Rapid fire fun: Slutty Vegan’s Pinky Cole + ocean educator Philippe Cousteau Jr., live from the Masters of Scale Summit

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1:18Hey, everyone. It's Bob here. We've got a special two-part episode for you today. Both parts recorded live at the invite-only Masters of Scale Summit in San Francisco. They are two playful yet thought-provoking segments with two very different leaders. First, we'll hear from the founder of Slutty Vegan, Pinky Cole. I ask her four questions inspired by four provocative Slutty Vegan menu items, followed by a lightning round, and in the process, Pinky shares great insights about how to capture consumer attention in today's marketplace. Next, I play the role of a potential investor, talking with ocean storyteller and entrepreneur Philippe Cousteau Jr., grandson of the explorer, filmmaker, and inventor Jacques Cousteau.

2:03Philippe tries to convince me that I should invest in the oceans to blunt climate change and also to take advantage of untapped business opportunity. Philippe's wit and passion delivers some really entertaining and important listening. Now, let's get to it. I'm Bob Safian, and this is Rapid Response.

2:31So who could we possibly identify to bring up here and try to follow that tremendous act? and someone with just as much energy and just as much joy and with a little bit of spark, too. Are those the right words? I'm trying, Pinky. So who's going to join me up here is the founder and CEO of Slutty Vegan, Pinky Cole. So, Pinky, come on up.

3:07We're going to have fun, right? All right, Pinky. Hi, guys. All right. You guys ready? Yeah. Can I just say really quick? Yeah. We are here to imagine what the future looks like. I'm like, okay. I'm not joining in. I need to play that at home when I'm tired. All right. So we're going to kind of do this a little bit as a game. It's going to be a fast-paced session. I'm going to ask you four questions. Okay. Each one is going to be themed off of one of the slutty vegan menu items. All right. And then we'll go to a rapid fire round where I'll give you one word or phrase in response to each of my prompts.

3:48Okay. You ready? Yeah, let's do it. All right. Question number one, which is what I call the one night stand. That's your signature bacon cheeseburger with slut sauce. Yes. My producer wasn't sure I would say slut sauce. So I just want to say it again. Slut sauce. It's a safe space. Now, obviously, you are not shy about grabbing attention. And obviously, you want Slutty Vegan to grow to be an even bigger national presence. But there may be some towns around the country that might not want to see the name Slutty Vegan across their main street. So is that okay with you? Like, do you want to win over those people?

4:33Or do you feel like, well, that's just not where we're supposed to be then? Like, those are not my people. You know, it's interesting. So I was just having a conversation with a girl in the lobby of my hotel just now, to be honest. And she was telling me about the wine industry. And when she was telling me about the wine industry, she said she needed to fly to the winery because there has been a dip in sales and she couldn't understand why. And I said, why is it? Is it because people who like wine, they like it in whatever condition, right? So I realized I created a brand initially because I wanted to make vegan food accessible to people who otherwise couldn't afford it.

5:10But then I realized I started putting the food in places where people couldn't afford vegan food because naturally vegan food is more expensive. So what I'm doing now is finding that healthy balance because when the economy is turning, people are split down the middle. Half of the people stop eating because they're stressed and the other half we start eating if we're stressed. Right. I don't know which one it is, but, you know, I'm both sometimes. But now finding that healthy balance so that I can serve all people and create a universal brand where the people who need the access get the access and the people that can afford it can come and enjoy the food.

5:44And if you're if you're put off by the word slut, you just like that's not, you know, either get excited or go somewhere else. It ain't for everybody. You know what I learned in business is either you're going to love me or you're going to leave me alone. And that's really key. And it's worked for the last six years so far. All right. All right. Question number two, the Hollywood hooker. That's your chopped Philly steak with jalapenos. Yes. You have to try it. They're great. All right. So social media technology is evolving so quickly. A lot of business people, they aren't as confident as they would like to be about how to grab people's attention.

6:22You have created a lot of viral moments, lines around the block for your stores, pop-ups. Do you have advice for this group and others about how you make an impression, how you think about being able to do that? Keep it real. Keep it real. What I've learned in business, I didn't go to school for marketing, y 'all. Can I be honest? I was a producer for The Maury Show. Okay, so I chased people around for a living, right? But what I learned in that is I was able to meet people where they were, right? It don't matter if you're black, white, rich, poor, got a lot of money, a little bit. Like these people, you can learn something from everybody.

