then why settle for slow internet? comcast business. built for speed. built for business. good morning. these three business heros turned around by bringing back its cheese making legacy. why the owner of this growing beauty care line wants the federal government to regulate her industry even more. wisdom from his lips to your ears. the ceo of carmax on why you need to respect and respond to customers. advice and stories to help you succeed. coming up next on your business.

hi, everyone. the show dedicated to helping your kbroing business. this is a story we are all familiar with. factory close, jobs are lost, and downtowns become ghost towns. this week we have three entrepreneur that have done a remarkable job turning that around. they are small business heros. rebuilt beloved cheese factory

in oregon and put the town whack to work and creating a business on track to become a national brand. nearly 15 years ago as the last cheese factory closed its doors. the town lost a part of its soul. >> i think there's a lot of stories for why it happened. basically consolidation. eliminate ing a competitor. >> for more than 100 years, the area has been known for cheddar cheese. >> there was a lot of dairy, yous everywhere. >> when my dad bought it in '89, it was still the same building from made in the 1930s. his dad bought the company in 1989 and later brad joined

him. brad eventually became the head of production. >> well, when we take a piece of cheese out and we cut it and put it in our mouths and we go oh, my god. that is really good. that makes me proud. >> banden was the perfect spot for cheese making. the micro climate, mountain, the ocean. all of it worked together to feed the cows that produce milk that gives the cheese the flavor. >> a lot of green gas. could be the way the rain is filtering through it. >> we're at the mouth of a river that goes to a fertile valley that produces some of the best area in the country. >> it's the flavor of the area. make the same cheese out of different milks in different areas and they taste differently. >> even the special combination wasn't enough to save the last remaining cheese maker in town. a rival bought and kept the name

and moved production out to midwest. tore down the building and told brad and everyone else work tlg to go home. we no longer need your services and that was it. i walked out the door. >> brad went on to make award winning cheese for one of the premier producers in sooelt. most of the other employees moved on as well. >> people left. there's no jobs. can't make a living here. >> it went down. the schools strange. a drug problem grew. >> it's like taking the auto industry from detroit. not only are so many people employed by it, but they're identified by it. >> this is the story how three business partners rebuilt the factory, brought back lost jobs, and returned the industrial spirit to the 3,000 people of

this town. >> we were really proud of this place. when you're proud of something, you're very, very sad when it goes away. >> all started when daniel called greg with a business proposition. >> i think i hung up. i don't think i was very interested in the project. >> he did. greg hung up on me the first time. >> i knew nothing about chieese making, manufacturing food products. a lot of things that make it a complicated business. >> daniel was confident greg would change his mind when he understood most of the key elements necessary were still in place. >> it was something that preexisted. they had a model that was already there. clientele us already here. >> we just had to put the pieces together. >> one key thing missing. a master cheese maker. with brad gone, the secret formula for banden cheddar was gone too. >> that's why greg went to

seattle to speak with brad. >> i didn't ask if he was interested because i knew he said no. he said greg, if i wasn't interested in coming to work for you, i wouldn't have had lunch with you. >> people were surprised. i was doing well where i was. why wouldn't i entertain something like this. again, i enjoy doing startup. they're really fun. when we heard he accepted greg's offer and was coming back, that hit the papers. it was a very big deal. >> the city understood the project. at daniel's request, the counsel came through with tax breaks and expedited permits, but the banks were not convinced. >> nay said no, not this project, not now, we're not interested. >> so greg looked elsewhere. >> i knew there was more than one way to do it. i found other creative investors. i got together seven lns to get that $ million together to start the factory. >> named the company face rock

creamery after a local landmark and efforts to build their own company started to build the town up again as well. >> i would probably say 20-30 different businesses that maybe don't rely on us 100% for income, but do business with us. >> you know, it's been sort hard times in the dairy business. >> one of those businesses, milky way theme tack and trucking is owned by david. he delivers the milk each day from his father's farm 15 miles up the road. he says most of the dairy owners in this valley quit long ago. he might have had to do the same until he got the base rock creamery contract. it saved his father's farm. >> this chance came along and i think it's going be a win win for everybody. >> let's put it this way, if we weren't here, the farm we're taking milk from probably wouldn't have kept farming. at the very least we saved one. you see a new skip in people's step around here. it was cool to see.

