S02.E17: My Big Fat Greek Gyro

[Tara Ariano]

A Greek sandwich shop near Pittsburgh struggles to find an identity for its multiple franchises.

[eddy]

Marcus gutted the name, gutted the menu, gutted the interiors, and gutted the process.  All for the better.   So what did he get?   The people?  

 

If you're going to gut everything and start over with a new concept, why not just start a new business, hire your own people, and own 100% instead of 55%?  The family were nice people, but I didn't see any core competencies that made them unique.

 

[Notmuchofacook]

Actually, it was a big, fat, Greek yawn.

[selhars]

I totally agree with both of you.

My question is if Marcus weren't raised Greek and this were not a Greek restaurant would he have done the deal? Given that he changed everything about the business.

 

And I'm not even sure those are the questions I really care about.

I just found myself asking "why" at every turn.

 

Underwhelming -- about the people, the premise, all of it -- is an understatement.

[Josiah Bounderby]

What on earth was there for Marcus?

 

1. How did that crappy little gyros place (the main one) manage to generate so much profit? It couldn't. Remember how the owner had weasel words when he explained what the controlling entity was "blah, blah, we haven't, LLC, blah blah" My take-away was that there is no legal distinction between their franchise business and the original store. So sure, once they assigned all the money they took from the franchises, THEN they could claim that their sad little restaurant was profitable.

 

Did Marcus really fall for that? Nah, it just fit into the narrative. This was going to be a feel-good episode. Marcus grew up with Greeks! Group hug! Wonderful salt-of-the-earth restaurant people! Bleah. I found the main family non-telegenic and, for the most part, inarticulate. Opa!

 

2. How many times did Marcus make a reference to what a great concept the place was? A gyros place? Gyros, pita, fries. Come on.

 

3. The "we have to do all these things before we open tonight" was the baldest sort of reality-tv artificial goal. I suppose they felt they had to show everyone "pulling together."

 

4. How does a show about a restaurant turn-around have virtually nothing in it about the improved menu? I wanted less about a car accident and more about the bloody food.

[selhars]

 

I wanted less about a car accident and more about the bloody food.

I know. This was the first time the question about the family involved felt forced. It's like they knew what to say. And of course they did. Because I'm willing to bet producers told the kids, when Marcus asks about your family tell him about the car accident. Other than that it just wouldn't have come up like it did. There's no way I think that was spontaneous.

 

I don't mind Marcus asking about "the people" and how they get along. That's important for him (and us) to know. But his conversation with the adult kids -- AND her outside was too much. Maybe that's it. Those scenes (which I think were back to back) took viewers away (too far away) from the business side of the show.

 

Hey, if Marcus wants to turns around failing businesses and make money I guess this business qualified for his help. But 1) these folks showed me nothing in terms of their management, 2) they weren't that likable and 3)  the son with the crooked eye bothered the HELL out of me. (sorry) This group is clearly going to need day-to-day oversight from a Marcus corporate manager more than others. This is the first deal he's done that I have seen (I didn't see salon/spa and pop weasel) where I felt the business owners couldn't take the ball and run with it after he left. We'll see.....

 

Changed menu or not, I wouldn't eat there even now. Once i see your food starts out frozen, I'm done. It may be so, but don't go on TV showing me that! I mean it wasn' Gordon Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares, but once I lose faith in the food I'm out. And as was said, we didn't SEE the menu revamped. FROZEN dolmades (stuffed grape leaves) and spanakopita -- I can get at Trader Joes!

Edited December 10, 2014 by selhars

[AnnaBaptist]

When the newly revamped restaurant opened and everyone toasted and yelled, "Opa!", they cut to a part of the decor where they had an omicron, a rho, and an alpha painted at the top of a wall. Sorry, authentic Greek restaurant folks, and Marcus, son of a Greek man, but that is pronounced "Ora", not "Opa". They needed a "pi" instead of a "rho".

