Tonight on CBS their Emmy award winning reality show, Undercover Boss continues for an all new Friday January 22, season 7 episode 6 called “Gerber Group,” and we have your weekly recap below. On tonight’s episode, Scott Gerber, CEO of Gerber Group, a hospitality industry leader, works undercover at his hotel bar and restaurant venues.
On the last episode, Jeffrey S. Young, co-owner of YESCO, worked undercover at his custom electric sign company and faced his fear of heights when he had a change a light high above downtown Chicago. Did you watch the last episode? If you missed it, we have a full and detailed recap right here for you.
On tonight’s episode as per the CBS synopsis, “Scott Gerber, Principal and CEO of Gerber Group, a hospitality industry leader with 14 chic hotel bar and restaurant venues, including Whiskey Park, Whisky Blue and The Roof, goes undercover to meet his employees who keep the party going.
Wearing a disguise of a mullet, beard and glasses on his undercover journey, Scott realizes there’s a missing ingredient at his company that’s impacting his employees – the hands-on leadership and warmth of his late father. Also, Scott’s brother, Kenny, takes his place on one mission and finds a dedicated employee who’s worked to the bone.”
The show airs tonight at 8pm on CBS and we will be live blogging all the details. So don’t forget to come back and refresh your screen often for live updates.
Tonight’s episode begins now – Refresh Page often to get the most current updates!
#UndercoverBoss is with Gerber Industries tonight and CEO Scott Gerber is going undercover. The company is based in New York City and is a food and drink trendsetter with 600 employees and has been in business for 20 years.
They run upscale bars in the US and Chile mostly in hotels. He’s the oldest of three and his brothers Rande and Kenny are part of the business. He says his dad made his fortune making women’s jeans.
He says he went clubbing with his dad as a teen after his parents divorced. His brother Rande is married to Cindy Crawford. When the owner of Studio 54 was arrested and couldn’t run is bar, Rande got an offer to run it and brought in Scott to help back in 1991.
They run SkyBar and other swank places. They have places in LA, NY, and then started with the W. They have 16 locations and a 17th on the way. He says his dad was a huge part of their company and was in business with them from the start.
His dad passed away in 2009 and says he was rushed to the ER and Scott says he saw him and then he was gone. He says his dad didn’t have to work but just wanted to be with him, Rande and Kenny. He says he misses his dad every day.
Rande was the face of the company until five years ago when Rande started in the tequila business with George Clooney. He says he’s a demanding boss but his father was very approachable and he’s not.
Scott says he’s a busy guy and doesn’t have time to say thank you. He meets with the makeover chick and says he wants to look like he’s from Montana. He says he was just the business guy before and Rande was the face and his dad was the soul.
He gets a mullet and a weird beard cut. He’s posing as a guy from Wyoming who owns a dive bar and is on a reality show. His wife and daughter laugh at his makeover. He says he’s never worked in any of the frontline positions of the company but thinks he knows how they should be done.
He goes to Whiskey Blue at The W in Atlanta. He says it started in 2009 and this one is a top performer in the chain. He meets with Kara and says he’s Chris. She’s a cocktail server and Scott is nervous about serving.
He lurks around strangely and says he feels like a fish out of water. He calls out and she says don’t scream at the bartender. He’s making a mess and is clumsy. Kara says he needs to calm down and do one thing at a time.
Kara says he’s too nervous to talk and she tells him to relax and be himself. Scott is trying hard not to dump a drink on someone and Kara loads up his tray and says he has to get used to carrying martinis for himself.
Scott says Kara has a sense of hospitality that you can’t train. He says he’d like to replicate her a thousand times. He asks about her family and she says she lost her dad and the death anniversary is tomorrow. She says she lost him 10 years ago.
She says she and her dad were best friends. Then she says her mom can’t work because of rheumatoid arthritis. Next he goes back to Whiskey Blue in Atlanta to be a bartender. He works with Casey.
She says they need to cut fruit and then serves guests – he says he’s never been a bartender. She puts him to work and says walk fast and catch up. They get limes, berries, oranges and bring them back out. She teaches him how to cut all the fruit before the bar opens.
He’s struggling to slice it right. She says he’s being dainty and needs to use the knife better but he’s scared. He’s going too slow and she says they’re opening soon. The bar opens and a crowd hits. She hands him a cheat sheet for the specialty cocktails.
The first order comes in and it’s a virgin mojito. She tells him he needs to move faster. She says he’s overwhelmed. Casey says he needs to go faster and has to get them out within a minute each. She says not everyone is cracked up to be a bartender.
He asks who created these drinks. She says she likes creating drinks but they have to use the ones from corporate. She says Southern cocktails are different. She tells him they need to eat before it gets too busy.
