but i trust barbara, i know that she cares about my well-being, and i know that i'm gonna be a millionaire. tonight, on a special episode of "the profit" -- >> my blueprint for success in business. >> if you don't like money, don't follow my process. >> i look back on all the deals i've made. >> my offer is $1.7 million. >> the people i've met. >> how are you on markets? >> the biggest triumphs in the toro fiasco. and put everything i've learned into ten free lessons. >> we've got to come up with a better process. >> if you don't evolve, you will die. >> sharing some shocking

updates. after dozens of investments and nearly $60 million spent, this is "the profit." my top ten rules for success my name is marcus lemonis, and i risk my own money to save struggling businesses. >> we're not going to wake up every morning wondering if we have a job we're going to wake up every morning wondering how many jobs we have to do. everything's going to change everything but i do it to save jobs i do it to make money. >> let's go to work. >> this is "the profit." you know, i've been traveling this country and investing in small business for more than four years now i've met hundreds of entrepreneurs, employees, their families, and what i'm reminded of time and time again is that everyone has a story they're complex, they have their own passion, their own motivation, and their own reasons for doing what they do

something i always try to appreciate but all that being said, i've met some real jerks. a lot of them. my first rule when it comes to success in business, don't be an ass. that's the number one take jae way, how to treat people i've met some people who don't know how to treat people like the meal service guy in florida. we discovered that he was connected to somebody that was in a ponzi scheme and not really acting above board >> you're going back on your handshake deal >> it was the one time out of the 60-plus episodes where i actually thought somebody was going to hit me. >> good luck to you. listen, you're not going to intimidate me. >> the guy was a big dude. there was just two cameramen and me i literally thought i was going to go through the wall >> i'm going to walk out on you. >> and then there's andrew

rosenthal. he owns this pet care place in l.a. that has everything from boarding, grooming, training, and a bunch of other things. i love anything to do with pets. but andrew he was a complete maniac and he hated everyone. >> the only reason my partner is alive is because murder is illegal. >> in the first day of filming, people typically are on their best behavior. but the really crazy ones, i think they have zero awareness i remember andrew rosenthal being aggressive within five minutes of being there he's aggressive with me? >> i can make this business with or without you. >> and his employees. >> i'm not going to put up with that he wouldn't listen to a [ bleep ] thing i said i don't have to ask him time and time and time and time again e-mail me the [ bleep ] schedule just do it

>> that's a waste of [ bleep ] time. >> anger and yelling and screaming don't make anybody want to come to work early and stay late. and the goal is to get people to want to be attached to the business not to run as fast as you can away from it that brings us to this second rule make your employees number one i've been publicly criticized about this philosophy, you read all these books, the customer's always right, and the customer's number one, and at the end of the day for me, the customer isn't number one the employee is number one my theory is if you treat the employee right, that ultimately that employee is going to be the one to interact with the customer and their experience will be better i think the second thing is, employees like to know you have their back that guy eric you just saw, the one i thought was going to crush me, put me through the wall? he was even worse to his employees. >> what are you doing? come on. >> and he bulldozed anyone who tried to question him. >> i don't really feel today

that you guys feel like you're in a safe and secure environment, to give your opinion without recourse. >> it's always everybody else's fault. the way he says things, it does bother a lotof people who work here. >> i'm sorry if you feel you can't approach me, i'm sorry if i ever made you feel bad, i'm sorry. >> take it down a notch. >> but instead of changing his ways, guess what he did. he cut the pay of some of his top employees and even blocked them from the company computer system i think it was punishment for speaking out at the meeting. >> you cut alex. you cut diane out. >> not at all. >> i work hours for you. >> you already blocked us from the -- >> you locked her out of the computer already >> i changed my task force absolutely >> not surprisingly the employees that worked there, they left. they got fed up. they don't want to deal with his crap anymore

that's why i always tell people, encourage your employees, incentivize them, make them more attached to the business, not less i remember tammy from qsq line she single-handedly kept that business afloat, managing the financing, inventory, staffing, offered 300 bucks a week two kids at home and another one on the way it was crazy the owner just took her for granted. how do you get itall done? >> i don't. >> have you talked to jim about this >> yes but he believes that everybody should work really hard and so it's disheartening it's hard. >> we almost lost tammy to another company. but we saw her value and we wanted to make sure that she stuck around so we gave her a raise and paid maternity leave i'm going to pay you $1,000 a week so you don't have to bartend. okay okay i'm going to give you a check. and it should help you kind of just be able to rest, take care