 

Why, at the beginning of the episode, was Marcus holding his hand close to his crotch? Was it a microphone issue?

[attica]

I agree with the Huh? response. I did like the mini-tutorial about how franchising works. It wasn't much, but it cemented my suspicion that franchising is a super deal for the franchisor, and not so much for the franchisee.

 

I was surprised that there was no discussion at all about the various regional pronunciations of the word 'gyro', especially if you want to go nationwide. Another good reason to change the name.

[eddy]

"This group is clearly going to need day-to-day oversight from a Marcus corporate manager more than others. This is the first deal he's done that I have seen where I felt the business owners couldn't take the ball and run with it after he left. "

 

I agree - had exactly the same thoughts watching this one.  I'm sure that's why Marcus asked for 55% ownership - he knows the franchise won't grow if run by this couple and he'll need to eventually clean house.  This was produced as a feel good episode. But people don't turnaround from being "I'll do knothing and just collect franchise checks" to being a dynamic hard-working driving force to manage a growing franchise.  There may have been an emotional turn-around, but I don't see the skill set, experience, and leadership required.

[Primetimer]

It's all Greek to Sarah as Marcus Lemonis tries to fix a big fat franchising problem.

Read the story

[camom]

I didn't like it when Marcus told them what the new name of the restaurant was going to be.  No input from them, no discussion.  It was basically "This is it or I take my money and leave" even though Kathleen (was that her name?) found it offensive.  I liked the name OK, but understood why she didn't like it.  Surely a compromise could have been reached.

[nottopbravo]

I was really surprised that Marcus didn't give the owners a choice of new names for the business.  When I saw the objections, I said to myself, why not, "Simply Greek"?

[selhars]

 

I'm sure that's why Marcus asked for 55% ownership - he knows the franchise won't grow if run by this couple and he'll need to eventually clean house.

 

Wow. Would he do that? I won't care if he does. BUT -- since they' were the founders, and their kids were going to take it over....it COULD be spun by critics as 'the big city slicker taking their business away from them." Sure -- by the time he does that the business will be worth more, but at least before him came it was THEIRS to manage or lose.

 

I wonder if Marcus didn't set up HIS OWN company to own his 55% -- or own the equipment -- or some set up to proect himself form the couple's incompetence. 

 

At least with Marcus, I feel the franchisees should do better. For the life of me I never have understood why people who are in, at or close to retirement -- as couple of the franchisees seemed to be -- would open a frigging restaurant, or ANY business that's dependent on OTHERS to be successful. It's one thing to retire from being an accountant for a corporation at want to to that part-time on your own, working when you want to or getting clients if you want to. It's totally different to start a franchise operation. WHO THE HELL, looked at the main corporate restaurant that was featured -- and said -- "I know." I think I'll buy a franchise from these people!" It reminded me of all the people on Food Network's "Restaurant Impossible" who said. they used their retirement money, or they used their PARENT'S retirement to open the restaurant. WTH?! 

 

 

I was really surprised that Marcus didn't give the owners a choice of new names for the business.  When I saw the objections, I said to myself, why not, "Simply Greek"?

 

I was too. (like he did with the Mr. Green Tea folks when they launched their gelato line). I have to believe that 'SimpLY Greek" was taken already. It's so obvious that, that has to be the reason it wasnt' used. I know the choice OF the name, and having options to choose from, are two different things. But certainly a choice would have been nice to see. I was shocked by the way that was handled. 

 

You think Marcus is getting tired of dealing with these people. Getting there and it's not what he expected? Or God forbid he had a personal issue he was dealing with of air. Of course I have know idea if the shows are AIRED in the order they were taped. But these last two, he seemed to have no patience for the owners.

 

The question about the mom's car accident seemed forced, his care/concern seemed routine.

