marcus lemonis. it's such a pleasure to finally -- -lemonis: are you anthony? -anthony: yes, sir, it is. -lemonis: nice to meet you. -anthony: pleasure to meet you. lemonis: you know what i love about highway 17? anthony: it's a lot of signs? lemonis: [ laughing ] all the signs. anthony: yeah, new signs, we do a lot of. we just did one, the car wash. i don't know if you saw it on the way here. big l.e.d. board, it was about 32 grand. we just finished it. lemonis: oh, whoa. anthony: customer's really stoked about it. lemonis: now, i don't know your business, and i'm excited to learn it. and so i know a little bit about it, 'cause i buy a couple million dollars a year worth of signs across all these businesses. anthony: i know a good sign company. -lemonis: i know you do. -anthony: [ laughs ] lemonis: but i got to get comfortable with what you're doing. so, what exactly does asl signs do? anthony: we are a one-stop shop manufacturing plant. so we do high volume, low labor. -lemonis: banners? -anthony: all day long. -lemonis: for-sale signs? -anthony: as many as y

-lemonis: i'm marcus. -becky: i'm becky. lemonis: becky, nice to meet you. becky: very nice meeting you. john: marcus, privilege. john brown. lemonis: john, nice to meet you. john: nice to meet you, sir. becky: thank you for coming. lemonis: the smell when you walk in here is awesome. john: it is. that's what everybody says. lemonis: and so, is this whole warehouse -- is all the manufacturing? john: it is. everything is in this 3,500 square feet. lemonis: well, why don't we take a look around? john: please. please. this is our storefront. we have an extremely loyal customer base. people are coming in buying 7, 8, 9, 12 bags of coffee. there's a lot of locals that live maybe 20 miles from here. they don't want to drive the downtown, so we do ship. becky: we're in whole foods and earth fare and fresh market, as well, so they can just pick it up at the grocery store. -lemonis: oh, you are? -john: yes. lemonis: that's nice. who got that account? -becky: the previous owner. -john: previous owner. lemonis: and what will the entire business do? john: we did $840,000

good morning, marcus. lemonis: what's happening? colas: i made a new version of the duster with the different type of trim. lemonis: okay. nicolas: you talked about the trim was fraying. -lemonis: can i see it? -nicolas: yeah. let me get it. lemonis: noemi, can you come on down? nicolas: the weaving is a little tighter, so it feels slightly different. lemonis: who's the one that actually changed this? nicolas: i did. lemonis: nicolas, why are you working on the duster? nicolas: because i had the resources to do it. lemonis: but you didn't include your mom? noemi: no, because we went through that. lemonis: it sounds like you have a problem with that. nicolas: i don't have a problem with that. noemi: it's the control. i told you. this is another problem we have. nicolas: so, are we talking about the past or the future or -- i don't understand. noemi: future. -nicolas: okay, so -- -noemi: we already decide. why are we going back and talking about it? nicolas: so, if we're talking about the future, what happened in the past is irrelevant

lemonis: i'm marcus. angela: angela. nis: as i walked around and talked to all the employees in the company, there was one thing that was clearly consistent -- everybody hated the look of this place. woman: it's just got to be... woman #2: sharper. woman: ...revamped. lemonis: what should the look be? woman: [ laughs ] not that! not to kill your ankles when you sit down, no. lemonis: and i also got a little more detail on carolyn's ex-business partner. when did you go into business with him? carolyn: 1998 i started with him. lemonis: how many salons does he have? carolyn: he has about 22 now. lemonis: really? carolyn: yeah. lemonis: and there was definitely confusion about roles and responsibilities. so, what do you do here? debbie: i'm actually the manager here, marcus. lemonis: you are? debbie: yes. lemonis: how is that different from susan's job? debbie: um... um...uh... lacey: hi, guys. is susan here? i need to talk to her. debbie: you need susan? let me get her for you. lacey: okay. susan: hi. so you left your salon