of your baby and then when you come back, you're going to bust somebody's ass, all right okay >> wow thank you. >> every time i see that, it reminds me how important people are in business. and it isn't just about the numbers. it's about making sure that the people who work there feel like they're taken care of. what's also important to remember is that you have to hire the right employees to begin with and you have to know how to tap into their strengths which brings us to rule number three. know what you don't know very simple. i know what i'm good at and i know what i'm not good at. what i'm not good at, i find people who are really good at it and i make them part of the team not all of us possess skills to do everything. and when we can't recognize it, you're going to end up with a big pile of pooh

take something like sjc drums, beautifully crafted, great staff. but the place was in total chaos. you're inefficient and priced below market which means you have high costs and no margin. >> death spiral. >> death spiral. the owner, mike, is second to none when it comes to hustling and marketing. he doesn't know how to make drums and not the greatest with numbers. he had essentially frozen out the two people that could help him in those areas his friend, chris, mike was ignoring his advice. >> our gross ma jins last year were about 20% >> in my mind they need to be 40%. >> the pricing model that you put together, if mike would laugh stayed away from it, would it have been 40% >> yes >> even worse, there was his brother, scott, the real drum expert in the family mike had essentially forced him out of the business shortly before i arrived you were the artist. let's call it like it is.

>> mike designed drums and stuff. but when it came to putting your hands on and doing it, that was all me i in my career have made thousands, like i think like 5,000 drums. >> what's the story? why did you leave? what happened? >> well, my brother formed a mu mutiny is what i say >> if he only listened to them, so i made sure he did. i made chris a full partner. and then, as painful as it was, we got mike and scott talking again. >> you had the wrong idea about me because of you. like that's terrible >> i apologized to scott things get blown up. things blew up i never intentionally -- >> you did intentionally. >> i apologize for that. >> you just said you didn't, but you did. say you did it >> i did it. and i'm sorry for that

i just want some sort of relationship, and for it not to be [ bleep ] awkward. >> i never want it to be this way either. >> watching scott work his magic, it was something special. >> i have ideas about that i think you go one flat finish you're eliminating an extra step and doing the bare edges natural is the way to go what's the size of the base drum >> 0-inch. >> 20-inch >> yeah. >> if you offer a 20 and 22, you have almost the same shipping costs. you're still getting one box but they were able to get another shell in there >> it's kind of cool to listen to your brother. because he's got some krcrazy [ bleep ] ideas. listening to scott is like watching a symphonic make drums. the guy is so smart. what he's able to do is provide mike insight that he didn't have on his own

sjc is a multimillion dollar company today. it's going to make $400,000, $500,000 in profit this year we just received a giant additional investment from a vendor that isn't because they made a better drum. it's because i think mike was able to take a step back and recognize that other people were better at certain things than he was. >> coming up, things get personal >> you want to start airing the dirt, nanc >> i don't give a [ bleep ]! >> when family and business make for an explosive mix ♪

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there are issues that have come up time and time again and one of those is family drama. always getting in the way of business >> you're coming off like you're saying [ bleep ] to your daughter. >> go to hell. >> you and your dad have blowups here >> all the time. >> back off. you're crossing the line between father and boss. >> how about you marry some crazy [ bleep ] that we don't like and something happens to you and then we have to deal with her. >> it's not that i go out and look for family businesses that have conflict. families generally have conflict businesses generally have conflict that tension and that energy is something that i've often tried to remove myself from. at least in the early years i did, because i was like, i'm not oprah. but at the end of the day, i

kind of am oprah i do have to get involved. i feel like i literally got an mba in therapy the main lesson i've learned is, if you want to work with family or close friends, you've got to accept the crazy dysfunction in family and dysfunction in business can actually be managed by just recognizing what it is, and working around it. it's understanding strengths and weaknesses, and hot buttons. now, there are those who end up understanding that and there are those who don't. a perfect example of the latter, worldwide trailers a concession truck builder out of waycross, georgia and probably the craziest, most dysfunctional organization i've ever been involved with. owners tom and nancy ended their 20-year romantic relationship, but they continued to work together what ensued was complete chaos, screaming, yelling and way too much information >> you put us in this situation. >> tom's girlfriend working in