She says she had to start working in high school and says she was on her own since she was 17. She says her home was not fun. Casey says her mom picks bad men and he asks if there was abuse. She says yes and says she’s close with her sister who is a single mom.
She says she feels so much love from her niece and wants her to have a better life than they did. Scott says Casey is a rock star and says it’s heartbreaking what she’s gone through.
Next, Scott’s brother joins him in New York at their restaurant Irvington. He says this is their newest restaurant. His brother Kenny is filling in with a sous chef since he says the staff there knows him.
Kenny pretends to be Jay and Scott gives him an earbud. The sous chef Nick works with Kenny. Scott watches on video. He has Kenny dicing onions and he’s doing it poorly. He asks Nick if he likes the menu. Nick says it won’t be his ideal menu.
He says he has no creative menu but is committed to the job. Kenny takes him outside for a smoke break. Nick says he didn’t have a lot of opportunities growing up. He says his dad was a long haul trucker and made a lot of selfish choices.
He says there was abuse as a kid and depression as an adult. He tells Kenny he works 80 hours a week and says he doesn’t get holidays or sick days. Scott is stunned. Nick says he doesn’t have a wife or kids and the people at the restaurant are his family.
He says he got the sous job in February and it’s high stress. Job four is also in New York at The Roof at The Viceroy. He says it’s their most profitable property. He comes to see Kia, a bartender.
He says everyone will now him and he’s going undercover as a guest this time. She’s training someone else that he has miked up. He hopes the plant engages her in conversation so he can listen in.
Kia says she’s been with the company for 11 years. She says she was thinking about leaving because it wasn’t engaging her the way it used to. She says when she first started it was more like family and says the owner and father were here more and when he passed, it was hard.
She says they’re a corporate bar and it’s different. Scott tears up and knows the company has changed and Kia says she misses him a lot. She says it’s more business now and she says she had to come to work on a funeral day because no one would cover her. She’s crying. Scott is too.
Scott says that never would have happened if his dad was still there. Kia says the money is still good and it paid for her wedding. She says she and her husband would like to open their own business. Scott leaves her a $200 tip.
Scott says he has a lot to think about and says he keeps hearing the word corporate from everyone. He says he doesn’t know a lot of the people that work for him and doesn’t have the relationships like his dad does.
He says he has a new appreciation for his employees and wants to know more about his staff. He gets his mullet extension taken out and a shave and is ready for the #BossReveal. He says he knows he can’t fill his dad’s shoes but wants to follow in his footsteps.
Scott tells Kia she’s one of their most loyal employees and says he hasn’t been as close to people as his father was. She says his dad was there so often. He says he heard her say she was thinking about leaving.
He says Gerber Group is a family and wants it to still feel like that. He wants her to come talk to him if she needs anything. He says he hates she missed a funeral. He says if he has to come fill in for her personally, it would never happen again.
Scott says he would like to help her get to work on her own bar and gives her $20k. She’s shocked. She says for him to hear her, it was a big deal. She says she likes that she was recognized for doing good work.
Next he talks to Kara and says he’s grateful to have working for them and her commitment to guest experience. He says he was close to his dad too and lost him six years ago. He says on Father’s Day he’s making a specialty drink for people who lost their dad and she can make it.
He says a portion of those sales will go to charity and she says her dad died of cancer and he says they’ll do that. He also gives her $30k to make her life easier and her mom’s. Kara is thrilled and tears up. Kara says it will change her life.
Casey is next and he laughs about his poor job. He says he heard her about local drinks and says he’ll let bartenders design cocktails and take some ownership. He says he appreciates how open she was with him. He gives her $50k. She starts crying and says that’s amazing.
Casey calls her sister Ashley and tells her what he gave her. She says they can start her niece a school account and share it with her sister and her family. Nick is last and Scott says he couldn’t go in undercover since he knows him.
He tells him the guy he worked with is his younger brother. Scott says he doesn’t like to hear all the hours he’s working. Scott says he has a good work ethic but he doesn’t want him to burn out. He tells him he’s making him the chef at Mr Purple, the new place.
Nick says it’s a huge challenge. Scott also brings up his tough childhood. He says he and his dad don’t speak and that’s okay then says he’ll make different choices when he’s a father. Scott gives him a $25k signing bonus and tells him to do something for himself.
Scott says his father found time for everyone and he’s going to work towards that. He says he know he can make the kitchen at Mr Purple great. Weeks later, Kara paid off her student loans and bought a new car.
Casey got out of debt and opened a college account for her niece. Kia got a promotion to bar manager as well as her cash reward.
THE END!