it's fashion. -i never would have done it without you. -well, i couldn't have done it without you. -i love you, baby. -you're awesome, baby. -all right. now go sell something. ♪ lemonis: tonight on a special episode here's the deal... there's a new sheriff, it's me. ...it's 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. ...and the people i've met. how are you? i'm marcus. the biggest triumphs... all: opa! lemonis: ...and the total fiascoes... [ shouts ] guys, shut up! ...and put everything i've learned... -ching-ching. -...into 10 key lessons... we got to come up with a better process. if you don't evolve, you will die. ...sharing some shocking updates throughout. are you the grim reaper, or...? sometimes. after dozens of investments and nearly $60 million spent,

this is "the profit," my top 10 rules for success. my name is marcus lemonis and i risk my own money to save struggling businesses. lemonis: 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. it's not always pretty... everything's going to change. everything. ...but i do it to save jobs and i do it to make money. this... -let's go to work. ...is "the profit." ♪ you know, i've been traveling this country and investing in small business for -- for more than four years now. and i've met hundreds of entrepreneurs, their 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. it's something i always try to appreciate. but all that being said, i've met some real jerks,

a lot of them. and so, my first rule when it comes to success in business, don't be an ass. that's really the number 1 take-away, how to treat people. and i've met some people that just don't know how to treat people. like that meal service guy in florida, erik at fuel foods. -and i'm not going to -- -you're going back on your deal? -i'm not going to -- -when we discovered that he was connected to somebody that was in a ponzi scheme and that he was not really acting above board. you're going back on your handshake deal? 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. why would i shake your hand when it means nothing? erik, good luck to you. your handshake means nothing. we made a handshake deal. listen, you're an intimidating guy. you're not going to intimidate me. -i'm not trying to -- -that was a big dude and 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. goodbye, erik. and then there's andrew rosenthal. [ laughs ] andrew owns la dogworks, this pet care place in l.a.

that has everything from boarding, grooming, training, and a bunch of other things. i love the business model and 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. he's going to get fired anyway. lemonis: why's that? because i [bleep] can't stand him. 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 very aggressive, but then five minutes of being there, he was aggressive with me... i can make this businesses work with or without you! ...and his employees. no. i'm not going to put up with that! jesse failed miserably! he wouldn't listen to a [bleep] thing i say! 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]! 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 the second rule, make your employees number one. i've been publicly criticized about this philosophy. you read all these books that say, "the customer's always right and make customers number one." and at the end of the day, for me, the customer isn't number one. the employee's number one. my theory is is that if you treat the employee right, that ultimately that employee's 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 erik 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.

woman: because it's always everybody else's fault. the way he says things, it does bother a lot of people that work here. erik: sorry if you feel like you can't approach me. i'm sorry if you feel i've dominated you at a time. i'm sorry if i've ever made you feel bad. you know, i'm -- i'm sorry. just 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. and i think it was punishment for speaking out against him at that meeting. it smells like retaliation to me. you cut alex, you cut diana. not at all. -i think it is retaliation. -not at all. i work endless hours for you. you took us off the system. you already blocked us from all the passwords. i don't know what intentions you're doing. you locked her out of the computer already? i changed -- i changed my passwords, i can't -- -erik. -absolutely. not surprisingly, the employees that worked there, well, they left, they got fed up. they didn'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 tami from key west key lime. she single-handedly kept that business afloat, managing their finances, inventory, the staffing, all for 300 bucks a week. and she had two kids at home and another one on the way. it was crazy. and the owner, he just took her for granted. how do you get it all 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 -- it's disheartening. it's hard. we almost lost tami 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. lemonis: i'm going to give you six months' worth of pay and i'm going to pay you $1,000 a week, so you don't have to bartend, if that's okay. [ sobs ] okay. i'm going to give you a check and it should help you just 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. [ laughs ] 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 really about making sure that the people that work there feel like they're taken care of. but 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 3, know what you don't know. it's very simple. i know what i'm good at and i know what i'm not good at. and what i'm not good at, i go find people that are really good at it and i make 'em 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 poo. your take something like sjc drums. they make a drum, beautifully hand-crafted, great staff, but the place was in total chaos.