this company for three [ bleep ] years. >> oh, my god, i remember this it was so hot in that trailer. and they were screaming at each other like crazy people. >> i have so much proof right here that she's been working in this company it is un[ bleep ] real this is tammy's cell phone, which is your girlfriend it is his girlfriend, tammy, this is the number this is her direct line, period. >> does she work there >> sure does, yeah >> your girlfriend works for a dealer that sells your products? >> that's correct. >> she's not allowed to be working -- >> she produced half our volume last year. >> i don't give a [ bleep ]! >> take your drama and take it elsewhere. you want to start airing the dirt, nanc, maybe you should have been at a [ bleep ] i can't work with you. >> the deal's off. >> i can't do business with you guys i can't do this. >> when you want to do business, give us a call. >> as far as that goes, there's

other people i have a backup plan >> i still love you, though, marcus can we go out on a date now? >> i did go on a date with nancy. no, of course i didn't go on a date with nancy. she asked me like three times. in the case of tom and nancy, the crazy was so elevated, that their ability to even be in a room together was impossible but there are other situations where people actually can work through their family drama a good example of that would be a woman's fashion brand in new york city. now, the owner, nicolas, had taken the business over from his mother when the business fell on hard times my issue with nicolas was he didn't respect his mother. he was abusive he was outspoken he didn't really appreciate what she had built. and i knew i had to get to the root of the problem. >> you have your job to do your job is to come up with an idea, and then it is your job to

advise when the product comes in, we will tell you whether it is financially and logistically feasible to do. >> i cannot take it anymore. >> i need to kind of understand what i just walked into. >> i don't know what to do when he's like that >> this is my fault. i'm not a good son i don't take care of you i've been taking bullet after bullet for you we've just gotten ourselves out of debt. okay your children have been carrying you want all of the accolade without doing any of the work. >> after spending a lot more time with nicolas, i came to realize that he was dealing with a lot of baggage, a lot of things from the past about his father's passing, about his mother's role, about his sister, about the burden he felt and he really hadn't had anybody to talk to >> when you walk in that door -- >> i am her boss. >> you are her boss. but you would never talk to an employee that way, so why do

you? >> i think my sadness is manifesting itself in anger. it's just sadness i've been carrying my whole life >> family business inherently brings drama and history but in this case, i wanted to get some long festering issues out on the table >> this is another piece of the puzzle. >> what is >> our relationship. i mean, she is everything. mom, dad, friend, partner. >> employee. >> employee. be constructive. and be encouraging and be supportive. she's your mom first. >> yeah. >> and she's your employee last. don't ever forget that she's your mom first she will smack you upside your head >> she should more often >> yeah. look, these relationships, they're never going to be perfect. and once you dig into the root

of the issues, and you really peel back the onion to find out how to communicate effectively, you make progress. that's how i felt after nicolas and i talked i've seen him really mature. today, great family man. i think the thing, guys, that maybe is the best is the relationship with all of you has transformed. >> i love you. >> yeah. >> it's true >> by the way, nicolas' sister stephanie could be maybe one of the best examples i've seen of personal growth. even if i look at every episode i've ever done on the show she went from taking back seat in her family's business to running my $45 million fashion company. and that includes not just the original business, but every fashion oriented business you've seen on the show coming up, the honest truth about some of the biggest fakes, phonies and frauds in "the profit" history.

>> i feel like you're lying. >> i'm not. >> i'll reveal one thing my small business owners have in common and it's not what you might think. >> there's $319,000 missing. >> i guess it needs to be found. >> did you miss this moment from "the profit" >> tell the truth. because you're going to get busted. >> "the profit" available on demand, cnbc, get yours. i'm marcus lemonis, and i'm here with small business leaders from the moeblg community. we're discussing tips to help improve your business. >> i try to explain to people how anybody could look at any type of business and use the three ps how do you think about the three ps in your own business?

>> process the end product only happens profitably if that entire process is managed correctly >> right but it has to be managed by people >> by people, yes. >> without people, there is no process. >> absolutely. >> and ultimately there is no product. for more tips to improve your business, check out whiteboard wednesdays at t-mobile.com/markets pizza fee and the dog sitting fee. who is she, verizon? with t-mobile® taxes and fees are already included, so you get four lines for just $40 bucks each.

