St. Louis: Visit with Jerry Shapiro and his company where they make bagels, but not just any bagel. These bagels go through a patented cook-and-freeze process which allows them to be shipped anywhere in the world . . . even Japan. In 1993, Petrofsky's was named the National Exporter of the Year by the Small Business Administration. By 1995 he had 98% of the Japanese bagel market and he has set his sights on the rest of the world. You will learn that Jerry is a fighter which is the reason he succeeded when everyone told him his idea was impossible.

Since we met Jerry, he sold the domestic distribution and now spends half of his time playing tennis with his wife at their second home in Hawaii.

Key Ideas.

• Put your plan in writing.
• Involve your customers in the development of your product.
• Be prepared to build long-term relationships.
• Fire with care.

Turnaround expert, Bill Antle, tells how he took an old, worn-out company and brought it back to life. Just north of Boston, Oak manufactures electronic parts for telecommunications equipment. Jim is a member of the Council of Growing Companies and shares with us his "Sliver of Genius".

Integrity Selling. Ron Willingham, author of Integrity Selling and several other books -- When Good isn't Good Enough, The Best Seller, and Hey, I'm the customer talks about the heart of business. There is some very pleasant wisdom here.

Do the right thing. Professor Dr. Laura Nash of Harvard University and Boston University is the author of Good Intentions Aside and talks here about business ethics.

• READ THE TRANSCRIPT All the words of this show.
• GO TO SCHOOL: If you enroll in Small Business School, you can watch this show as well as learn from over 130 other entrepreneurs. It is all online. It requires DSL or cable connection with no firewalls. If you answer the questions in the teaching notes and study guide, you may qualify:
  • to get listed within your business type and within your state's listings,
  • to be profiled on a show (local or national),
  • to generate automatically a business plan for debt financing and/or a SCOR for equity financing,
  • to be listed within a Small Business index, and
  • to qualify as one of the Small Business 2000 best of businesses within a business category. .
• AT YOUR LOCAL COLLEGE: Check this list of schools (partial). Also, check for classes with your local Small Business Development Center, Chamber of Commerce, and Economic Development Commission.
• LOOK AT STEPS 1-8. Think about where you are and where you want to be.
• STUDY BUSINESSES BY TYPE.
• WATCH TV!
  • To find out what is airing in your market, usually on your local PBS-member station, click here.
  • Click here to see a show online (requires DSL or cable connection with no firewalls).
• CONTACT:
  Petrofsky's
  11800 Borman Drive
  St. Louis 63146
  Tel: 314-432-4177
  Fax: 314-432-5150