[laughing] "i'm marcus lemonis."ughter] >> that's gonna cost you. >> [laughs] >> so here's the deal. my offer is, uh... i'll pay off the 1.1 million of debt and i'll provide another million dollars in a working capital line, and i want 50% of the business. >> no. >> that's not gonna happen. >> why not? >> 'cause we're not gonna give you controlling interest of our company. >> why is that? >> because-- >> it's part of who we are. >> skullduggery is me. i am skullduggery. it's my company. it's our company, you know? it's not your company. you didn't spend 25 years building this company. >> so 1.6 million in revenue, you've got no cash in the bank, and you lose money. and you think giving up half of the business is a bad deal? >> you're asking for our whole life. you're asking for everything that i've ever worked for. >> yeah, i mean, it feels like a punch in the gut. >> i just offered to wipe out a million dollars' worth of debt and then give you another million dollars in working capital, and you're acting insulted ab

ben: hi, marcus. lemonis: how you doing? i'm marcus. -ben: nice to meet you. nice to meet you. and so, what's your role here? ben: i mainly help manage these guys in here, keep things moving. do a little bit of everything right now. lemonis: and where's your raw materials? ben: raw materials are in the warehouse. we run out to the warehouse, grab the raw materials, bring them in here, and we allow that to dry. and then they return to that room again. lemonis: that sounds kind of... ben: yeah, it's all over the place. that's what i want to change. lemonis: you know what i feel like when i'm in this building? like a mouse looking for his cheese. you start in one room, and you have to visit at least eight of those rooms to finish the product. this place is wildly inefficient. ben: there's not a flow. lemonis: why doesn't your dad want to get it fixed? do you ever talk to him about it? ben: he's kind of just like, you know, stuck in his old ways. it's just how we've been doing it for 20-plus years. lemonis: right. how frustrating is that? ben: it's pretty frustrat

my name is marcus lemonis. and i fix failing businesses.usiness last year did $50 million of business. unfortunately, we didn't make any money. you guys sell a lot, but there's one thing that you don't do very well. what is that? >> collect. >> collect money. so last night at dinner, i made a deal with alan and howard. and i'm putting in a million dollars. but you know what they forgot to do last night? they forgot to ask me for my money. it's a theme, but it's not funny. because your paychecks and the rent, all get paid when we collect the money, not when the stuff leaves on the truck. there's the money. >> thank you. >> thank you. [applause] >> from this point forward, i'm in charge. the first thing we're gonna do is fix the accounts receivable process, so that i know for sure what meats coming in and what meat's going out. i wanna know how much we're selling, how much we're collecting, and who owes what. we're gonna start by getting on the phone, and calling these customers that owe us money. we need to be paid. and from now on, when we

-lemonis: i'm marcus. sasha: i'm sasha. nice to meet you. -lemonis: nice to meet you. -rich: hi, marcus. -i'm richard. how are you? -lemonis: nice to meet you. market square serves gyros, but beyond that, there are few similarities to the other locations. the color scheme and seating are different. even the layout's different. same brand, different experience. not a good idea. how's business? tell me a little bit about it. rich: well, as far as business is concerned, we do about a half a million a year. lemonis: half a million in sales? rich: well, to break even. lemonis: so, how often do you see mike and kathleen? sasha: the first of the month, like clockwork. rich: they're here to get their royalty check. lemonis: do they stay for a day and work on your business and help you? rich: no. we put $175,000 of our own money into it. we just gutted this entire building. lemonis: so, you put in all this equipment, the floors, the ceilings, the whole thing. sasha: everything. lemonis: $175,000's a lot of money to invest without getting support. sasha: yeah. lemonis: after visi