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liberty mutual insurance. you know, it's been four years, and 67 episodes since i started "the profit. and i've heard people say i'd like to do business with softies. people that are like nice, and they cry all the time. and i guess my response is, i appreciate doing business with people who can be real and show me all of their scars, and all of their frailties because it gives me the sense that they're never hiding anything so that's rule five, be vulnerable >> i built it for my brother, for my family. i feel like i failed them, i really do. >> it's hard to be on the verge of feeling like you might not believe in it. >> we did whatever we had to to survive and never let any of them up there know what it took.

in seven years, people got bonuses. >> i just feel like i failed >> you are not a failure >> i want to stop feeling that way. >> well, that's why i'm here >> for lots of folks, obviously, vulnerability doesn't come easy. it takes a lot of courage to really open up and own your story. take the guys from flex watches. the original line consisted of a variety of watches in different colors, each representing a different cause, like cancer or hunger a portion of their sales would go to that charity but oddly, they drifted away from it. >> where's the charity angle on this generation? >> a lot of people don't realize we still do the charity aspect >> i think this is a total mess. it doesn't feel on point with the brand. if you guys have a mission, you should stick to your mission i soon learned that one of the guys, trevor, was the reason that they had gotten away from their original mission and that's because in his mind, the charity aspect connected to the watches is a direct

connection to his mom. that brought back a lot of very painful memories. >> she got breast cancer eight years ago. we lost her three years ago. >> she passed away. >> yeah. >> what's your mom's name? >> karen. >> is your mom's name incorporated in that >> no, we actually talked about that >> we're just not able to go there yet. >> trevor went through a tough time, obviously, after his mom passed. >> because of me, probably, we just haven't talked about it and discussed it as much as we should and i don't know how to tell that story it's tough >> i feel bad. i feel bad for my best friend. no one deserves to, like, go through all that stuff it hurts, man. >> i pushed him to embrace his story. because i knew it would bring him closure, but most importantly help the business as well but he pushed back and pushed back. >> i don't know if the face of the brand is supposed to be so much about me and my mom i struggle with talking about

it >> until eventually he got there. he personally prepared a video for flex's website, which paid tribute to his mom and the impact she had had on the business and it was incredibly powerful >> that's my kid. >> it feels so good. it's crazy we feel so inspired again to share with people about these causes that we care about. >> the reality of it is, that the reason your business was good, is because people liked the story. you had to fall in love with the story again yourself. >> they turned out to be one of the best businesses i've invested in. not just because we've sold some watches, but because the willingness to show their true colors, to be themselves, and i really made a point to break them down, to get the best of them of course, if you're going to tell your story, you better make sure it's a work of bringing us

to rule six, be authentic. i think people can get confused between telling your story and having it be authentic and telling a story and trying to convince people it's authentic a seller of high-end cleaning products, toilet bloowl cleaner you get the idea you would have thought she was selling fine art. >> we used to have a text-heavy label. i wanted to make it easy for the customer to identify >> all right i'm going to challenge you on that i feel like i'm buying products for castle or something. >> do you have a chair in your house? >> i do. >> she just didn't have her head in her clouds when it came to the product, the company was on the verge of collapsing, yet she was carrying on like everything was fine, it was perfect it feels like you guys are slightly delusional about what's happening. it's like it doesn't feel like a company in crisis to me. she fought me on the name of the

company, the look, any change she saw as a threat to the upscale image she was trying to cultivate. when we discovered that her inventory was worth just a fraction of what she thought it was, that didn't even seem to faze her how much is actually here? >> about 33 pallets. not the 120 that we thought. >> so you're telling me you don't have $280,000 in inventory? >> no. >> how much is actually in inventory? >> like 70 >> but i made a deal based on this information >> sorry >> i ended up walking away because i finally realized that it wasn't about the company or the brand, it was about max. who's more important for her to create this image of wealth and success, and this aristocratic lifestyle. it was friggin' toilet bowl cleaner. i mean, trying to create a story is important, but having that

story be authentic, and having it be believable, and having people want to embrace it, like schuler's. that's a story of a family that lives on a big tract of land, that loves barbecue that's just who they are they wouldn't change for anyone. not even me. case in point, when i tried to change the biscuit recipe so it would be better suitable for mass production, oh, no. not going to happen. >> this is crazy it is a family recipe. i'm trying to adjust but this is not us >> that's a story. but it's authentic and you know what, people line up down the street to go there now it's this massive complex, like on ten acres. they've undergone a huge expansion, outdoor deck, general store, catering. and what i love more about them than anything else, they're