I contrast the question about the mom's accident.....versus how he asked about and reacted to the 'courage b' son and his issues with his dad's the death and the responsibility he's shouldered, or even the 'attitudes' of owners from the previous seasons like "Athans Motors" or the Michael Sena gym episode. Something just seems different. A new producer maybe? Could be anything ...or nothing. This was just the second straight episode that did nothing for me. Did they save them for last because they were the weakest.

 

I definitely am looking forward to the season finale "update episode." Can't wait.

Edited December 10, 2014 by selhars

[camom]

 

I'm sure that's why Marcus asked for 55% ownership - he knows the franchise won't grow if run by this couple and he'll need to eventually clean house.

 

I was surprised when he basically told Mike that he would fire him if he didn't do better.  It always amazes me when people who have started a business are willing to give majority control to Marcus--or anyone else. 

[sarthaz]

I had the same HUH? response as everyone else early on, but when they went to the sushi restaurant, it became very clear what was happening.  Fast Casual is the hot new thing.  Remember How Do You Roll? on Shark Tank?  That place was killing it.  Lemonis probably wanted to get into this space and took this opportunity to do it.  Notice that they didn't do the "Why did you contact me?" segment?  They may not have even contacted him!  It's possible he sent his people out to find a Greek franchising operation that he could convert into a Fast Casual concept, and these jokers were the ones he found.  It was pretty clear that they had nothing proprietary to offer other than a loose network of already operational Greek restaurants that he could quickly rebrand and use his television show as a platform to promote them.  Not that I blame him -- it's a good idea -- but it doesn't fit the show he's trying to sell.

 

@AnnaBaptist, I didn't mind the "opa" spelling.  It's anglicized for the patrons.  However, it drove me batty that everyone on the show mispronounced "gyro".  He makes this big fuss about the food not being "authentic" enough for his Miami upbringing, and then he pronounces "gyro" like a hillbilly.  Maybe he watched too much Ducktales as a kid?  It was difficult to take it seriously.

 

Also, I was surprised what a jerk he was about the name.  It was unnecessary and underscored just how little he cared about these people and their business.  He was simply there to buy a franchise operation and turn it into Fast Casual Greek.  He could have handled it much more diplomatically and still gotten his way, but his "I'm going to take my ball and go home" approach showed that he had no respect for these people or their feelings and would have been perfectly content to piss them off and hire his own people down the road.  In other episodes, he approached sensitive issues in a way to get "buy in" from the owners/employees, so everyone's on board with his new ideas.  Here, he just didn't care.  It was kind of ugly to see him behave the way everyone accused Mike of behaving -- condescending and heartless.

Edited December 10, 2014 by sarthaz

[eddy]

Same question mark here.  This couple had nothing proprietary.  Marcus even acknowledged that the business looks more like a start-up.  He changed EVERYTHING, including the menu and most ingredients. The only thing I saw of any value was they had one, maybe two locations that were proven as far as customer volume.  Not a big deal since he plans to go national.  Otherwise, it's like buying a house and tearing it down because you only wanted the land to build new from the ground up.

 

So yeah, I had the same thought - Marcus seems to favor customer-facing food businesses, and it really looks like he had this idea all along for fast casual Greek,  Again, why own 55% of something you can't salvage much from, when you can start from scratch and own 100%?

 

[Amarsir]

Seeing a franchise model get put into place is really interesting to me.  But I want to see the behind-the-scenes of the later process.  Yes I know Marcus likes the fast casual model.  Letting customers watch the work has been his go-to redesign in a lot of these businesses.  I want to see how he takes the idea he manually implements at one store and turns it into a formula.  I want to see them create manuals, sourcing, advertising, and other franchise-specific stuff.

 

I was really surprised that Marcus didn't give the owners a choice of new names for the business.  When I saw the objections, I said to myself, why not, "Simply Greek"?

Taken by a line of spices.  Because he wants something that can go national, he needed a name that's not conflicted anywhere.