i get goose bumps thinking about it right now. >> these three however are businessmen, if they've made the town proud, it makes them glad. they aren't working this hard just to become other people's heros. >> well, i think that would be small if that's the only thing we thought about i. you know, let's be truthful here. you're in business to make money. that's what our aim is. it's not our only aim. >> sometimes you don't want to talk about profits necessarily when you're talking about nostalgia and why you're here. if you're not making money, nostalgia is going to disappear. >> i want to see a good return on my investment. >> it has brought back local pride. >> been here since the 1900. we want it to be here until 2100 and longer. over the years we've heard fair share of business owners complain about too much government regulation.

one entrepreneur has done the exact opt sitposite. founder of beauty has been spending time in washington for more rules around the industry. recently invested instead beauty counter after-acquired houston's line new skin care. deeply concerned about the toxins used in every day products which is why she wants to see more regulation. >> as women, when we lock arms or decide to do something, we can move mountain. >> steve: that's exactly what she's doing with her skin care and cosmetic line, beauty counter. >> i started beauty counter because i had become compassionate about the environmental health movement. greg became concerned about what she perceived as every day dangers in our environment. >> i learned we were being

exposed through personal care and cosmetic products. i was trying to find safer solutions for my family. >> the mother of three dored some startling facts about the skin care and cosmetics industry. >> we have not passed a federal law regulating this industry since 1938. we've introduced over 35,000 chemicals into commerce since world war ii. 80-90% have never been tested for safety in human health. >> these realities soon evolved into the inspiration of beauty counter. greg thought her vision was simple, create a line that was 100% safe. with high performing results. >> the first phone call i made was to christie, a celebrity fashion and makeup artist. first leading makeup artist to clean up her kit and use safer products on her clients.

>> i wanted to prove that this could be done. >> also brought on the former operating director of the campaign for safe cosmetics. >> the idea was to have those two pillars equally represented on our platform. took a list of 1500 ingredients. we can't use those ingredients, but the products have to perform. people thought we were crazy. >> launched instead 2013 with the highest level of transparency and unparalleled standards in safety. >> we created an incredibly strict ingredient screening process. one of the most protected processes in the country. >> they became believers so much that she's recruited 8,000 of them to make up a robust network of compassionate consult instants. >> they're sharing the story and helping communities and families make better choices. >> i'm really proud where we are today. we grew over 500% last year. 350% this year.

>> her mission goes beyond just growing her company. with the company's success under her belt, she set her sights higher on capitol hill. >> we have taken action in washington. meeting with everyone, introducing them to beauty counter. >> she wants to empower politicians with knowledge and awareness in hopes of inspires significant legislation reform. >> we want the fda to be able to take action, to be able to screen for harmful ingredients and protect american citizens. >> we hosted across the country. well more than 1,000. during that we encouraged consultants and guests to skaul senators and tell them we want more health protected laws. we placed thousands of phone calls and they called us back. >> i think it's safe to say we're not even creating movement. we are already a movement. >> beauty counter is a perfect example of how one idea, passion, and a real commitment

to yourself and to a world that you believe in is absolutely possible to make anything happen. >> we always say at beauty kournlt, we have a once in a lifetime opportunity to build a really great company that's financially rewarding, solid and sound while simultaneously having significant social impact. it's the greatest job in the world. you may not recognize the name alfred welbing. the creator of carmex. little did he expect the worldwide distribution his invention has today. still owned by his family. with his grandson running the show. we speak with paul about reaching out to expects for help and why you shouldn't rely on voice mail in this warning from the pros.

reach out to experts for help. i'm an art major finding himself running a business. i had to learn everything. literally everything. i couldn't do my job without the advice of other people. when i started working here, i started i think first with the bankers and said so, tell me how you do business. what's it about. and then insurance people. so tell me about insurance. and well, here's how it works. here's when you do. suppliers came in. take them to lunch. tell me about products. i would say that definitely was a huge help. should a ceo be okay with asking for help and i would say absolutely. hire smart talented people. i'm probably the least adept to any job around here of anybody. my philosophy is t hire people that i call hiring