authentic. >> yes, sir, nothing better. >> schuler's could be the greatest juxtaposition of authenticity >> marcus. >> vulnerability is one kind of honesty. authenticity is another. but there's a third kind of honesty that's just as important. rule number seven, be transparent. see, vulnerability and transparency are two different things transparency is, i'm going to find out what you're hiding. and the more i sniff something that you're hiding, i'm going to find it. >> i have tried to be honest -- >> you haven't been honest at all. i don't want to do business with you because i don't feel like i can trust you. one of my biggest issues with transparency came with sal remember him from artistic stitch this was a small silk screening and printing business with a huge identity problem. it's a plult ti plex of businesses that work together. we've got someone coming in to

get some shirts. now on a friday, saturday night he's coming in with his family and kids and actually eat in the restaurant. >> that's what's called a mall. >> while sal lacked focus and had too many things going on under his umbrella, what i saw was a lot of promise in his core printing business. and i thought it could be a huge deal for me. but as soon as we started diving into the finances, red flags were everywhere. do you have any personal living expenses on these cards? >> i'm sure there is what's the big deal about that, honestly i'm not a hundred percent sure what the -- >> you were a hundred percent sure to tell me it was construction debt. you put this paper together. >> we needed computers and stuff. it could be. i'm not saying no. >> the japanese steakhouse, $230. >> i went out with my family >> on the company credit card? >> on the company credit card. >> now i'm paying for your meals? this isn't sitting well with me. i feel like you're lying to me >> i'm not. >> i feel like that. little by little, the story keeps changing despite these hiccups, i went

against my better judgment and held up my deal with artistic stitch until i went back months later. i felt like i needed to pay them a visit in person. sal started dodging my calls, not returning my e-mails what i returned to was a total disaster sal was lying to me, and his landlord michael and the whole thing was about to implode. we look familiar to you? >> i have been talking to you at length, and i'm just trying to get paid >> i'm trying to help you. michael's trying to help you and you just struggle with being straight with people >> i never, ever did anything, anything at all to go ahead and try to break this deal whatsoever >> did you take money out of the business that you weren't supposed to? >> to pay some of my expenses that i had. >> personal expenses >> yes. >> you never got my permission to do it. >> i understand that. >> money was going into the business, and he still wasn't paid

that was our biggest sticking point, that our landlord get paid >> you're caught with your pants down >> leave him alone he can't even defend himself >> he needs no defense don't defense jerky people where is my money? i haven't been paid for three years. i've let him slide for three friggin' years >> gina, please don't go out there. >> i've got to get paid. that's the facts all right? >> look, needless to say i ended my deal with sal >> i wish you luck, sal. >> thank you >> i think sal lied because he didn't know how to do anything else he was used to manipulating the facts and manipulating people. but ultimately the biggest mistake was the one i made in my gut i knew i shouldn't have done the deal i lost about 300 grand coming up, "the profit" alums who went from underdogs to unbelievable success >> oh, my god!

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in all any years of making "the profit," i've invested countless hours and tens of millions of dollars. so my offer is $400,000. >> $600,000. >> $1.7 million. >> do we have a deal >> yes >> we have a deal.

thank you. >> we have a deal. >> thank you very much, mr. lemonis. it is a pleasure >> but in order for these businesses to be successful or not in the long term, real business has to happen, like after the cameras go that brings us to rule eight it's all about follow-through. i think people have this misconception that i'm going to come in and run their business for them i'm not there to run your business i'm there to push you along. and point out things to you so that you can do it when i'm gone and there has to be consistency. and the following of that process, not the day after or the month after, but years after. seems pretty straightforward to me yet i have to grapple with this lack of consistency and follow-through again and again and again. i can't be here every day. >> i know. >> these people want a leader. i don't know if you have what it takes. >> the business has a ton of potential. i think the worry i have, and i didn't tell this to anybody else, is i don't think you want

to do it. >> i want to see them get their system in order. >> are you going to help do that a good example of terrible follow-through is standard burger, staten island restaurant i invested in a couple of years back it's frustrating, because while it's still a viable operation today, it could have been so much more. when i first arrived, i found a group of friends who couldn't have been closer or more volatile >> are you kidding me? >> listen, i was not one day late i'm three blocks away. >> what the [ bleep ] are you talking about? >> their fighting had led to a real embarrassment of the restaurant from frozen patties they used to a filthy kitchen i overhauled their menu, completely renovated the space, put one of the guys in charge as managing partner and most importantly, told them they all needed to follow my process and stay engaged if this was going to work. i came back a few months later the guys had made a bunch of