 

I didn't like "The Simple Greek" either.  I do agree that it would work, but his "I don't care about anyone else's opinion because a branding expert says so" attitude isn't endearing.  And I also have to say that "My Big Fat Greek ____" was played out 10 years ago.  Yeah we know it was a big movie; that doesn't make me think your food is any good.

 

In other episodes, he approached sensitive issues in a way to get "buy in" from the owners/employees, so everyone's on board with his new ideas.  Here, he just didn't care.  It was kind of ugly to see him behave the way everyone accused Mike of behaving -- condescending and heartless.

I can't help but wonder if they weren't trying to go for the old "loudmouth control freak male boss" playbook and Mike just didn't give them the footage for it. 

 

As I said in response to the ASL Signs episode - Marcus is not that different from these small business owners.  He's more experienced, more polished, and probably smarter.  But cold, stubborn, condescending, and controlling - there but for the grace of editing, you know?  Which is not to say that I don't like Marcus - I do very much. But he's human as are we all, and what bothers me is a heavy-handed hero vs villain edit.  Which thankfully we didn't get this time.

 

Marcus gutted the name, gutted the menu, gutted the interiors, and gutted the process.  All for the better.   So what did he get?   The people?  

 

If you're going to gut everything and start over with a new concept, why not just start a new business, hire your own people, and own 100% instead of 55%?  

I think the fact that the franchises were placed and staffed is not something to completely overlook.  If he started from scratch he'd need a first location. Here he had 5 "first locations" to choose from - each with some (although not enough) traffic and none owned by him.  Now I don't know if that's worth 45% - in fact I thought the offer was too generous.  But starting from scratch would have meant going slower and doing a lot more interviews.

[eddy]

Agreed Amarsir - having the existing locations insured he could test the concept and begin generating some revenue quickly.  But if his big franchise plans materialize, then he was indeed too generous in the offer.

 

I'm curious if the growth and financial results Marcus has forecasted for these various businesses have materialized.  Maybe we find out next week.

 

[clod]

the original owners are franchisees now.    I wonder if they will be happy to hand someone a royalty check every first-of-the-month.

[Shibori]

To address some of Sarah's questions from the recap, franchise packages run the whole continuum from buy it and little involvement from the franchisor to very strong support and tight control. The cost of buying a franchise runs the entire spectrum as well. It really comes down to what was stated in the franchise offering. In some cases a franchise is really just the right to sell/distribute a product, but the more common option is to buy into an established brand with an established business model. Some franchisors charge low or no ongoing royalties but require franchisees to purchase all food/stock/supplies directly from them at a markup. For some, the initial franchise fee include training at the corporate office or flagship store that can range from days to weeks.

Personally, I think the most successful franchises provide strong support and also maintain tight control of the brand. Franchise agreements often run for many years- they mentioned 10 years here- that provides stability but can also burden one party with a bad deal. You want to provide ongoining support because (as some mentioned upthread) if the franchisee makes money, so does the franchisor. But brand control is important, because if one franchise is a pit, it gives a bad name to the others. You want the customer to have the same experience at every location.

I'm from the Pittsburgh area and lived in the city for years, so I was excited to see some familiar locations and cringing at the accents and "Yinzer" pronunciations. Market Square is a very busy area that used to be a crappy but has really had a renaissance the last few years- and in one shot you could see construction on a new office tower nearby. Pretty much anything fast casual would do a brisk lunch business there, and there are quite a few non-chain restaurants that are trendy for happy hours and after work. It's a popular option for young professionals who work downtown. (Check out Las Velas!). So it's not surprising they're doing well at that location even if it's a crappy execution. There's another Greek place a few blocks up that's been there for years and is more of a diner type place but downtown is dense enough that a few blocks apart is enough of a difference to keep one from taking the others business. Mt. Lebanon, on the other hand, is a wealthy suburb where I wouldn't expect a poorly done Greek-ish kind of place to do well. They won't get as much of a lunch crowd (think storefronts along a busy street, not office complexes) and people aren't afraid to spend money on dinner and there are better (and trendier) options. I'm not a big fan of Greek food, but I will check out the sushi place they visited the next time I want lunch in Oakland (it's in the Pitt area, so I bet the college crowd loves it).

