Celebrity Interview: Barbara Corcoran

Shark Tank star Barbara Corcoran talks her podcast Business Unusual and takes an unusual business pitch from a Straight Nate and Andrew.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Wow, look at that. Stefan Bens looks great. He sounds awesome.
Do you know what. So he's from South Africa, so
of course I said, what's up with the accent? Where's
the accent? He can snap into it instantly, numbers, he
can snap out of his other accent into well, he said,
he's he talks like that, speaks like that with his
family and friends. But for the radio and for everything else,

(00:22):
he puts on the other accent. He was awesome, and
then walks and Barbara Corcoran, Yes, my favorite. Don't I
promise you got to get close to that microphone. You
gotta get right on it, right on it, almost mouth
I'm almost yes, absolutely, swallow the microphone. And if Froggy's
in Jacksonville, you can see him on the screen. I'd

(00:43):
recognize that laugh anywhere. So Barbara, we're out there taking
pictures with Stefan Bens, and Barbara looks at Steffan and says, so,
are you still a virgin? Yes, you have to be fair.
Describe what he looks like today. He looks so innocent
and pure. Yeah, nothing like us, Yeah, nothing like us.
And then we got mileage. But I looked at Barbara,

(01:06):
so well, are you still a virgin? And she's just
hardly hardly? Did he answer the question? Yes, he said,
I am a virgin. You seem very proud of it.
I say, get that kid out of New York as
fist as you can. He looks like fodder. Right, Yeah,
women like you, and tell me he has no choice.
I was almost hitting on him. I know. I love
that about you. So, Barbara, it's you know, when we

(01:28):
have guests come in, we usually do some prep and
write some things down to ask. I never prep for
you because I don't feel a you're I feel like
you're just family. And I say just family, and that
is a compliment. So there is no prep for this interview.
We're just gonna free for all. We're gonna freeball. Its very,
very very nice. I'm a little offended. I would think
I should make you nervous and you'd be preparing all
night long. You may be nervous if you're a closer

(01:50):
to me physically. But anyway, so here we are. I
don't know have we talked since pandemic time? I don't
even know. Yeah we have, Yeah, I have no contem
months ago. Yeah, I'm no concept of time. It was
the last time you didn't prep okay, of course, and
it was a great interview. What are you talking about? So, okay,
let's just talk about what is the state of the

(02:10):
world right now, as far as the economy, as far
as houses, as far as renting versus buying. Let's get
that out of the way so we can have fun. Well,
the juiciest part of the economy for most people as housing,
and that's a good reason for that. It's first on
everybody's list on what they want to deal with, what
they want better of, what they want to unload. And
right now it's a really choppy market. A lot of
people are saying the market's coming down, it's going to
be a great market. Is it a good time to buy?

(02:34):
Lots of banter out there, But the truth of the
matter is the market hasn't changed that much. There's not
enough houses to go around. You go to an open
house today, you find there's another ten twenty people outside
parked in the car wanting to see the house, and
half the time you're going to overbid. I mean, maybe
that's better because a year ago is two thirds of
the time you'd have to overbid on the house. Now

(02:54):
it's half the time. But I don't say that's a
juicy market for buyers. Buyers are worried and they've parked
on the side waiting. There is a philosophy I read
about from time to time. People say I'll never own
a house ever again from now on for me, it's renting.
And they go through their reasoning why, and it's almost
you can buy into some of them and some of
the things they're saying, what do you think. I think
it's nuts. You know why? Why? Because they forget about

(03:17):
the long term gain of voting a house. You know,
most people in America when they retire, most people, I'm
not talking about the rich people, the average American, their
savings is their house. They were forced to save by
paying off the mortgage by parents old the house for
three hundred thousand dollars in New Jersey and that was
their retirement money. That's not unusual. See, I think you
really have to think about it long term. Easy to

(03:37):
be glib and say I'm gonna rent because I'm not
putting my money down, but pay the landlord the increased
rent again and again and again, and you can't do
what you want. It's no fun most people still want
to own their house. Now, Gandhi's renting. I am a renter. Yes,
why because it's a sad, sad scenario out here. I'm
going to give you the money to get in the market. Ah, yes, Barbara,
thank you tiny thousand dollars of course, and you're gonna