my name is marcus lemonis. i fix failing businesses. this month you lost $150,000. i make tough decisions... you're not gonna come behind every single person and change the deal. >> i didn't agree to this [bleep]. >> and i back them up with my own cash. if you're not gonna put your pride away, well, then i'm not gonna do the deal. it's not always pretty. >> are you okay? >> end it. >> but this is business. you gotta trust the process. i do it to save jobs, and i do it to make money. >> that's all you. >> yeah, buddy. this the profit. [hip-hop music] ♪ 10 miles outside of my hometown of chicago, located in morton grove, illinois, is the home of athans motors. in 2009, pete athans, a car enthusiast and successful real estate investor, who made millions flipping houses, sunk his entire life savings into building his first car dealership. >> i created a place where you want to hang out, buy a car, sell your car... car's worth 30 all day, wholesale. service your car, or just come by and have a cup of coffee. >> the project took 18 months and cost more than $4 million to

my name is marcus lemonis. in the past ten years, i've bought hundreds of failing businesses, turned them around, and i've made millions doing it. i'll write whatever check i need to, even if you won't. if you want people to listen, you put money on the table. i'm gonna give you a check for $500,000. i found six struggling businesses, some weeks away from closure. my plan is to turn them around. for the next week, i'm 100% in charge. >> all right. >> let's go get to work. can't run a business if it's not clean. but i'm not just giving them advice. i'm putting up millions of dollars of my own money. if you don't know your numbers, you just don't know your business. i'll work by their side... i'll put in the hours... 'cause i have the same risk that they do. where's accounting? >> she's counting. >> no, where's accounting? >> um... >> oh, my god. this business is a total mess. i judge businesses based on three things: it's pretty damn good. most often, businesses fail because of people. >> i trusted people to man

my name is marcus lemonis, and i fix failing businesses. 2.5 million people visit key west a year, and you only sell 40,000 pies. i make tough decisions. we're closing the store. we're done. i'm not talking about it anymore. and i back them up with my own cash. >> check that out. >> it's not always pretty... >> tired of this bull[bleep]. >> but this is business. >> we're gonna have a battle on this one. >> i do it to save jobs... i got to get some stuff done and you're gonna be our leader here. and i do it to make money. this the profit. [theme music] ♪ u.s. key lime pie company is a pie maker located in beautiful and sunny key west, florida. jim brush... >> jeff! >> and his girlfriend, alison sloat, bought the company, recipes and all, over ten years ago for just $1,200, and have grown the business from selling pies on the side of the road to having their key lime pie named the nation's best pie by the american pie counsel. even though they generate $1.4 million in sales, they have yet to turn a profit. >> we really are a victim of our own

[laughter] >> by the time he's done. >> yeah. >> have you guys met marcus lemonis?ughter] >> private label products like this will dramatically improve your margins, but in order to make room for these kind of products, we need to clear out the stuff that's been sitting there for years. so when we get back to the store, i'm gonna have dan lower the prices and liquidate some of the slow moving merchandise. thanks, guys, appreciate it. >> thanks again, marcus, appreciate it. >> thank you. >> thanks, marcus. >> thanks, guys. all right, let's head home. >> this end's coming all the way out, correct? we're gonna move this all the way down? >> well, you want to move it out enough to accommodate for that. don't go any further than that. so i would be very technical in my measurement to not go past that. >> understand. >> yep. >> put a pedestal here-- >> hey. >> hi. >> how are you? >> i'm good, how are you? >> good. >> i'm a little shocked. we're out of business. >> we were out of business before, we just didn't know it. >> i believe we're still partners, correct? >> mm-hmm

my name is marcus lemonis, and some of you have seen me around.d i'm here to help fix this business, so people don't lose their job. there are 32 employees relying on this business for their livelihood. and ever since jacob's passing, they're starving for leadership. for the next week, i'm in charge. so what we're gonna do is we're gonna make some massive changes, and, at the end of this week, we're gonna have a grand reopening. we're gonna let our customers tell us if we've gotten it right. i need to get rid of excess inventory, make time-saving changes, and i need to organize what's left. in order for that to happen, i need to put in the right system, like a bar-coding system. this building looks terrible. maarse has a viable product here, but, in order to make it good, we need to display it to the customers in a way that's appealing. they need to see it, and it needs to be presented in a less-cluttered, less-disorganized manner. the entire store needs to be re-merchandised. we're gonna become profitable together. so, marina, you have something

>> my name is marcus lemonis, and i fix failing businesses.ugh decisions. i can tell you for damn sure, you're replaceable.

. >> my name is marcus lemonis and i fix failing businesses.

my name is marcus lemonis. i fix failing businesses. so the business only made 50,000? i make tough decisions... you can't train every class. and i back them up with my own cash. i like [bleep] done right the first time. >> that's not on me. >> it's not always pretty. >> he starts bringing in equipment here, i'm gonna break into hives. >> but this is business. the deal's off. i do it to save jobs, and i do it to make money. this the profit. [hip-hop music] ♪ pro-fit is a small group personal training studio located in the town of dyer, indiana. while national gyms offers huge facilities and the latest equipment, small gyms like pro-fit offer a much more personalized service in a less intimidating environment. >> we concentrate on doing one thing because without trainers, you can't get results. >> michael sena has been in the fitness industry for over 35 years... >> change direction. >> first as a body builder, then as a personal trainer. >> i was a personal trainer before there was a personal training industry. i'm a book author, fitness product inventor. it's really be

>> my name is marcus lemonis, and i fix failing businesses. i don't know how you run your business this way. i make tough decisions. i can tell you for damn sure, you're replaceable. and i back them up with my own cash. there's your check. it's not always pretty. everybody's working hard, not just you. but this is business. >> i was just gonna try to stop you in your tracks. >> you'll never to stop me in my tracks. i do it to save jobs, and i do it to make money. >> ching-ching. >> this is the profit. [upbeat music] ♪ worldwide trailers designs, builds, and sells concession trailers, mostly to food vendors. tom etheridge and nancy pappas started the company in 2001, and took it from a backyard start-up to a multimillion dollar business. >> you got 50%. i got 50%. >> tom and nancy were a couple, and although their relationship came to an abrupt end three years ago, they have continued to work together. >> working with nancy is difficult. nance, you never agree with anything i say anyway, so what's the point? >> i not only run the company, but i

my name is marcus lemonis, and i fix failing businesses. i'm willing to write a "half a million dollar" check. i make tough decisions. i'm not willing to do the deal if you're in charge of sales. back them up with my own cash. it's not always pretty. i'll take the shower. jen, you take the toilet. >> i don't do the toilet in my own house. really? >> but this is business. i do it to save jobs, and i do it to make money. this the profit. [upbeat music] ♪ eco-me is an all-natural cleaning product started by robin kay levine in 2006. with the partnership of her childhood friend jen mihajlov, a 12% owner, they built eco-me up from a small, do-it-yourself cleaning kit to a 17-piece cleaning line, including dog-grooming products. this product is sold nationwide at stores like whole foods and target, and last year they did a half a million dollars in sales, with only six employees. i personally use this product in my own home and find that it works extremely well. to stay in business, robin has leveraged friends and family to find every penny she c

. >> my name is marcus lemonis, and i fix failing businesses. >> we made $10,000 together. >> i make tough decisions... we'll change the recipes. >> i mean, that would be the last thing i'd want to do. >> and i back them up with my own cash. it's not always pretty. >> do you want me to get in your face? 'cause that's your face. >> but this is business. >> i've lost faith. we need to change dramatically. >> i do it to save jobs. awesome. and i do it to make money. this the profit. sweet pete's is a candy store located in jacksonville, florida, specializing in chocolates and candy handmade by master chocolatier peter behringer. >> so you guys like candy? >> mm-hmm. >> pete's love of sweets began at the age of 12, when he started making candy for his mom's shop-- peterbrooke chocolatier. >> i wouldn't do anything else. >> family business was thriving, and life was good for pete and his wife, allison. but after a dispute, pete left the business and was forced to start over from scratch. >> the last $10,000 we had, we put into this business. >> starting over required the help of a financi

my name is marcus lemonis. i fix failing businesses. i make tough decisions. you are no longer the general manager. and i back them up with my own cash. it's not always pretty. >> perfect flavor. >> but this is business. [bleep] is gonna change.