aspirationally. if you hire smart people, trust them. the analogy i use is if i'm at home and the water heater breaks, and then i hire a plumber, he comes in and sits down, gets his tools out and i suddenly reach around and grab tools and start trying to fix stuff. no, i hired you because i know what you're going. once you hire somebody and trust them, then you let them go. don't try to be the smartest person in the room always. allow the other person. don't overrely on voice mail. i like having contact with people. i like having conversations. there's nothing that frustrates people more than when you call a place up and get automated service and wait. there's a problem with some product we were getting. some component. i called the company up and i kept getting voice mail. i finally yelled at the phone if

you can't hire a person to answer the phone you're probably going out of business and we should be looking for another supplier. i got called back fast. if you call us now, if it's during business hours, you'll absolutely get a person first. respect and respond to your customers comes from my grandfather. one of the very first things he stressed to me when i started working mere ing here in 1991,d of every sale there's a person. that's important. anybody who writes us a letter, they've sat down, they've thought about it. put pen to paper. put an envelope. they care. if they're happy, unhappy. just a comment. they deserve a response. so if somebody wrote me an e-mail, i would write them a customized response. thank them. send them a free product. a mommy blocker group discovered that and we came in monday morning to 6,000 e-mails. our mind set was this is part of

our company promise. we ansred eryby. sent everybody a sample. people are heard. everything is read. upcoming case scheduled to be decided by the supreme court could change a patent law that would affect thousands of small businesses. revolves around a company called impression products. rebuilding and reselling desk top laser toner cartridges. an appeals court upheld. add vvocacy groups say they're trying to expand property rights. impression product and paul house is with mayor brown, the firm representing eric. >> thank you for taking the time to come talk to us. i want to unpack what this case is. so why don't we just start with you, paul. you can explain to us what's at stake here. >> sure.

this case addresses two really important issues about ownership rights. when a patentee manufacturers a good and they sell it, typically the purchaser requires the rights. they can do what they want with it. the first is whether or not a patentee after selling the good can restrict the way the purchaser resells or repairs those goods. lex mark's positions is the patent can prevent from reselling a good they purchased or repairing it. the second question is when a patentee sells a good outside of the united states. whether u.s. consumers can purchase that good and bring it into the united states for use without violating the patent law. both of these questions are fundamental about the nature of the ownership of patented goods and whether or not there are

robu rese repair markets for those goods. >> let's bringt down to what you've been doing. can you explain what your business does and what they're now telling you can't do. we'll see what supreme court says. thank you. impression products is a family owned business head quartered out of charleston west virginia. we specialize in desk top laser printers, making the toner ca cartridges that go in the printers. anyone that buys the product, we give away a free on site printer support warranty. basically letting customer know these cartridges are fully guaranteed and will work just as good as the oem product. >> you've been doing this for 40 years, about? am i right about that. >> what. >> this company has been around how long. >> 40 years, yes.

>> did something materially change about your business that this issue has come up now? >> no, not at all. i think lex mark just found a loophole in the system and gave them the idea to come after me and a lot of my contemporaries in our industry. fortunately i was the one that said i don't think this the right. we're not doing anything wrong here. when you're making a product and you believe the product and you have employees that you went to kirnder garten with our high school with and are working paycheck to paycheck to get to retirement -- they've been with your 20-30 years. cartrid cart rridg cartridge. we don't want to compete with

you because you're kicking our butt in the marketplace. you need to go away. if you're a competitor and you believe what you're doing, you're going to stand up and fight. and that is what we're doing. >> you're broadening this from this particular company. from your perspective, what are the implications here. >> the implications are enormous. the question is whether or not there can be resell markets for patented goods. that includes virtually anything. cars, cell phones, any equipment that companies buy and use in their production. if lex mark's rule is correct, the seller of those goods can say, once your purchase it, you don't have the right to resell it on the open market. or you don't have the right to repair it. or they can say you only sell to licensed dealers who will buy it at fixed prices. that's not how competition works. our car economy has always had robust secondary used markets and that's fundamental to the aspect of this case. >> thank you for stopping by.

unpacking this for us. we'll be watching closely to see what happens. the folks at business community share five great ways to do that. >> one, set clear expectations. all your contractors should know their deadlines and any targets you want them to hit along the way. >> two, calendars are the best way to manage your team's time. make sure everyone can see the target date specific to the projects they're working on. >> three, reduce e-mails. limit your digital correspondence to necessary messages only. otherwise time your contractors could be using on projects will be wasted going through inbox. >> four have status updates with entire team includes freelancers on a regular basis.