so you're inefficient and you're priced below market. right. which means you have high cost and no margin. death spiral. the owner mike is second-to-none when it comes to marketing and hustling. but he doesn't know how to make drums and he's not the greatest with numbers, either. when i met him, he had essentially frozen out the two people who could help him most in those areas. there was his best friend chris, a guy as sharp as they come, but mike was ignoring his advice. our gross margins last year were about 20%. what should the margins be? chris? in my mind, they need to be like, 40%. in the pricing model that you put together, if mike would've stayed away from it, would it have been 40%? yes. lemonis: 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 just call it like it is. yeah, i mean, mike -- mike designed drums and stuff, but when it came to, you know, putting your hands on it an doing it, that was all me. i, in my career, have made thousands,

like, i think 5,000 drums. so what's the story? why'd you leave? what happened? well, my brother formed a mutiny, is what i say. so there they were, two people who could've helped mike run that business thousands of times better than he could have if he only listened to them. so i made sure he did and made chris a full partner. and then, as painful as it was, we got mike and scott talking again. people had the wrong idea about me because of you. and that's -- like, that's -- that's terrible. i apologize for that, scott. it -- things get blown up, things blew up. i never intentionally -- you did intentionally, turn -- i apologize for that, okay. no, you just said you didn't, but you did. -say you did. -i did it. and i'm sorry for that. i just want some sort of relationship and not to be [bleep] awkward. i never wanted it to be this way, either.

lemonis: and then watching scott work his magic, it was something special. i have ideas about that. i think you go one flat finish, but it's a natural satin stain, 'cause then you're eliminating the cost of the laminate, you're eliminating an extra step when you're doing the bearing edges. i think natural's the way to go. what's the size of the bass drum going to be? -it's a 20-inch bass drum. -20 inch? yeah. if you offer a 20 inch and a 22 inch, you have almost the same shipping cost, 'cause 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, 'cause he's got some crazy [bleep] in his head and he's very smart. watching and listening to scott is -- is like watching a savant make drums. the guy's so smart and what he's able to do is really provide mike with insight that he couldn't necessarily have on his own. by the way, here's a news flash. sjc is a multi-million dollar company today. it's going to make $400,000 or $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 'cause i think mike was able to take a step back and recognize that other people were better at certain things than he was. things get personal. you want to start airing the dirt, nancy? i don't give a [bleep]! my rules for success when family and business make for an explosive mix.

hey, batter, batter, [ crowd cheers ] like everyone, i lead a busy life. but i know the importance of having time to do what you love. at comcast we know our customers' time is valuable. that's why we have 2-hour appointment windows, including nights and weekends. so you can do more of what you love. my name is tito, and i'm a tech-house manager at comcast. we're working to make things simple, easy and awesome.

there are some issues that have come up time and time again.it," 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 blow ups here? -all the time. -back up. you're crossing the line between father and boss. how about you marry some crazy [bleep] that we don't like and that something happens to you and then have to deal with her? it's not that i go out and i 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, 'cause i was like, i'm not oprah. but at the end of the day, i kind of am oprah. i do have to be involved. it sounds like you're more hurt that your brother was kicked out. i mean, i feel like i --

i literally got an mba in therapy. and i'll tell ya, the main lesson i've learned is, if you're going 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. -just so we all know -- -you put us in this situation. tom's girlfriend has been working has been 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 her cell phone, tammy's cell phone's, which is your girlfriend's! so it is his girlfriend tammy! this is the number! this is her direct line, period! tom, is that -- dose 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 anything to do with this company! a dealer who produced half our volume last year. -i don't give a [bleep]! -you know what, nancy? you've put us in this situation. take your drama and take it elsewhere. you want to start airing the dirt, nancy? maybe you shouldn't have been at a wedding and [bleep] some guy in a bathroom! i can't work with you! you know what?! the deal's off! the deal's off! i can't do business with you guys. i -- i can't do business with you guys. well, when you want to do business, give me a call. that's all right! i mean, as far as that goes, there's other -- there's other people. i have a backup plan, so...

i still love you, though, marcus! can we go out on a date now? [bleep] you. yes, i did go on a date with nancy. no, i did not. of course, i didn't go on a date with nancy and she asked me like three times. i don't give a [bleep]! 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 courage. b, a woman's fashion brand in new york city. now the owner nicolas goureau had taken the business over from his mother when the business fell on hard times. but my issue with nicolas is that he didn't respect his mom. 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. nicholas: you have your job to do! your job is to come up with an idea and then it is your job to advise. so when the product comes in, we will tell you whether it is financially

and logistically feasible to do! i cannot take it any more. i -- i need to kind of understand what i just walked into. i don't know what to do when he starts like that. so this is my fault, i'm not a good son, i don't -- -she never said that, no. i don't take care of you, i haven't taken bullet after bullet for you. and we started this business with debt that we've just gotten ourselves out of, okay, that your children have been carrying! you want all of the accolade without doing any of the work! but after spending a lot more time with nicolas, i came to realize that he was dealing with a lot of, 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. byou also 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.

