I mean, that would be the last thing id want to do. And i back them up with my own cash. Its not always pretty. Do you want me to get in your face . cause thats your face. But this is business. Ive 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 petes is a candy store located in jacksonville, florida, specializing in chocolates and candy handmade by master chocolatier peter behringer. So you guys like candy . Mmhmm. Petes love of sweets began at the age of 12, when he started making candy for his moms shop peterbrooke chocolatier. I wouldnt 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 financing partner. My whole idea was, find talented people and help support them to get a business going. Sweet petes opened its doors in 2010. By 2012, it was doing over 400,000 in revenue, but it posted a loss of 17,000. The stress of that has caused their partnership to crumble. You are a fraud. You are a fraud. With a colorful array of handmade candy, sweet petes has a phenomenal product. This is how its done. But their lack of Business Savvy could ultimately be their demise. I cant do it. I love candy. And i know if sweet petes has the right process in place, theyll have a winning recipe. Yeah, thats good. Walking up to sweet petes, i can already see an issue. This retail shop is a converted house in the middle of a sleepy residential neighborhood. [door sensor beeps] hello. Im marcus. Im brianna. How are you . Nice to meet you. Hi. Allison . Yes. Marcus. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. Hi. Im pete. Pete, how are you . Nice to meet you. You look like youre a mad scientist, with that lab coat. I guess you could say i am a scientist of sorts. I was a little surprised at where the place is located. Its, like, in a neighborhood. When we started this business, we had maybe a couple hundred dollars in our pocket or something crazy. We were not in a great financial position, and so someone offered us this place. And were putting everything we have into building this. How many different types of candies are in here . Hundreds of different types. We make lots and lots and lots of things by hand. Its what sweet petes specializes in thing like caramels, hard candy, pulled sugar, chocolates, toffee. Id like to get down to tasting. My personal favorite is this. Now, everything that im gonna taste you made . Ive got another candy maker on staff whos worked for me for many, many years. I want to try one too. Its the most awesome business there is. It brings some joy to my life. So thats an allnatural cherry, soaked in grand marnier, homemade fondant, and dipped in our belgian dark chocolate. I didnt really get a good taste. I need another one. I didnt either. Can i see the kitchen . This is it. This is the whole kitchen . This is it. Youre doing all your business out of this kitchen . Yes. Yep. Oh, my gosh. Wheres the storage at . Where are the coolers . Wheres the walkin fridge . Yeah, none of that. None of that. No wonder this place is struggling. I walk into a kitchen, and they are maxed out. If they had more stoves, a walkin cooler, drying racks, and space for people to actually work, their business could double or triple tomorrow. And so what is this . Thats the caramel. How you doing, sir . Pretty good. How are you . Good. This is demetrick. Hes our other candy maker. How do you function in this space . Oh, its like a circus act. Were on top of each others necks trying to work, you know . [laughter] okay. I want vanilla. Vanilla . Do you guys want to get started . Petes gonna be teaching your class today. As sweet petes started getting ready for a candy demonstration, the place started filling up with kids. All right, who likes candy here . All me. Yeah, i love candy. Okay. [laughter] so we mixed our sugar. Who wants to eat this . [laughter] so this is the pulling process. Were actually folding air into it. Were not using a pump. Pete came alive in that candy class. The parents were engaged, but the kids were mesmerized. You want to make a mustache . Yeah. [laughter] so well let this sit for just a minute, and then you can bag them up and take them home. Yeah, pretty good. [laughs] we had a wonderful time. Thank you. Thank you very much. Well, we appreciate you coming in. Making candy and teaching people how to do it is a great idea. And its a great model that you could scale across the country. How well do the classes do . Very well. The field trips are the most popular. And then theres also birthday parties. If we had more space, wed do two or three field trips at a time. How much is a class . 15 per person. How much does it cost you to actually put on the class . Like, 2. 68 a person or Something Like that. Wow. Thats good margin. Yeah. The real margin in this business is in these classes. If an average class has 20 people in it, you would be generating 300 in revenue and 246 in gross profit. Those are killer margins. Why did you specifically pick this location . Because our partner said. I own this location. What do you mean partner . We have a business partner, dane baird. He owns half of the company with us. I didnt know that. I thought it was just you guys. Him very often. Is there a lease here on this facility . We haveits up may of next year. Uhhuh, and how much is it a month . 1,400. Can you break down kind of how your finances work, a summary of your finances . Were doing close to 420,000 a year. And does the business make any money today . No. This year we lost about 17,000. But, you know, last year we only lost, like, 3,000, but we paid ourselves more this year so that we could live. The first year, we made 10,000 combined. You cant live off 10,000 a year combined. Weve been fighting with dane over this. He doesnt want us to get paid at all. I tried to get 12 an hour, and hes tried to block that. And its just been a constant fight with this guy. Why havent you guys bought him out . Ive tried, and he wont sell. I mean, we have tried this for six months now. Does he contribute . No. He hasnt in quite some time. We would try to meet with this guy, cause for a while, he was still in charge of our finances. He read this book or something something called the 5hour and this is not 4hour work week. 4hour work week. He loves that book. Who works four hours . And i was pulling my hair out for a while. She, like, finally, some fi i know. I dont have much left. Its like. Not a lot to lose. Is dane gonna come here today . I dont know. I mean, it speaks volumes that he hasnt been involved in this process. I mean, how often do you get this opportunity, and youre not gonna be present . We need to do a batch of hard candy. I want seven cups of sugar, one cup of water. What i want to do is get it to the texture that i get it to. What do we got next . We need to wrap . 100 caramels. I see a dane sighting. [laughs] danes here . Hes outside. Oh. Hey. Look at this guy. Wow. Long time no see around these parts. I know. I know. Thats what happens when you have a reality show, i guess, huh . You just show up. Yeah, you show up. So. You afraid to wrap a little caramel . Oh, you know i know how. You know i know how. Might as well. So you having fun . I am having a good time. Thats good. Hi, peter. Hi. Long time no see. Its still delicious. So what brings you here today . What is it that you want . What is it i want . Yeah. In terms of . In terms of this business. Well, id like it to. Lets start there. To grow so its profitable. I mean, thats and what are you doing to contribute to that growth . Well, i mean, when iwhen i say, hey, look, lets get a Business Plan together and do it, and i just get a blank stare, its hard to go not a blank stare, dane. I think what we clearly said was we would love to talk to you about a Business Plan, but lets handle this issue of fair compensation first. None of us were ever getting paid what were worth, period. Right, but youre youre not contributing like we are. I got over 5,000 hours in this business, right . Three and a half years of work. How many hours do you think we have . How do you figure that . I did i. T. I didi did i bought the building. Buying the building that youyou own the building. Hold on, hold on. The first year, we made 10,000 together. Were well beyond qualified for that. I cannot spend time here in an unprofitable business, knowing that i will never get paid. But you expect us to do it. All right . That is your choice. Youre full of crap. All you do is talk. Stop, stop. Cant make money in this okay, well, then lets part our ways. I dont have a lot of business experience, but ive owned more businesses than you, and i can tell you, if the partners dont get along, its not going anywhere. We have to be able to work together. I have lost faith. We need to change dramatically the business. How do we buy you out . What do you want . What i want isi believe in the product, and i believe in the people. Tell me a number, dane. So i dont want to sell. I do not want to sell. We dont want to work with you. Why cant you sell . Why cant you sell . See, and this is why i cant think, when youre in my face. Im not in your face. Do you want me to get in your face . cause thats your face. Thats so unnecessary. Thats not necessary. Its your choice. Im done. This is just crazy talk that we cant be reasonable. Im trying to participate. You know this is our lifes passion. You know how much we give to this business. Its a hostage situation is what it is. You just try to hold us hostage. Thats all it is. Its not. And whats even worse is, im sure customers have heard this. And youre just taking from us. Youre holding us hostage. See, i disagree. Thank you, but i disagree. Lets just bring it down, cause i dont know. I dont know where to go from here, dane. Bye. Well, that was interesting. Hey, thanks for coming. Hey, how are you . Good. Good. Im dane. Nice to meet you. Yeah, pleasures mine. Well, that was interesting. Yeah, a lot of passion. And so what are your thoughts . Pete and allison are really talented. Uhhuh. But weve never had a plan you know, having some type of, you know, profit at the end of the day. What is your strong suit . Id say this, business development, sales. We created this pretty large fieldtrip business. It was all service related. Did you create the fieldtrip business . I created it with them, to be honest. I mean yeah. If i didnt come in. Yeah. There would nevthey wouldnt have beenthis would never have happened. Right. How much money have you invested in actual cash into this business . Um. Probably around 85,000 in the building and the grounds, and then the buildings yours, right . Thats a private asset. Thats right. So, in this company, how much money have you put in . And then about 5,000 hours worth of labor. No, but in dollars. And thenand then probably about 1,000, 2,000 bucks in the initial inventory. So how much in total dollars have you put into this business . From the start, two grand. 2,000 . Yeah. Thats right. Thats your total investment in the company . Right. 2,000. Thats right. They want to buy you out so they can move on with their life and, you know, obviously, not have that kind of tension. Why wouldnt you just take some nice return on your money and move on about your life and not have all the stress . I think this isthis could go big. Right. I think what i saw there is you believe in the product, but they dont believe in your partnership. Right. What happens if they just left here today, and they went and started somewhere else . I wouldi would takeas a shareholder of the firm, i would take issue with that tactic. But what would be your claim . They left. Theyre employees. They quit. But if they did leave and they started something else, that would hurt the firm. Dane, slavery was outlawed a long time ago. They dont have to stay here. Sweet petes has an amazing product. I love it. But with this toxic partnership, i need to be mindful in how im investing in this deal. I have to come up with a deal that resolves their past issues and definitely minimizes their interaction. If i can get them to agree, were all gonna make a lot of money. Well, yesterday was interesting. In all my years of doing business, i have never, ever seen, ever, more passion from one person in my entire life. The one thing thats obvious to me is this is a partnership gone very bad. And its typically pretty hard to repair. Dane, in your mind, are we at a point of no return . Ive always been an optimist, and so for me, i always think theres hope for the future. How about for you . For me, in a business sense, i dont see how i can go forward. And so whats an alternative in your guys mind . We leave. Yeah. And weand then build again with the right partner. I believe its so lopsided, you know, in terms of our contribution. I feel like hes always trying to look out for whatevers good for him and not the business. Its very unfair. Thats not the case. My wife and i put in some money to get the whole process going. You put in 2,000. Thats right. Id just like to point out, dane, that we would have meetings where you would say, oh, okay, im committed. Im excited. And then wed have another meeting where you were out. Let me make something very clear. I did start to check out, but it was for good reason. And i understand what you were i dont get that check out thing. I mean, if you own 15 of a business and the business is struggling, you dont just check out. No, no, no. It wasnt like that. There was no income coming in, and my sore point with the Business Model is, i really didnt have anything to do that i could feel like i could ever make a living at, cause the business is not scalable. If i was in your shoes. Right. I wouldve come back to them and said, heres what the budget looks like. Here are some ideas i have of growing the business 15 . What do you think . Did that happen . No. I failed in that regard. So its very challenging when you say that you dont like the Business Model. Well, i made a list. [laughs] so, you know, basically, ive done a lot of sweat equity in this business. Okay. You know, sales, marketing, wholesale. Let me tell you something. This is your contribution. If we had to list all of our contributions, it would look like the phone book. I get it. It would look like the phone book. I get it. You think you contribute as much as me, and you dont. Ive tried. Thats just crap. Words are hollow. But iveguys crap. Youve talked, dane, but we need doing. We execute. You have the option to execute, okay . You choose not to. Im sorry you feel that way, cause, you know, i love the business. I love the product. I love you guys. Thats your slippery, evasive crap. Slippery, evasive crap. Okay, okay. I dont want to talk to you anymore. Okay. I think youre just full of it. Youre just full of it. Pete, come on back, bro. Coming up. I have a large order. Is this doable . I dont think thats possible. We have to find a way. We have to find a way. And later. I put my heart and soul into this business, just like you have. Oh, my god, dane. I dont care how [bleep] hard it gets, i will be here. Where are you . My body is truly powerful. I have the power to lower my blood sugar and a1c. Because i can still make my own insulin. And trulicity activates my body to release it like its supposed to. Trulicity is for people with type 2 diabetes. Its not insulin. I take it once a week. It starts acting in my body from the first dose. Trulicity isnt for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. Dont take trulicity if youre allergic to it, you or your family have medullary thyroid cancer, or have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2. Stop trulicity and call your doctor right away if you have an allergic reaction, a lump or swelling in your neck, or severe stomach pain. Serious side effects may include pancreatitis. Taking trulicity with a sulfonylurea or insulin increases low blood sugar risk. Side effects include nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, belly pain and decreased appetite, which lead to dehydration and may worsen kidney problems. I have it within me to lower my a1c. Ask your doctor about trulicity. Featuring three new dishes that are plankedtoperfection. Feast on new cedarplank lobster shrimp. Or new colossal shrimp salmon with a citrusy drizzle. Tender, smoky, and together on one plank. But not for long so hurry in ro. Youre just full of it. Youre just full of it. Pete. Pete. Come on back, bro. In any sort of partnership, people bring things to the table. They either bring capital, they bring expertise, or they bring contacts. So what burden are you gonna carry in this partnership . Im not a cook. I would prefer a role that would be not a part of the daytoday, you know, operations of the business. And how are you gonna make it fair . If you dont want to be here, you need to, you know, take a fair amount for your shares. Well, im certainly not interested in selling all my shares. I mean, thatsthats where were at right now. You just want to continue having us do all the work, not really recognizing that work, and ride it out, or make it just really impossible for us to buy you out . Those are kind of the two choices . No, i mean. You know, lets take marcus off the table, cause you may or may not do something. Let me be very clear. I am doing something. So heres my offer. Pete and allison, my offer is 750,000. 250,000 is for working capital. 500,000 is to provide a facility to get us going. For my 750,000, i will own 50 of the business. You will own 50 of the business. Dane, i have no problem giving you back your original investment of 2,000 at 5 interest, but you will get no equity, because you havent put enough in the business to deserve it. Theres no justification for it. You will be 100 commission. If you perform like youve told me youre capable of performing, you will earn 5 equity a year up to 15 , and both of us will contribute to that pot. There just has to be some accountability. Hell be accountable to me. And thats not easy. I could go forward with that. Thats not really an attractive offer for my personal interest. Dane, you put 2,000 in the business. I mean, i wouldi would feel more comfortable selling everything at once the building, the shares. Not gonna happen. You know, danes just being greedy. He wants equity with no effort, and now hes trying to get me to buy his building. He just wants me to give him money like a handout. If you dont agree to this, they leave. And whether its in this building or not or whether its called sweet petes or not, im doing something. [chuckles] i guess i dont have a lot of choices, right . Yeah, weve been fair on our end. Marcus. We have a deal . Yes, sir. Okay. Were sharing 50 50 in the profits. Im 100 in charge, cause its my job to protect this business and to make sure that everybody does the right thing. And, dane, are you ready to actually work . To get back at it . Yeah. So, pete, that means we get to spend a lot of time together. [laughs] boy, how things change. Makes sense. Do we have a deal . [laughs] do we have a deal . Marcus, thank you. This doesnt happen every day. Thank you. Allison, can you get the whole Team Together . Yeah. Come on, guys. Can you all come here real quick . Hi, everybody. All hi. I have always wanted to be in the candy business since i was a little k