Edited December 11, 2014 by Shibori

[RadioActiveRich]

I was really surprised that Marcus didn't give the owners a choice of new names for the business.  When I saw the objections, I said to myself, why not, "Simply Greek"?

 

Because "Simply Greek" restaurants are everywhere. The name was taken. Personally I don't think the name is such a big deal. What I'd worry about is Mike and his attitude. Even with Marcus and the cameras sitting RIGHT THERE he began his response, "For the fifty-ith time...."

 

With everyone acting the way they were toward Mike, it's pretty obvious that he's the majority of the problem.

 

The other thing that jumped out at me was that the main location was debt free and ALL of the others were spending money like crazy. Seems like the franchisees aren't very astute business people. Who agrees to give up 12.5% of their sales off the top? That's insane in the restaurant business. Pay a higher franchise fee if it means you don't give up a huge chunk of your revenue.

[Lola16]

I guess this was our 'feel good' story after the last couple.

 

Didn't care for the new name.  Especially didn't care for Marcus offensively defending the new name by saying 2x it was thought up by a branding expert and then telling us that that branding expert was him.  Um, experts make mistakes Marcus.  And real experts know to involve others in big decisions.  This isn't about a battle where decisions need to be made on the fly to save lives.  This is about a long term plan and strategy.

[selhars]

 

it was thought up by a branding expert and then telling us that that branding expert was him.  Um, experts make mistakes Marcus.

 

I'm a sucker for minutiae and details...... I still don't know for myself whether Marcus is the one who came up with the name. Technically, I don't he ever said explicitly that HE came up with the name. He talked about branding experts, defended the name, and then said the he is a branding expert. But he never said HE came up with it.

 

After he said that, I thought he might have come up with it..... then asked his team what they thought and they signed off on it as, "simple, easy, clear...yeah that's good" sort of thing.

 

Also, I have to admit I did think immediately to the Mr. Green Tea example. IF he's such a branding expert why didn't he come up with both the choices he gave that family to chose for their new product. He clearly had and outside team or his team come up with it first, THEN he looked at it, liked both and presented them to the Green Tea folks. And it was clear he likely would have been OK with either one they chose.

 

Maybe because he was raised Greek, or because he came up with the name himself -- but he was clearly personally invested in the "Simple Greek" name. He was too defensive about it. What I could have envisioned was his team coming up with "Simple Greek" -- but because of the families offense taken -- come up with something else that's just as clear, just as simple, and conveys the same thing....just not 'the SIMPLE Greek."  But he wasn't open to that at all. 

 

Also it's not so much that he defended the name it's HOW he did it. with his "I'll take my money and go" routine. It didn't seem necessary for him to go there. He just jumped right to personal defense mode. I found HIS reaction offensive. I though, 'whoa, Marcus." I'm with you and love you and everything, but you didn't have to go there...and besides...there are brand CONCEPT people, and then there are brand BUILDING/EXPANSION people. Brand MARKETING is VERY broad.....just because you'r good at the ADVERTISING side of it -- coming up with the name, promotions, creating graphics, etc...does NOT mean you're good at the BUSINESS side of BUILDING and EXPANDED, and being CEO of a brand. Most CEO's likely HIRE the brand advertising/marketing folks, MARCUS. Lemonis MAY indeed be good at both. BUT...I din't think HE came up with any OTHER new brand that we've seen on the show.

 

Did HE come up with the new name for "ECO ME" naturally cleaning products company from the first season, or the protein bites of the workout gym wife? Hasn't it been understood that he has a team that does that? That's why his defense of Simply Greek was off. I think in this case HE thought he was the expert in all things Greek including the name.