look, 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 that puzzle. what is? our relationship. i mean, she is everything. mom, dad, friend, partner. -employee. -employee. discipline her to be creative, but 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 and she will smack you upside your head. maybe she should more often. yeah. come here. look, these relationships, they're -- 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,

then you make progress. and 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 that the relationship of all of you has transformed. -oh, i love my children. -yeah. stephanie: it's true. lemonis: and 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 the backseat 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. the honest truth about some of the biggest fakes, phonies, and frauds in "profit" history. i feel like you're lying to me about something. i'm -- i'm not. plus, i'll reveal the one thing my favorite small business owners have in common.

and it's not what you might think.

limonis: since i startedbeen four y"the profit,"pisodes and i've had people tell me on the street that i -- i like to do business with softies. people that are like, nice, 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 5, be vulnerable. i built it for, for my brother, for my family. i feel 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, or a customer... in seven years, people got bonuses. we didn't get paid. i just feel like i failed.

you are not a failure. well, 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. their original line consisted of a variety of watches in different colors, each representing a different cause, like cancer, or hunger. and a portion of their sales would go to that charity. but oddly, they drifted away from it. lemonis: 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 miss. 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. and that brought back a lot of very painful memories.

she -- she got breast cancer eight years ago. we lost her three years ago. -she passed away. -yeah. -what was your mom's name? -karen. is your mom's name incorporated into --? no, we've actually talked about that but, we're just not able to go there yet. trevor went through a tough time, obviously, after his mom passed. trevor: 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. and i feel bad for my best friend. that's it. i mean, no one deserves to like, go through all that stuff. just, it hurts, you know. i pushed him to embrace his story, 'cause 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. as much as that's our story, like, i just 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. love my kids. we feel so good. it's -- it's crazy, we feel so inspired again, to -- to share with people about these causes that we care about. the reality of it is, is that the reason your business was good is 'cause people liked the story. and you had to fall in love with the story again yourself. they've 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'd better make sure it's a work of nonfiction. that brings us to rule 6, 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 that it's authentic. take max from murchison-hume, a seller of high-end cleaning products. toilet bowl cleaner, surface cleaner, you get the idea. and you'd had thought she was selling fine art. watch me through this. so we used to have a text-heavy label. i wanted to make it easy for the customer to identify, so for me, it's an icon. i'm going to challenge you on that. oh, no. i feel like it's like, buying products for my castle or something. the chair is kind of like a chair that would be in a castle. anybody have a chair like that in your house? no. i do. and she didn't just have her head in the clouds when it came to her product, the company was on the verge of collapsing and yet, she was carrying on like everything was fine and it was perfect. max, 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. but when we discovered that her inventory was worth just a fraction of what she thought it was, well, that didn't even seem to faze her. so how much is actually here? it's about 33 pallets, so not the 120 pallets that we thought. so you're telling me you don't have $280,000 of inventory? no. how much is actually in inventory? like $70,000. 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. it was more important for her to create this image of wealth and success and this aristocratic lifestyle. but it was -- it was fricking 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 shuler's... if fat ain't dripping on the coal, it's not barbecue. that's a story of a family that just lives on a big tract of land, that loves barbecue, that they're just -- that's just who they are. they wouldn't change for anyone. not even me. case in point, when i tried to change elaine's biscuit recipe so it would be better suitable for mass production, oh, no, not going to happen. elaine: this is crazy. you know, 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 10 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. there's nothing better. shuler's and -- and murchison-hume

could be the greatest juxtaposition of authenticity. marcus, some tea. so vulnerability is one kind of honesty. authenticity is another. but there's a third kind of honesty that's just as important. rule number 7, 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. and i have tried to be honest and i have tried to be forthright -- you haven't been honest at all. i do not want to do business with you, because i don't think i can trust you. i feel like you're hustling me. one of my biggest issues with transparency came with sal. remember him from artistic stitch? this was a small silkscreening and printing business with a huge identity problem. it's a multiplex of businesses that really work together. you get somebody coming in that wants to do shirts. he looks right out into that thing. now, a friday and saturday night, he's coming in with his family and his kids and he's going to 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? sal: i'm sure there is. what's the big deal about that, honestly? i'm not 100% sure what -- the cards are not even active. but you were 100% to tell me that it was construction debt. yput this paper together. yeah, maybe we needed computers and stuff. it could be. i'm not saying no. wasabi 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 -- okay. and i feel like you're lying to me about something. -i'm not. -but i feel like that, because little by little, the story keeps changing. despite these hiccups, i went against my better judgement and upheld my deal with artistic stitch, until i went back months later.