7:01And as long as I can meet people where they are, I can create a safe space. And when I create that safe space, you want to tap into anything that it is that I'm doing. So when it relates to the marketing, being honest, being open, being real, and being vulnerable, which oftentimes businesses don't know how to do because vulnerability means that you're weak, but that's not the truth. Vulnerability means that you're real. And when you're real, people want to stay connected to you because they understand that you're human. And that is one of the keys that drives the marketing and will make people continue to come back.

7:32I mean, you also make it fun. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you go into a slutty vegan, it's like a party. Yes, we're calling you a slut. I know you're going to have McLean there soon, you know, No plan in there. All right. Question number three. The Fussy Hussy. That's a name of another burger option, right? The Fussy Hussy. Okay. So you've said that Slutty Vegan made you into an accidental celebrity. Yes. Do you ever worry that the attention that you get personally distracts from the business or distracts the progress you want to make with the business? Is this therapy? because because you know it's funny that you asked me that because before coming into this industry I already had my dream job right so my idea was to create burgers and fries and help people to reimagine food but then I realized that people fell in love with the person behind the brand unintentionally so then I build my own community here by way of my personal brand and the brand is continuing to grow and they're the same, but they're not the same.

8:36There's a benefit and a curse to that. And I'll be honest, the benefit here is that no matter what, you can always drive traffic from over here and bring it over here, right? Like it's a give and take. So you'll never have one without the other. But the curse is, and it could be a good thing. It's an opportunity. The curse is, is that when you're creating and building a brand, you have to define which one it is that will make sure is the bread and butter, right? And as long as the bread and butter is safe, it will make room for every single one of those other things that you're working on and trying to do.

9:11And that was a hard conversation I had to have with myself because it feels good for people to know your name and know everything that you're doing. But at the end of the day, the business is what matters the most. I mean, that choice of naming it Slutty Vegan, like it defined the brand in that one name. Did you realize that when you picked that name? I was sitting in my two-bedroom apartment and it was weed and bulbs. This is an adult place. Okay, I'm not by myself. But in that moment, I'm like, oh, this is good. Because when you... That was good, but this is good, right? When you think about something that historically has just been so green and very clean, you're like slutty vegan.

9:53These two things aren't supposed to go together. But when I merge the two most pleasurable experiences in life, and that's sex and that's food. Okay, did you eat today? Never mind. Anyway, when you merge those two things together, you come up with a recipe for people to ask questions. And if you can get people tuned in and locked in, however you get them, now there's a psychology that happens. You can teach them what it is that you want them to know. And I'm on a mission to be in a driver's seat to help people see that vegan food can be cool and it's not boring and you can live a healthy lifestyle with vegan options.

10:30All right.

10:34All right. So question number four, the sloppy toppy. That may be my favorite menu item name, I have to say. All right. You've described Slutty Vegan as a silent protest of sorts. Can you explain that? What is the brand protesting? What does the work represent? That's a really good, you got good questions. So I'm going to be totally honest with y 'all. As a black woman pioneering a space where you don't see many women, let alone black women, in the hospitality space of scaling a business to this manner. Right. I have a, it's almost like it's a fiduciary responsibility. I have a responsibility to help bridge the race gap.

11:22Don't ask me why. I just feel like God just told me to do it. It felt good in my spirit. And I love to see people together. So when I create this brand, this brand is just not for one type of people. I'm creating a brand for people who are older, people who are younger, people who are smart, maybe people who may not have had a lot of education for white people, for black people, for Asians. When you walk through the door, I don't care about none of that. So when you talk about protests, I met my husband. My husband also owns a chain called Big Dave's Cheesesteaks. He's scaling and franchising as well.