(03:59):
have to get something, Okay, I'll do it. Well, if
you could buy a house right now, are you saying
now is the time to buy, even with the interest
rates being crazy? You do it? I think so. I
think if you haven't bought before, well, if you have
a home and you can have the option of waiting,
of course you want to buy when interest rates are
at rock bottom. But the problem is people use that
as a reason for not getting into the market. And
you've got to get in the game. And I have

(04:21):
been in the real estate market my whole life. I've
invested in real estate. I've never timed the market accurately.
And I think I'm a pretty smart person in that
you can't do it. You just gotta get in there
so you have something to trade up on when you
want a bigger house, a bigger apartment, and waiting doesn't
get you anywhere. The longer you wait, the less likely
you are to get in the market. Very true. What

(04:41):
do you think about rental properties? You mean, what are
you buying them? Purchasing a property and renting it out.
I think it's a great idea because you know why
rents are going up faster than home values. Yeah, I
mean you have to know what you're doing. It sounds
easy to say, isn't that a cool idea? But you
really have to know your values. But it's a great
idea because why not have somebody else build an equity

(05:02):
for you if you can possibly afford it. Wow, the
Barbara Corcoran is here? Are you still having fun on
Shark Tank? Oh? Yes, I'm having more fun. You know
why because I've been doing it so many years, and
I've been so nervous for so many years. I'm always thinking,
how am I coming across? How do I measure up
all these insecure stuff? And last year, for some reason,
I dropped it. I have no idea what switch, but

(05:25):
I dropped it, and I actually went in there and
had more funking making fun of the guys, mostly including Laurie.
I love making fun of her. If you never see it,
because Laurie runs to the producer and says, I don't
want that in Shark Tank, and the producer always says yes, Wow,
so you're loving it more? Do you feel like you
wasted a few years? Not so much anxiety? You know,

(05:48):
talk about it because this is something we're all probably
going through it in one form or another. Good please chorus.
You figure it this way. First of all, Shark Tank
is filmed in June and then again in September, so
it ruins my whole summer if I have the anxiety.
I'm nervous about goinger, I'm nervous about coming out. So
no more happy summers at Fire Island. I'm there anxious

(06:08):
all the time, which I hate even admitting it. I
hate myself of feeling it. But what happens at Shark
Tank is the drum roll beats up? Is there a
dog at my feet? This trash caner trash can that
moves in your new office kind of weird? Yeah? Yeah,
And so when you get out there you have a
lot of neurosis going on. It. Well I don't even

(06:29):
know what point I was saying. What were you asking me?
So I was asking you we're talking about anxiety? Yeah,
and you know the reason why I'm loving this conversation.
Barbara Corkran. You think, oh, she's Barbara Corkoran. You know,
started out as a waitress and a diner, owned a
real estate dynasty, sold it for a billion dollars, And
now is I'm Shark Tank. You think she's got it
all together. No, she's human, just like you and me.

(06:50):
That's what makes you so wonderful. I don't like that
part of me. No, tell you. I'd rather be secure. No, no, no, no,
you are secure in many ways. But I think we
need anxiety sometimes to kind of whip us back into shape.
But I needed fourteen years of anxiety and Shark Tank
now tell me that. Come. Well, no, you know what,
but you learned your lesson. See now you're really enjoying it.
I'm a slow Learner's fourteen years being anxious and one

(07:11):
good year of being happy. Well with this your last year?
Are you leaving? No way? Mark keeps talking about leaving.
He's not gonna leave. He loves the publicity, he loves
the game, he loves being the big man on campus
with the most money to spend. No way is he leaving.
I'm not leaving until he leaves. Huh, there you go.
I say it all the time. I think Shark Tank
and Judge Duty should all be shown in high school

(07:32):
classrooms because you really do learn so many things from
these shows that take you through life. I've learned so
many things. If I ever think I'm going to start
a business, I'll turn on a Shark Tank and look
at all the questions that you guys ask people and
how prepared or not prepared they are. Even just the
mentality that you guys seek in the people you're investing in.
So if someone is into too much, no, that's you're
not focusing. I think that's all very important, and I