misguided changes to the menu that i didn't approve of it looks like chaos to me. they were wasting time on looking for new locations. we're in the business of building a box, marketing it, polishing, it, perfecting it, and then having somebody say, i'll take one, i'll take one that's what a franchise is we're not in the business of leasing space and building [ bleep ] -- >> worst of all they hadn't followed through on their promise to stop fighting. >> i'm the guy that gets here every day. and you show up once a month that's the problem if you want to start calling my name [ bleep ], be ready to be a man and stand next to me and say so >> there's problems here >> you're the problem. >> i'm the problem >> that's right. you stick knives in your friends' backs >> hold on -- >> sweep it under me i'm the rug. i'm the rug. sweep it under me. >> standard burger is still open

today. it's profitable. but the five guys are not together anymore a couple of them are just doing their own thing. one of them was fired. in hindsight i made a big mistake by investing there it was a $750,000 error. another big disappointment for me in terms of follow-through, amazing grapes a wine retailer in california. with an absentee owner what do you do full-time you don't come here every day. >> no, i come in here probably two, three times a week. >> two to three times a week >> yeah. >> or two to three times a month? amazing grapes closed. it's gone. i put $1 million in that business $1 million and it closed because there's a couple people there that did not want to follow the process but for every business like amazing grapes, there's one like bentley's. a pet supply chain in the chicago land area. lovely people, but one hell of a

messed-up process. they had grown way too fast. every store looked different pr the next the merchandising is different, the layout is different, the lighting is different. the whole thing is different but they really put their heads down, trusted the process. both stepped up as leaders. >> we need to start boxing everything up. >> and the result? nothing short of amazing what you're going to see today is kind of the future look of what could be a regional or a national brand are you ready? >> yeah. >> i'll let you go first >> close your eyes no, close your eyes. >> oh, my god! >> oh, my god! >> here's the thing, they didn't just execute it, they followed through long after the cameras left and guess what today it's a $100 million business, top line, going to be close to 100 stores, where we've

received offers for north of $100 million to buy the business they're literally going to get like a $40 million check that's a big deal. you know why it's because they trusted the process. and they followed through. coming up, the one thing that still shocks me after all these years. and -- hey, are you [ bleep ] kidding me what you can learn from one of the most memorable moments in profit history whoooo.

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after almost 70 episodes of "the profit," rule nine is one that should go without saying. but it doesn't people, know your numbers. how much money does this business make a year >> i don't know the exact numbers. >> what is the cost to make something like this? >> you know, that's a good question >> i can't move forward if i don't know for sure what the numbers are going to be. nine out of ten people still cannot explain where their money's going. in season one, i visited a small popcorn business run by a woman named charlotte. remember her i was shocked to find out that her accounting system consisted of piles of money on the floor you just leave the money out >> yeah. >> this would be a cool place to rob. it only got worse from there it was over $300,000 missing from her accounts. charlotte was absolutely clueless or was she hiding something. the problem is, there's $319,000 missing. >> i guess it needs to be found.

>> why don't you seem alarmed by the fact that money's missing? >> i don't think this is all accurate, i'm just saying. >> when i tried to get to the bottom of it, she got pissed off. >> i may not be able to read my balance sheet, but i make two point whatever a year. don't tell me i'm stupid and don't know what i'm doing. >> he didn't say you were stupid. >> oh, it's my money excuse me? what did you start to see? >> you shook his hand. >> so what >> it got so bad i had to bring in a forensic accountant, and that didn't even help. >> there are no distributions, no draws, right? >> no distributions because there's no money to distribute >> but you have profit >> what's happening is there's leakage somewhere. i don't know if somebody else is stealing or you're stealing. >> i control the cash, and so if somebody's stealing, it's me, and i don't steal. >> where is the cash

>> i couldn't tell you. >> something that goes hand in hand with not knowing your numbers, not paying attention to your margins. >> you're making 37 cents on this bag that's not great. >> it's not. >> what kind of margin do you make on this stuff >> $4.50 i stel them for $5.50. >> what does it cost you >> on a 30% margin. >> the reason i tell people they should know their numbers is it's the health report on the business in order for you to make decisions about where you're going, or who you're going to hire, or what expansion plans you're going to have, you have to understand the current status of your business so, please, know your numbers. there's no excuse not to you know what else there's no excuse for excuses. that brings us to rule ten quit whining and start winning. i've seen a lot of small business owners who simply do not take responsibility for their actions. what i always tell small business owners is to get a mirror you want to know who's to blame?