11:53So when I met. Just note that. Yes. Cheesesteaks, cheesesteaks and vegan. Don't even make sense. So so I met him during the George Floyd riots because somebody bust the windows out his restaurant. So I reached out to him and I asked him if he needed help. So it connected us. So what I realized is when people come into my space, they feel joy, right? There is no color to joy. There's no tax bracket to joy. There's no socioeconomic background to joy. When you got joy, anything is possible around you. Do you understand what I'm saying? And if I can create that by way of a brand, even if it's vegan comfort food that you're eating, if I can create that and bring people together in the name of joy, then I know that I'm walking in my purpose and I'm really helping to bridge the gap holistically.

12:36Beautiful. Yes.

12:41Well, Pinky, this has been great. It's time already for the rapid fire round. So I'm going to read out a list of topics. For each topic, you say the one word or phrase that comes to mind. Are you ready? Yeah. AI. Scared money don't make no money. That might have went over your head. Okay, keep going. The presidential election.

13:10The presidential election. Nobody wants to touch this, huh? The presidential election. Don't expect to get any press from November 1st to December 31st. Kamala. Excuse me. I'm sorry.

13:30Elon Musk. Skip.

13:38Right on. All right. McDonald's. Slutty vegan. Slutty vegan. Billion dollar concept. Hmm.

13:52Pinky Cole. That's a lot of words. Dynamic, pioneer, innovator, beautiful mother, CEO, sister, friend, here at Masters of Scale, and one of the most powerful women in America. Yes. Yes. Pinky, thank you. Thank you. That was great. Pinky Cole, everybody.

14:25Pinky does know how to keep it fun, but she hasn't broken through the noise by accident. There's a considered dynamic story that she's spreading, and it's working. She's being an unapologetic version of herself, and maybe we can all learn something from that. Coming up after the break, Philippe Cousteau tries to convince me to invest billions of dollars into the future of our oceans. Stay with us.

14:55Real leaders don't back down when the stakes are high. They innovate, they push forward, and then they take the stage at the Masters of Scale Summit. Join us in San Francisco, October 7th to 9th, to hear from the CEO of the New York Times, scientists using cutting-edge technology to find cures, the leader of crypto powerhouse Coinbase, a retired four-star general, and many, many more. Apply now at mastersofscale.com slash apply25. That's mastersofscale.com slash apply25. If you're ready to take your startup from idea to impact, then AWS is your launchpad. From data storage to machine learning to secure app hosting, AWS gives you the tech trusted by the world's fastest scaling startups.

15:44And here's the best part. Join AWS Activate today and you could score up to$100 ,000 in AWS credits tailored to your stage and network. Go to aws.amazon.com slash activate and start building. Expanding your business in the U.S. can feel like a maze. Every state has its own payroll, benefits, and compliance rules, which can pull your focus away from growth. That's why founders use Deal. Deal is the professional employer organization, or PEO, that gives you a dedicated HR expert plus Fortune 500 level benefits for your team. The National Association of PEOs says businesses can grow twice as fast if they use one.

16:28So if you're scaling, make it simple with Deal. Go to deel.com slash mos and get up to three months free. Before the break, slutty vegan founder Pinky Cole talked about the responsibilities she feels as a Black woman in the hospitality industry, the underestimated power of joy, and more. Now I play a fun, fast-paced, pardon-the-interruption-style game with Ocean Storyteller and former Rapid Response guest Philippe Cousteau Jr. And there's plenty to learn. Let's check it out.

17:13All right, Philippe. Well, that video of the woman surfing was like perfect timing. Perfect introduction. Perfect setup. Perfect setup. We have not talked all that much at this event yet about sustainability and climate change. Philippe, you are the grandson of the legendary sea documentarian Jacques Cousteau and an advocate yourself for ocean exploration and investment. You believe passionately that oceans are not being invested in the way they should be. That we're squandering opportunity. So what we're going to do is we're going to pretend that I am an investor with a lot of capital. And you have 10 minutes to convince me to put that money toward the oceans.

18:00All right. So I'm going to ask you about six different topics related to oceans for each one. Sorry, five different topics. I thought I had that wrong. And for each one, you're going to have 90 seconds to answer. So it's going to kind of be like, for those of you who watch Pardon the Interruption on ESPN, it's going to be a little bit like that. So. And I have notes, so I'm ready to keep it keep it tight. All right. You're ready to go. Yes. Or as we say, are you ready to dive in? All right. I know it's terrible dad joke. All right. Let's start the clock. Question number one. So investment in space exploration, a hundred times more than ocean exploration.