(07:52):
didn't learn it until I was out of college. Yeah. Well,
you watch Shark Tank and you really learn awful lot,
even if you have no interest in starting your own business.
Teaches you how to sell really, Yeah, taught me how
to sell them. I was a salesman the begin with.
I see the thought of selling, like, for instance, here
on our show, we have sales, incredible sales team that

(08:12):
goes out. I could never do it because I'm just
not good at Oh. I had to push all right,
I had to push the Cedric's entertainer button. Oh god,
you can't use it? Okay. My last thing I said
was I'm not good at selling. I'm not good at
closing things. And when I can't close things through selling,
I feel like a failure. I don't believe you. I

(08:34):
think you're full of bologney this time? Can we use
the word blogny it? You know why you wouldn't be
where you were or are today without being great at rejection,
And that's at the horrible selling. You can take a
hit and keep on ticket. That's who you are. I
just I'm just stop buying it. Sorry, You're okay. We

(08:55):
love you. When you were a waitress in a diner, yes,
were you selling then? Rectally? Now tell us how you
would sell as a diner, Barbara Corkoran, Oh so easily.
First of all, you have your regular customers. They are
your big tippers because they know they're going to see
you to marrow, so they're not going to jip you.
They come in, you memorize their names. I had a

(09:15):
cheat sheet of everybody's bold guy Joe, happy guy Mike
I had, and I would look at that. Good morning Mike,
good morning Joe. You're looking handsome today. Men fall for
that handsome line all the time, everybody was handsome. We
couldn't pull that off with a woman. She knows you're
full of crap. Would How would you sell a woman?
I'd just be really sweet and be subservient, like, oh please,

(09:37):
how could I make you happy? Could I get you
a little bit? Something else? Can? I I mean it's
acting in a way, but its sales. Its sales making
them feel big, happy to be there. They spend more money,
and most importantly, they leave a big tip. There you go.
All right, so we're gonna take a break. Barbara Corkoran
is here. I do believe, and I know you probably
get so sick of this. We may have a pitch
waiting for you. No way, I'm out here. Oh I

(10:01):
never any good in this shop. I know, I know,
I know, but you don't. I think it's always funny
because sometimes I see on Shark Tank, you guys have
to stretch a little bit because someone will come through
those doors extremely prepared. Everything is perfect, and I can
tell someone wants to rip them to shreds, but you
can't because they have like a great pitch. Yeah, so
then that's when the money starts rolling out. That's right.

(10:22):
I love that. I wish maybe the pitch coming up
is going to be there. It's not gonna be I
can tell you that. Barbara crkran up next, Alice, are
you making a dinner sometime soon? Yeah? We have a date. Okay,
we have a date. Alex is gonna come over. We're
gonna I'm gonna cook. You're gonna cook. It's always clams

(10:46):
and spaghetti. You have that worry. That's what I was planning.
Your spaghetti. The claims is my favorite. Okay, I'll be
upset if you don't sarve. Okay, good enough, because I
don't know how to make that. I know you do
very well. I can't wait. I'm looking forward to that.
And and Alex sends his love. Thank you. Barbara's just
really sweet things about Alex recovering from cancer. And uh,
he got a tear in his eye when I told

(11:06):
him what you said last night the first night? Can
I tell the story? The first night Alex and Knight
took Barbara Corkword out to dinner. She had wandering hands. No,
I did not to my plate. I believe Barbara. Okay, No,
we were all over each other. We're making out. I

(11:27):
made up with Barbara Corkord. I'm sorry, such true, sus,
A little true. I was making out with your boyfriend.
He was half your age, my age. A point in
the beginning, I did the math. I guess when I
was I had my hands on the right lap. Let's

(11:50):
move forward. Okay. So you say every time you come
in and people tried to pitch you. No, I didn't
say people. I said, you try to pitch me. They're
always terrible pitches. Okay, well I haven't. I have some
terrible pitches over there, and it's in the form of
Straightnate and Andrew and they're now entering the shark tank room.

