not only did his team lose, but
Trump complained that Chris let Jennifer M. go when she didn't deserve it.
Trump was on a roll and finished it off with: "I can't believe that you led
the team so badly -- and Chris, you're fired."
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