Scandoval is the gift that keeps on giving. Five months after hearing the news that Vanderpump Rules star Tom Sandoval had cheated on his girlfriend of nine years Ariana Madix with Rachel “Raquel” Leviss, the story continues.
Now Summer House star Kyle Cooke, who is close to the Pump Rules cast, is talking about how the Scandoval backlash is affecting the two Toms and their business together. Kyle recently ran into Tom Schwartz and says “You can see it in his face” how stressed he is about the situation.
“I get it,” Kyle continued. “Two friends working together. Money’s involved, livelihood’s involved. I mean, look, I love both those guys. I hope it all works out.” The U.S. Sun has the details.
Taking sides after the cheating scandal
When news of the affair came out, public opinion was overwhelmingly in Ariana’s favor. Reps for the two Toms’ bar, Schwartz and Sandy’s, even issued a statement in March 2023 asking patrons not to direct their anger at Sandoval toward the bar. They asked fans to “please understand that the livelihoods of others also depend on this business.” Sandoval, currently on tour with his cover band, has kept a low profile at the bar in recent months.
Kyle found it easy to relate to the situation between the two Toms, as he went through a similar experience with his BFF Carl Radke and their business, Loverboy. Carl and Kyle worked together to build the sparkling hard tea and spritz brand. But Carl quit in November 2022 after 3½ years, when their friendship reportedly “got complicated.” So Scandoval and Lovergate: same thing right? Sure, Kyle.
The Loverboy founder says, “[The Toms have] made it in Hollywood … They’ve done well for themselves. They’re trying to build a future and something unfortunate happens. [And] the friend group kind of gets ripped apart.”
“I mean, reality television people, they tend to pick their sides,” he continues. “But I hope people don’t hold the business and all the employees accountable for [one person’s] actions. It’s a lot bigger than that.”
Although filming for Season 11 has reportedly started, Vanderpump Rules won’t be airing until sometime in 2024.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK THE PARTNERS WILL EVENTUALLY BUY SANDOVAL OUT OF SCHWARTZ AND SANDY’S? DO YOU THINK SANDOVAL WOULD RATHER PRETEND TO BE A ROCK STAR THAN OWN A BAR?