(12:12):
So nervous. You should be nervous. This is Barbara Corcoran here.
You know, she has funding available for something she thinks
is worthwhile. It could be one hundred percent of it,
or may be a portion. To me, this is nothing,
is definitely worth while, wouldn't you say? And I would say,
this is going to revolutionize the at home fan industry,
the at home cooling industry. We're disruptors. Yeah, oh, disrupts.

(12:35):
Ready for this to get that checkbook out? Okay, we'll
get you a pen, all right, U Royalty Kings queens, pharaoh's, emperors. Yes,
what do they all have in common? Andrew a fan fan? What? Yes,
we did Caesar have a fan. Caesar had fans, well,
he had people waving palm fronds. But we've decided to
take the indentured servitude and slavery out of it. Okay,

(12:58):
and here we go. Looks a hat wreck. It is
the emperor fan. We've got three seven it's working. This
is low, this is medium, and this is high. Oh
my god. This also, this looks this looks very creepy.
By this is funny. You need to describe it to

(13:20):
people who can't see it. So just imagine it's a
machine that is waving a palm front, which is Andrew
right now. He is the motor of our emperor fan. Okay,
so your fan would have an actual motive. It doesn't
have a person that makes you. So then rather than
having someone waving a big palm from correct, you have
a machine driven emperor fan. But it goes up and

(13:41):
down that stick that you have a kid walking by.
We hadn't thought that this is on Instagram live, by
the way, if anyone wants to see she again, yes, correct,
where a cage obviously cage where on Instagram is this
Elvis Duran wing show, Elvis Duran show on a stagrammage
where it's seeing Yes, the Emperor fan. Because what's more satisfying, Barbara,

(14:04):
this or this spacillation up and down? What do you
think of the Emperor fan? Well, you're not allowed to
use curses on the show, right, No, boy, this is
gonna be good. Which one do you want to use
the F word the I'll tell you what. I'll take

(14:26):
the motor and you can have the fan. I'll take Andrew. Yeah,
but there's no way this thing is going to go anywhere.
It looks bad. It's an eyesort, it's a child hazard.
The motor. You didn't even say where you're gonna put
the darn thing. No, it's a terrible idea. It also,
it already exists, Barbara. I've tried to tell these don't
tell me this exists. So not in that capacity the

(14:47):
way they're doing it, but in many places in Asia
there are fans that go in that direction up and down.
Really yeah, and sometimes like a windmill. Yeah. Well, okay,
so did you not know? I w told him very clear.
I googled it and I couldn't find it. So, hey, no,
if you brought a regular fan then to Asia, you

(15:09):
could probably make a lot of money. You should just
export regular fans to Asia. Yeah. Hey, wait a minute,
so Barbara on Shark take Yes. If let's say a
team of people come out to pitch you guys, do
you ever see them do this? Did they ever get
into fights with each other? Never disagreements? They never fight

(15:29):
that they told not to. But I have seen one
group come out with four guys and the guy had
had a fainting fit, hit the floor, and I thought
it was part of the act all but they took
it on Cotton took them away. Did they get funding, No,
they're not allowed to ever come back because it's a
reality show. So you get one shot, that's it. I
felt so bad for the kids, wilds, the drama. This
is what you're saying, Barbara's you're not going to give

(15:50):
us any money for them. You're not getting a penny
out of me. Bye. But like I said, I'll take
Andrew how much you paid Now, Andrew, you know enough
where I could come up with these green ideas, have
a lot of keep your day job, as they say.
Three weeks on this, Andrew and he's paid a lot
and he has a lot of free time. Yes, to

(16:11):
make the Emperor fan TM yah, yeah, alright for it.
That's a bad Give the people on Instagram, give them,
give them another world of the fan. Can you getting closer?
Come closer? You want to close? Refreshing though, Barbara, Isn't
it like if it was a hot day you got
a little sweater you gotta air those out. Barb I
like it, I like, she said she No, No, I

(16:34):
like the air, that's all I like. If you could
just sell breezes, you would be in business. All right,
there you go, fun inventing. I'm sure. Let's get them
out of here. Thank you, guys. I'm so sorry. The
doors are opening the exit. Make the pitch right here
right that it's great to see them in real life.
Make the pitch here as lame as it was. Yeah,