18:44Why is that? Like, what are we underestimating? So, listen, it won't be a surprise. Of course, I'm a huge advocate of ocean exploration, and I believe it should be our focus, but it is not, as you pointed out, because much of the ocean still remains a mystery. It surprises a lot of people. You know, we've mapped every crater on Mars, but have only explored about 20 % of the ocean. So that is our real frontier. But we're investing, you know, we're investing billions of dollars in the belief that in some magical future, of space exploration for humans, or that we can achieve somehow multi-planetary life, it is nonsense.

19:21From any perspective, scientific, technological, economic, biological, the hurdles to any serious human exploration of space are enormous, and the rewards are paltry. Three years round trip to Mars, 10 times that to Europa, 500 billion of flights, even if we sent a spaceship every single day for the next thousand years, we'd maybe save a few million souls. But what about the remaining 99.5 % of the Earth's population? And then, of course, there's the issue of what we do when we get there. Terraforming? Not possible. Who wants to live on Mars and eat potatoes for the rest of your life? Not me. So we need to be thinking about how we invest in our oceans as the source of solving our problems.

20:08That was perfect. Wow. See? and you beat the bell. I beat the bell. Perfect. All right. Number two, sea levels rising. Are the oceans just a victim to climate change or could they help in some way? That's a great question. And let's level set here, everybody, right? The greatest threat to our planet is climate change, not AI. Climate change is an ocean problem. I'm going to say that again Climate change is an ocean problem And therefore we cannot solve the climate crisis Without restoring and protecting The ocean period And all too often we look at terrestrial solutions Like planting trees But honestly, f*** trees So it should be A bluer future, not a greener future We have a bias to green and land Because we're terrestrial creatures I get that But instead we should be thinking blue because nothing exists.

21:09No green exists without the blue. And to paraphrase a famous quote of politics then, think about this, it's the ocean, stupid. Here's the exciting part. The ocean is also a source of extraordinary economic potential and growth. It's our largest carbon sink. It creates most of our oxygen, provides food for billions of people. The Amazon may get the headlines, and it is a critically important ecosystem, but it roughly absorbs about 25 % of the world's carbon. The ocean is 60%. We keep on planting trees, but mangrove forests absorb six to eight times more carbon than a terrestrial forest. They benefit coastlines.

21:45They provide nurseries for fisheries that feed millions of people. So while we see the headlines about bleaching coral and collapsing fisheries and the like, while the ocean is a victim, it is also our greatest ally. And this isn't just about protecting coral reefs. I warned Bob I go a little long on this one. It's not about protecting coral reefs, whales, or fish for the sake of nature. It's about doing it for the sake of humanity. I want to give you one quick example. In the 1990s, Somalia was a failed state. Without a navy to protect its nearshore fisheries, illegal fishing fleets from Russia, China, the EU began pulling out hundreds of millions of dollars worth of fish every year.

22:22And the fishermen who had made their livings, had fed their children off those fisheries, were now destitute. They armed themselves to fight off these illegal fishing boats and got money in return for those ships. The light bulb went off. Al-Qaeda in the Maghreb, Al-Shabaab began arming these fishermen and enabling this piracy that has cost the global economy trillions of dollars, tens of thousands of lives over the last 30 years. There's a Department of Defense report that summarizes it simply at the end. It says for a few million dollars of fisheries conservation investment, all of that could have been avoided.

23:00And now it's happening again in Senegal and West Africa. We are fishing out communities that's driving illegal migration into Europe or driving those people into the arms of the terrorist organizations that are tearing the Sahel apart. The oceans are critical, and if we don't invest in them, we pay the price.

23:21All right, next topic. Can the byproducts of our ocean impact other industries, other areas, manufacturing, healthcare, like what else can we do with the ocean? That's a really important question because as I mentioned just a minute ago, this isn't just about protecting the ocean for the ocean's sake. This is about recognizing that whether or not you care about climate change or altruism, whatever it is, the ocean is an enormous opportunity to make money and to secure our future at the same time. Listen, feeding the world, global seafood markets are expected to reach close to a trillion dollars by 2030, with annual growth over 9%.