it's always you. if you want people to respect you, take responsibility for your mistakes and your actions the perfect example of someone who cannot stop complaining and blaming others, and passing the buck, my good friend hank morris hank inherited his father's one successful flower business but under his leadership, let's just say that things started to wilt and the place was in shambles. i agreed to invest 100 grand to make some much-needed changes. and all hank did is complain. >> he sort of dumped it in the garage i'm not sure the store looks that much better my confidence in marcus right now is kind of wishy-washy. >> until just one week into our deal, he backed out. and he blamed me for all of his company woes. >> i appreciate your effort. but whatever you tried didn't really work. between you and me, i'm not going to take your deal.

>> why is that we had a handshake on it. >> yeah, there's a lot of stuff that you promised that didn't go through. >> like what >> you said you would give 100,000. >> i spent over 100,000. >> i didn't see anything >> how much do you think i've spent? >> 150 >> hank, are you [ bleep ] kidding me are you trying to tell me i didn't put money in your business >> you didn't show it to us. >> would you like to see it? >> it's too late now we had a deal and you didn't do it >> you're kidding me. >> the sales didn't go up. >> in a matter of two days >> you said a week >> that's because you don't know how to manage this place you're telling me -- you better call your mama and get my money back honestly hank can blame anybody he wants, including me hank wasn't qualified to run that business. he wasn't jacob morris no one was asking him to be. i was just asking him to stop whining. just get to work coming up, i revealed the

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all your tv at home. the most on demand your entire dvr. top networks. and live sports on the go. included with xfinity tv. xfinity, the future of awesome. you know what, after 67 episodes, i've seen a lot of crazy things your inventory is upside down, i felt i would hang upside down, too. i rarely lose my cool. you stepped the way the [ bleep ] -- >> there's one common theme i've seen throughout, regardless of the business owner, that they had a belief in themselves and a passion to get into something and to try >> i always wanted to be a ceo i thought it would be the best job in the world and i still do. >> even as i sit here today, i go into every single business with the same fresh set of eyes.

without any misgivings, because i feel like i have a duty to give that business owner who took a chance on themselves, who took a chance by calling me, who better have their numbers figured out, a fair crack at it. >> i'm so grateful that you picked our company i'm excited to see where it goes from here. >> i understand that t"the profit" is a television show that is me investing in small businesses but for me it was never a show about business it was a show about people, and taking a chance on people. it's not always going to be fun. but my job is to make sure that you guys have a bright future. i learned a lot about myself i learned that i can learn anything if i try hard enough chris, we're good. i got on, i don't like the margins. so i've pretty much established that this whole thing sucks. and you don't have to be an

expert at everything if you can partner with somebody that is an expert, i know nothing about making candy but i always wanted to own a candy store. this is good i didn't really get a good taste. i can almost argue that pete and allison made my dream come true. i've cried with business owners. >> i was 8 years old that's what i remember. >> and i've screamed to the top of my lungs. >> shut up for a minute, shut up! what's come out of it for me, and i think for a lot of other people, is how to treat people, how not to treat people. but isn't that a life lesson in general? take a chance on real people and it will work out. >> i never would have dreamed this never. thank you, marcus. >> don't invest in really bad people, bad idea how is that any different than relationships, hiring, i mean, how is it any different?

>> marcus lemonis is saving the american dream one business at a time >> i feel like that's my purpose in life. to help people "the profit," next cn cnbc >> tonight on the profit... i go inside worldwide trailers, a custom trailer manufacturer in tampa, florida. and so is this essentially a commercial kitchen? >> yep. >> that's your serving area. >> co-owners struggle to work together after their nasty breakup. >> you're a pathological liar, is the way i look at it. >> i can't work with you. >> i have my work cut out for me. for me, it's all about business. >> none of it would've-- should've been anything except for business. >> i need to put the controls in place... my name isn't going on this if it looks like this. there's no way. >> we do track our money. >> but no, you don't track your money. and make sure these bitter rivals can work together. >> yeah, you got that right! >> my name is marcus lemonis, and i fix failing businesses. i don't know how you run your business this way. i ma t