(16:56):
as lame as it was, for sure. How the lobster
guys doing, Oh they are great. What's the name of
the company, Cousins, Main Lobster cousins, Main Lobsters. Yeah, and
so when that idea walked through those doors, you immediately went, yes, well,
the guys are closing. The guys were so good looking,
and so right away I was inclined to say yes,
and it's totally fun. Yeah, but you know what they
didn't tell me on that that night, they didn't tell

(17:16):
me they had only been in business one month. When
I asked them for this sales, they quoted annual sales.
Good for them. If I had known they're only in
business for one month, I probably wouldn't have apot it.
How are they? Well, they have like seventy franchises and
forty stores. They are making a ton of money, and
as am I am happy to say, good for you.
Their truck parks outside my apartment often in New York.

(17:37):
Here in Jersey City. You know, they have seven trucks
in Jersey City. What I've probably see in different trucks
and you don't even know it. So good look at that.
She also has Boho vans, yes, which I want to
come for the Boho vans. Yeah. They're great guys, but
they're not as sexy as my cousins. Yeah, okay, you
know that makes it easy to do business with guys
that are flirting with you, telling you beautiful, and you

(17:58):
know they're lying through their teeth, but you're like to
hear it. Yeah beautiful. No, no, not the way these
guys should loose it up. I'm not as good as
they say. That's not true. I disagree wholeheartedly. Okay, I
think you're beautiful. Okay, I'll take it from you all
the way. So there's the microphone. Is it off? Or
she'll slice me in half? I love that you do.

(18:18):
You can be really, really rough. I know my sense
of humors from New Jersey. You know they have caustic
and them. From an Irish family. The only way you
could be noticed in my family was to be funnier
than the next kid. And I had nine competitors for
my mother's attention, so we all got smart an algy
with our tongues. So that's where this came from. Yeah,
of course, before you leave, I always ask the question,

(18:38):
and I feel like I'm putting you on the spot,
but I'm gonna do it again. What is your really
really really important life lesson that you've learned and you
want to share with others, or some advice that you
really think we all need to hear, especially right now
in this moment. I think all the charm in life
is your relationships with the people you love. All the
rest of it melts down important if you could focus

(19:01):
on that. Letting things get in the way of that
is so easy. But if you could keep focusing on knowing,
that's the gold of life. It really is. It's what
gives you the loves, the satisfaction and feeling like you
have a fulfill life. Really just relationships with people. Are
you that's not very good advice? I guess I think
it's great advice because a lot of us put up shields.

(19:22):
Of us put up walls, and we don't let ourselves
love as powerfully as we should be loving. I agree
with that, and not only the walls, but I think
stuff gets in the way. You have to react to stuff,
and you don't stay focused on the gold. When this
stuff is getting win, then a year went by, two years,
and by what a waste? I agree, very true. I

(19:42):
love you, Barbara, I love you back. Elvis, thank you
for coming. Let's not to love. I know, look at this.
I'll give you a list off. You're his work wife.
Of course you have a listener, probably eighty miles long.
You heard it here, Barbara Corkran, you're signing another long
term deal with Shark Tank. I sort of made some
of that up and it's always a pleasure to have

(20:04):
you on the show. Thank you, Barbara. Oh, by the way,
Business Unusual the podcast, Yes you are on over two
hundred episodes in Yes, are you still loving doing that?
I do love to do it because you really talked
to people and yet I can really help them. Yeah.
But I like doing the social media. I love TikTok
a lot more. Of course you do. They're going to
take that away from you soon, so enjoy it. No way,

(20:24):
I love Instagram then instead, Okay, what's your Instagram? Uh?
It's Barbara corkoring. Okay, easy enough. Who do I follow
up with about the money that I've been promised? Uh?
The dollar? Yeah? What did I say? Five thousand? One thousand?
Maybe a million? Heard five thousand? Finally I thought it
was five bucks. I'll send it to you you in the mail.
We'll have to roll the audio. I'll send it to
you in the mail. Thank you, Barbara corkor in my pleasure,

(20:44):
Hey Barbara, thank you? Hey, what's up with sewing? Shout
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