The Apprentice - April 10, 2005 : Price Matters: Part Two of Two

The teams' met with Mr. Trump in Central Park to receive their task. However, before receiving their task, Mr. Trump asked Synergy who would like to switch over to Gold Rush's team. Because Gold Rush seemed to be on a losing streak, Mr. Trump thought he would give them some help. Since Michael felt like an outcast on Synergy he volunteered to join Gold Rush. Synergy was happy that Michael was gone, and Gold Rush gave Michael a warm welcome.
The teams' met with Mr. Trump in Central Park to receive their task. However, before receiving their task, Mr. Trump asked Synergy who would like to switch over to Gold Rush's team. Because Gold Rush seemed to be on a losing streak, Mr. Trump thought he would give them some help. Since Michael felt like an outcast on Synergy he volunteered to join Gold Rush. Synergy was happy that Michael was gone, and Gold Rush gave Michael a warm welcome.
The teams' met with Mr. Trump in Central Park to receive their task. However, before receiving their task, Mr. Trump asked Synergy who would like to switch over to Gold Rush's team. Because Gold Rush seemed to be on a losing streak, Mr. Trump thought he would give them some help. Since Michael felt like an outcast on Synergy he volunteered to join Gold Rush. Synergy was happy that Michael was gone, and Gold Rush gave Michael a warm welcome.
The teams' met with Mr. Trump in Central Park to receive their task. However, before receiving their task, Mr. Trump asked Synergy who would like to switch over to Gold Rush's team. Because Gold Rush seemed to be on a losing streak, Mr. Trump thought he would give them some help. Since Michael felt like an outcast on Synergy he volunteered to join Gold Rush. Synergy was happy that Michael was gone, and Gold Rush gave Michael a warm welcome.

After the switch, Mr. Trump gave the teams their task for this week. Each team had to create a promotional giveaway item to help launch the P'EatZZa, a new 7-11 sandwich. The team with the highest increase in sales would win the task.

Andrea said she liked to be "in control and because of this she stepped-up to the plate as project manager for Synergy. Synergy got started by sampling the new pizza that had sandwich meat in between. Mmmm…this makes me hungry just writing about it. It sounds like the P'EatZZa would be delicious, and after seeing it on the show tonight, it looked good too. The bad part, I don't have any 7-11 stores where I live, so I can't try the new P'EatZZa.

Andrea's team mates wanted to go with cups as their giveaway item, but she let them know right away that it would be hats and not cups.

Leslie volunteered to be project manager for Gold Rush, and her team mates decided to go with a cooler as their giveaway item. While Charmaine and Michael scoped out their 7-11 location, Lee was talking with the manager. Lee convinced the store's manager to remove all the other sandwiches from their shelves so that they could focus only on the new P'EatZZa.

When Gold Rush was trying to decide on a price for the new P'EatZZa, Lee recommended a price of $6.99 each (the store manager had suggested this to Lee earlier), but he was overruled by the majority of the team, and Leslie insisted on a price of one for $7.99, or two for $8.99. Plus, anyone who bought a P'EatZZa would get a free cooler as well.

Both Synergy and Gold Rush went right to work trying to sell the new P'EatZZas, and Synergy decided that their price would be $4.00 each. While working Lee warns his team mates that he over heard two managers in the stock room say their price was too high, but they basically ignored Lee and continued to sell at the prices they had set from the beginning.

Still feeling that the price for the P'EatZZa was too high, Lee done his very best to try and make a big deal all on his own. His idea was to sell a bunch of P'EatZZas in bulk to a local business. Lee found a customer, and he offered to sell the business owner 1000 P'EatZZas for $3.00 each. Lee was excited, and so he went to run the deal by Leslie, but when Lee called the business owner back to close the deal, the business owner told him he would give $2.00 each instead of $3.00. Lee tried to negotiate an offer of $2.50 instead of $2.00, but the deal fell through, the business owner said no. It was a nice try on Lee's part anyway, but personally, I think I would have sold the gentleman 1000 P'EatZZas for $2.00 each.

While in the boardroom, the teams anxiously waited to hear the results of their sales. George said that Gold Rush increased the store's sales by 608%, and George agreed that their price was high. Soon after George, Carolyn announced that Synergy increased the store's sales by 997%, and this left Synergy with the fourth win in a row.

Synergy's reward was to take a private jet to Washington D.C. where they met with New York Senator Chuck Schumer for breakfast.

In the boardroom the price of the P'EatZZas was brought up by Lee. He brought the price up in order to defend himself after Charmaine attacked him right off the bat. I must say, I have to take Lee's side…even I think the price was too high. I wouldn't pay the price Gold Rush was asking. Would you have paid that price for the P'EatZZa? If not, how much would you have paid?

Leslie only chose to bring Lee back to the boardroom. Charmaine told Mr. Trump, before she left the boardroom, that she felt Lee should be fired. I disagree with Charmaine. Lee attempted several times to get Leslie to lower the price, but she did not take his advice. Even after Lee told them what he overheard, Leslie still continued to ignore him.

What did Mr. Trump think? He thought Leslie should have brought two people back, and not just Lee. He also thought that Leslie only brought Lee in for personal reasons. Mr. Trump also commended Lee for trying to make his deal, and the discussion quickly turned back to Leslie regarding the price. Leslie was fired because she did not want the price point lowered, and the price was a major issue in this task. What made things even more interesting, it was Leslie's birthday.

What will happen next time on The Apprentice? Will Gold Rush continue their losing streak? Keep watching to find out.

Business Tip: While conducting business put your personal feelings about someone aside, especially if you know that person could be right. You never know, it just may lead you to a victory.