Edited December 12, 2014 by selhars

[eddy]

Google:  motivational-quotes-marcus-lemonis

 

#7.  You’ve got to treat people with the same amount of respect and decorum we are all the same; we just have different jobs.

 

#14.  Listen, be open to criticism, resolve it with speed and empathy, and take responsibility.

 

The whole issue of cramming the name down their throats left me with a different impression of Marcus.  It proved to me that he wasn't there to invest and "fix" a business; he was there to get a jump start on a totally new business venture he wanted to start and own.

 

Trust the Process = Do it my way or don't take my money.

 

I guess that's a decision each owners has to make.

 

[Shibori]

Um, experts make mistakes Marcus.

 

 

Your honor, if it pleases the Court, I would like to present exhibit A: Queens Vibe.

The prosecution rests.

[citychic]

Marcus sees things in numbers only with no emotions involved. He comes across cold and heartless but he's making money. What he saw in this company was five outlines with five different bodies. He simply erased the bodies and then created a uniform process that would work efficiently not only for these five bodies but also allowed for the expansion he is looking for to expand to 500 franchise locations.

He gained control with a small investment which allowed him the option to fire the dead weight. He spelled out on screen how he would begin making a solid return on his investment immediately and how that number would increase as each franchisee's profits increased.

The business at the end resembled many fast food places, the shiny walls with the color stripe. Just like bar rescue I'm sure Marcus did his homework on color schemes, counter heights (remember he mentioned ada complinancy) and utilized every square inch of each property. He will also take advantage of the LLC status and hire a competent office and management staff. By the time he is able to walk away and let the place run itself he's going to be making a good profit.

As for the name change, the owners couldn't continue using the name and my thought is that Marcus knew working with the owners to change the name would take four times as long and more headache than it would be worth to go back and forth than to just do what he did and have it over with. It's not about being popular, it's about making a profit and working smart.

I don't know, I guess I just see his way of thinking in all of this stuff. It's hard for people who have put their life into a business to watch it change but most of them look tired and overworked and they all want to leave something for their families to have after they're gone.

[selhars]

 

Marcus sees things in numbers only with no emotions involved. He comes across cold and heartless but he's making money. What he saw in this company was five outlines with five different bodies.

 

I know each deal/business is different...but that said that is NOT how Marcus reacted and responded -- which seemed to be a shorter fuse -- when he dealt with  practically any other businesses on the series going back to the first season.

 

He's been incredulous, surprised or initially shocked about how all of them have done some aspects of the businesses..... he's been insistent that once he puts money in HE'S in charge -- and yes, he has even blown up at a few. BUT, never went from zero to 10 so quickly.  He blew up over people saying say were offended. That's usually NOT the response -- a professional with Marcus' tact would come back with -- when people say that.

He was more frigging patient with:

-- the LA Dog Works guy -- who clearly had some temperament issues.

-- the husband in the Michael Sena gym episode

-- the woman who started the Eco-Me cleaning products 

He was even more patient with the ex-couple who ran the trailer company in Florida!

 

Something about his attitude was different in this episode.

[citychic]

Something about his attitude was different in this episode.

I guess I can see impatience, but it could have been frustration with the people who to me really didn't seem to be very aggressive or maybe they were all fed up with Mike who seems to be all about apologizing and moving forward but really doesn't have a plan or motivation to back up his words.

[eddy]

" Something about his attitude was different in this episode."

 

Agreed.  The only thing I can figure is that this was a complete take-over & make-over.  Not just a series of fixes.  Not a business in which he could be a minority share owner.  The family gets to stay and run their original out-of-the-way location.  They are not capable of running a franchise (I don't believe the sudden miracle turn-around by the owner will last long term)

 

As an auto repair analogy, Marcus fixed a broken car by lifting up the radiator cap and driving a new car underneath.

 

Marcus didn't want to salvage anything: Product - Process – People.  He didn't see a reason to keep any of it, thus the attitude.

What he got was an LLC and a couple of locations that provided a jump start to a business idea he formed before finding this family.  I believe he must have scouted them out, not the other way around.