i felt like i needed to pay them a visit in person, because sal started dodging my calls, not returning my emails, and 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? -yes. i have been talking to you at length and i'm just trying to get paid. i've tried to help you, michael's tried 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? 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! you're gangbanging him! he can't even defend himself! leave him alone. there is no defense. don't defend guilty people. -i'm defending him -- -gina. where's my money?! i haven't been paid for three years, hey, and i'm no good?! i've let him slide for three fricking years! okay, okay. gina, please don't go out there. i'm closing you down first! because i 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. "the profit" alums who went from underdogs to unbelievable success. -oh, my god. -oh, my god. lemonis: and the ones who faced a shocking end, all because they ignored one key rule.

you know, in all my years 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? -yeah. -we have a deal. thank you. we have a deal. thank you very much, mr. lemonis. it is a pleasure to have you -- marcus.

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 away. that brings us to rule 8, it's all about follow-through. i think people have this -- 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 could do it when i'm gone. and there has to be consistency and a following of that process, not the day after or the month after, but years after. seems pretty straightforward to me. and 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. and these people want a leader and i don't know if you have what it takes. lemonis: the business has a ton of potential. i think the worry i have and i didn't tell this to anybody else, is that i don't think you want to do it. i want to see them get their systems in order. are you going to help do that? a good example of terrible follow-through

is standard burger, a staten island restaurant i invested in a couple years back. it's frustrating, because while it's still a viable operation today, it could've 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 live three blocks away! what about all the times, "hey, nobody's at the burger place to open up, call fuggie"? and what the [bleep] are you talking about? lemonis: their fighting had led to a real embarrassment of a restaurant, from frozen patties they used, to the filthy kitchen. so i overhauled their menu, completely renovated the space, put one of the guys in charge as the managing partner, and most importantly, told them they all needed to follow my process and stay engaged if this was going to work. and when i came back a few months later, the guys had made a bunch of misguided changes to the menus that i'd never approved of. it looks like chaos to me. and they were wasting time scouting potential new locations

instead of focusing on the plan, which was to build the national franchise concept in one place. 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 are not in the business of leasing space and building [bleep] out. and worst of all, they hadn't followed through on their promise to stop fighting. i'm the guy that's here every day! what's -- what's your problem? and you're the guy that shows up once a month! -what's your problem. -that's what it is! that's the problem! so if you want to [bleep] start calling my name and [bleep] together, be ready to be a man and stand next to me and say so. i'm not calling [bleep]. i'm saying there's problems here. i didn't think so. yeah, there's problems here. you're the problem. -i'm the problem? -yeah, that's right. -i'm the problem? 'cause you stick knives in your friends' backs and you say [bleep] to other people and expect it to go under the rug. -so if i tell -- -that's what you expect. i'm the rug! sweep it under me! -i'm not sweeping it under you. -yeah, 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.

couple of them are just doing their own thing. one of 'em was fired. in hindsight, i made a big mistake by investing there, in hindsight. 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. so what do you do full-time? since you don't come here every day. no. i come in here probably, two, three times a week. -two, three times a week? -yeah. or two, three times a month? and guess what? amazing grapes closed. it's gone. i put $1 millions in that business. $1 million. and it closed, because there was 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 based in the chicagoland area. lovely people, but one hell of a messed up process. they had grown way too fast. every store looked different from the next. the merchandising is different, the layout is different,

the lighting is different, the whole thing is different. but lisa and gio really put their heads down and trusted the process. both stepped up as leaders. what we need to do now is just 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. -yeah. i'll let you go first. i'm closing my eyes. close your eyes. no, close your eyes, close your eyes. -oh, my god! -i'll look at the floor. -oh, my god! -oh, my god! lemonis: and here's the thing, they didn't just execute for the cameras, they followed through long after the cameras left. and guess what? today, it's a $100 million business and top line with, going to be close to 100 stores, where we've received offers for north of $100 million to buy the business. like, they're literally going to get like a --

like a $40 million check. that's a big deal. you know why? it's because they trusted the process and they followed through. the one thing that still shocks me after all these years. and... hank, are you [bleep] kidding me? what you can learn from one of the most memorable moments in "profit" history.

rule 9 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 mean, as far as that i'll be honest, i don't know the exact numbers. what does it 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. 9-out-of-10 people still cannot explain where their money's going. in season one, i visited a small popcorn business run by a woman named sharla. remember her? i was shocked to find out that her accounting system consisted of piles of money on the floor. do you guys just leave money out? yeah. this would be a cool place to rob. it only got worse from there. there was over $300,000 missing from her accounts and sharla was absolutely clueless, or was she hiding something? the problem is, there's $319,000 missing. then i guess it needs to be found. why don't you seem alarmed by the fact that money is missing? i don't think this is all accurate.

i'm just saying. oh, and when i tried to get to the bottom of it, she got pissed off. i might not be able to read my balance sheet, but i make $2. -whatever they say, million dollars a year. so don't be telling me i'm stupid and don't know what i'm doing. he didn't say you were stupid. oh, please, mother. it's my money. but you should -- i mean, we're only doing what you -- i did what? excuse me? what did you start to say? -you shook his hand. so what? lemonis: it got so bad that i had to bring in a forensic accountant and even that didn't help. the money should be there, 'cause there are no distributions, no draws, right? well, there's no distributions, because there's no money to distribute. but -- 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 -- i control all the cash, so if anybody is stealing, it would be me, and i don't steal. okay, so where's the cash? where's the cash? couldn't tell you. something that goes hand-in-hand with not knowing your numbers, not paying attention to your margins.

so you're making 37 cents on this bat. that's not great. -it's not. terrible margin. what kind of margin do you make on all this stuff? these are $4.50 and i sell 'em for $5.50. that's $2,000. and then what does it cost you? about a 30% margin on those. -that's it? -yeah. the reason that i always tell people that 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 to rule 10, 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. want to know who's to blame? it's always you. and if you want people to respect you, take responsibility

for your mistakes and your actions. perfect example of someone who could not stop complaining and blaming others, passing the buck, my good friend hank maarse. blah-blah-blah... hank inherited his father's once-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, but no matter what i did, hank did nothing but complain. marcus took a lot of stuff out of the store and just kind of dumped it in the garage. i'm not sure that 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's that? -well -- -we had a handshake on it. yeah. i mean, there's a lot of stuff that you promised that didn't...

like what? -...that didn't go through. -like what? well, you said you were going to give us $100,000. i spent over $100,000. well, i don't know what you did, i mean, i didn't see anything. how much you think i've spent? $150,000. hank, are you [bleep] kidding me? yeah. no, i'm not [bleep] kidding you. you [bleep] trying to tell me that i didn't put money in your business? i don't know what you did, 'cause you didn't show it to us, so... -would you like to see it? well, it's too late now. why is it too late? we made a deal and you didn't do it. and you said business was going to go -- you're kidding me? the sales didn't go up. -in a matter of two days? -you said -- that's 'cause you're never here. you said a week. that's 'cause you don't know how to manage this place. well, that's your opinion. so you're telling me -- you'd 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 maarse and no one was asking him to be. i was just asking him to stop whining. just get to work. i reveal the lessons i've learned along the way and the people who have changed my life forever.

my mom washes the dishes... ...before she puts them in the dishwasher. so what does the dishwasher do? cascade platinum does the work for you, prewashing and removing stuck-on foods, the first time. wow, that's clean! cascade platinum.

i am a techie dad.n. i believe the best technology should feel effortless. like magic.

at comcast, it's my job to develop, apps and tools that simplify your experience. my name is mike, i'm in product development at comcast. we're working to make things simple, easy and awesome. after 67 episodes, i've seen a lot of crazy things. i figured since your inventory's upside down, i would hang upside down, too. good, bad, ugly, really ugly. i rarely lose my cool. well, and i don't want you to. you stepped way the [bleep] out of bounds. there's been one common theme that i've seen throughout, regardless of the business owner, is 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 like, you picked our company and i just am excited to like, see where it goes from here. look, i understand that "the profit," is a television show that features me investing in small businesses. i get it, okay. but this is, for me, 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. [ chatter, laughter ] and it was a lot of fun. i learned a lot about myself. i learned that i can learn anything if i try hard enough. lemonis: 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. you could partner with somebody that is an expert. i know nothing about making candy.

but i always wanted to own a candy store. it's good. i didn't really get a good taste. i need another one. and i could almost argue that pete and allison made my dream come true. i've cried with business owners... i was eight years old. that's what i remember. ...and i've screamed to the top of my lungs. [ shouts ] guys, 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 really good people, it will work out? i never would've dreamed, never would've 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? all right. -whoo!whoo! -nice distance!

hey there. live at the nasdaq market site on first show of the new year. guys are getting ready behind me while they're doing that, here's what's coming up >> as we look as what's going on in china, it's clear the economy began to slow. >> it was the words that spooked apple investors this week. but if you lost money, relax because mike khouw has a way to make it back for free. he will explain. plus. >> give me one good piece of intel and it ain't right here.