keeps everyone on the same page. >> five, use collaboration tools. replace annoying reply all e-mails with one platform where your entire team can ask questions, share notes and documents and communicate with each othe >> when we come back, the one thing you absolutely have to do if you're planning on selling your biusiness. and one of ouri panelists tells us why you should follow the money and work the clock. will your business be ready when growth presents itself? american express open cards can help you take on a new job, or fill a big order or expand your office and take on whatever comes next.

find out how american express cards and services can help prepare you for growth at open.com. i'm looking at some point in time down the road. i'm 47 currently. we started to get financials in place. what are some of the other components we should start looking at. you need to make sure your legal books are in order. you need to make sure your financials are in order which could mean something like a formal audit if you're really big or just making sure your books are very clean. you need to have three year projection, five year projection. where the company goes. you need to understand market cost. what's happening around you. what price do you think you get sold for. you have to think about what is the story happening. are you staying in to help with the transition. do you need pr talent. i think in general, it is a ton of work to go through an

acquisition and best acquisitions happen because you're booked the tightest they possibly can be and then it really comes down to how doty think about where the business is going and the synergies. it's not a business deal. it's a marriage. really important marriages don't happen lightly. therefore you have to be really ready. >> we now have the top tips that you need to know to help your growing business. let's introduce our panel and get their advice. entrepreneur is an international sales expert. author of the book be obsessed or be average. cereal inventor founder of aw 3 media and cofounder of kingdom equity ventures. >> good to see you gl good to be here. >> your about to have a very big conference teaching business owners how to grow.

>> tell us a tip for how all of us out. >> i simple. i keep it simple. follow the money. work the clock. i go to my people every day. who has the money how do we reduce the amount of time it takes to gem money. time and money. time equals money. yet most people do not prioritize time or money. so business should focus first on money and where they're running out of clock like you're playing a game. take time out of deals. end up with more margin gl people are always brainstorming. >> people are talking in business. talking and talking. where's the money. and take out the time. that's the two most valuable resources in individual company or family has. they don't prioritize and say look the most important things we have here is time and money and time is probably more important than money. time is the new currency. >> it is. none of us have enough of it. >> it's about creating an ecosystem that invites and

equips an innovative spirit in your company: it's all about making sure you hire well. post that talent internal and create productst reflect that. >> creating an ecosystem. give me more. i get hiring well. how do you create the culture that allows people to innovate. allows them to fail. not fail too much. so they're not scared of failing. >> i think failure is something that really important to just experience and know and regardless of how good you are, you're going to fail at times. you have to create that culture of you're not going to have the answer and i don't want you to have the answer. i want you to ask questions. go through the hard steps. fall and get back up. that's the person that's going to be with you for the long run. >> i think speed also has to do with this. if you're going to create a culture of failing you want to fail fast. >> you want to fail as fast as you possibly can.

redefi redefine failure thing. you miss quit. you don't fail if you quit. look at tom brady. didn't quit. down 25. everybody counting down. look we know the game so well we can take the last 30 minutes. squeeze time and win because we're working the clock and following the money. >> back to that. thanks both of you. this week your business selfie perfect for valentine's day. north side photography in georgia. does a lot of special events and weddings. this is one of this favorite. mr. and mrs. bill willis who found each other in their fwoelden yearsfwoeld golden years. happy valentine's to them. pick up your cell phone like innic did and take a selfie of you and your business. tweet it to us or e-mail. include your name, name of your

business, location and use the hashtag your business selfie. thank you so much for joining us today. we would love to hear from you. if you have any questions or comments about the show, e-mail go to our website. we posted all of the segments from today's show. a whole lot more. you can connect with us on all of our digital and social media platforms as well. we look forward to seeing you next time. until then, remember we make your business our business. will your business be ready when growth presents itself? american express open cards can help you take on a new job, or fill a big order

or expand your office and take on whatever comes next. find out how american express cards and services can help prepare you for growth at open.com. george "the animal" steel died today. if you, like me, watched wrestling in the 1980s, you will remember george "the animal" steel, right? his whole schick was that he was very hairy, he had a lot of back air. so his nickname was the animal, acted in an animalistic nature, stick his tongue out at a weird angle and make crazy googly eyes at the camera, almost