[selhars]

 

I guess I can see impatience, but it could have been frustration with the people who to me really didn't seem to be very aggressive or maybe they were all fed up with Mike who seems to be all about apologizing and moving forward but really doesn't have a plan or motivation to back up his words.

 

Yes. But no more so...and anyone else he's dealt with...from what we've been shown anyway.

Was Mike more frustrating than BIL Ewell from Shuler's...or the Father/Son team at Skullduggery.....and Marcus wasn't that short with them.

 

I don't think he LIKED ANY of them -- not even the wife and kids really...none one them. And it's only human nature than when you don't LIKE someone or you don't feel SOME kind of connection -- you'll tend to be less patient and be more frustrated, especially if they make you work more. I think that's it....The situation with the COMPANY wasn't what he thought it was....and so he was slightly pissed that he had to do more lifting than he expected.

 

I agree that he wanted the BUSINESS -- but not the people....BUT he was sort of stuck with them, and got pissed he had to basically start ALL of them from the ground up accept for the location leases. But he still figured that was better than not doing the deal and finding some other one to replace this one.

[Amarsir]

This is just a theory, but I wonder if Marcus envisioned himself as being a hero to the franchisees.  (Which he kind of is.)  But then when they started pushing back on his ideas he didn't take it well. 

 

The whole issue of cramming the name down their throats left me with a different impression of Marcus.  It proved to me that he wasn't there to invest and "fix" a business; he was there to get a jump start on a totally new business venture he wanted to start and own.

I've gotten that impression a few times.  Which is fine - finding synergy and opportunities is what allows him to make investments that others wouldn't.  I only take issue if I feel the facts are being molded to the show's story.  I'd be perfectly happy to watch a story about Marcus Lemonis building an empire without the context of "saving" the businesses.

[sarthaz]

What happened in this episode is probably what Marcus does all the time to create his wealth.  However, this time he has his own TV show.  So instead of gutting this business completely and using its infrastructure to jumpstart his new fast casual brand, his team tried to shoehorn the endeavor into an episode of The Profit to add the benefit of immediate television exposure and "free" advertising.  I don't really have a problem with that -- all of these types of shows are basically self-advertising vehicles and hearken back to the days of Rod Serling telling us just how smooth and refreshing Oasis cigarettes are -- but it still makes this episode stand out as an outlier.  This wasn't about saving a failing business -- it was just the making money part.  That's probably why he was such a jerk to those people when it came to the name -- he was irritated that he had to go through the whole charade of caring about them when he really just wanted to kick everyone out and hurry up to start his new business.

[mojito]

 

Again, why own 55% of something you can't salvage much from, when you can start from scratch and own 100%?

I think Marcus just genuinely enjoys turning businesses around and seeing how much money he can make in the process. I think there's a bit of a humanitarian aspect to it, and let's face it, watching this show is more interesting than watching someone building a business from scratch.

[rainbowlady]

I agree with Mojito, The businesses he's actually done deals with have been turned around, are doing much better, some very much better in just a short time. In rest of his life he seems to follow what he espouses and is very much a humanitarian and ethical, according to people who know or work with him. Interesting article in Inc. Magazine Oct. issue about him, the businesses and the show.

[nobodyyoucare]

Most people unless told otherwise pronounce gyro phonetically. Its incredibly rare to see it pronounced as the Greeks do. It after is not spelled Hiro. About the only show I can recall pronouncing it correctly is a kids show Ben 10 where the hero went to an alternate universe where his blue eyed younger looking counterpart was a spokesman for a Gyro restaurant franchise.

 

A gyros is just a variation of the Doner kebab aka shawarma. Greeks however didn't like the original name they called it so they changed it to Gyro.

[nobodyyoucare]

If you go to http://www.thesimplegreek.com/apps/store-locator you see only three locations in PA and one coming soon to Highland Park, Illinois. