Marcus Lemonis paid a visit to Surfside Beach, SC and stopped by ASL Signs, a sign manufacturer owned by Anthony and run by Anthony, Josh, and Anthony’s girlfriend, Kristin.
Anthony started the business with money ($225K) from his Dad, Lou. Lou owns no equity in the business. Anthony is a lucky guy to have such a generous Dad.
I don’t know what Anthony’s background was prior to starting ASL Signs, but he is not a strong businessman. His people skills are terrible. He’s overbearing, doesn’t let his employees do their jobs, is constantly contradicting them……I could go on.
Anthony has a way of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. For example, when a local businessman from a mile down the road walked into his shop and said he needed some work done on his signage, it never occurred to Anthony to go look at them to understand what the prospect’s requirements were.
Anthony has also developed a poor reputation in the area. He actually sued an early customer for non-payment of $600 on a job the customer deemed unsatisfactory. As Marcus pointed out, in the early stages of any business, you need to do whatever it takes to satisfy the customer. Anthony didn’t do anything to make it right (in the eyes of the customer).
Anthony’s team was very good, but I don’t think he appreciated what he had. Josh was a very competent designer and production manager. Kristin (Ant’s girlfriend) helped start and grow the business wearing many hats. Despite this, she had no equity in the business and was not drawing a salary.
Anthony said he would “give her money if she needed it”. He was clearly an “old school” control freak who didn’t realize how good he had it. I must admit, I found myself wondering why Kristin stayed with Anthony and his company. She has a lot to offer.
Marcus realized he couldn’t work with Anthony, and left to visit an entrepreneur he turned down in Season 1.
Sharla from Gourmet Popcorn had made many changes in her business based on Marcus’s suggestions. Unfortunately, she had lost several accounts (including Disney) after Marcus originally decided not to invest in her company.
Based on her transformation, Marcus reconsidered and invested $50K for 40%.
Entrepreneurial Wisdom from CNBC's,"The Profit" 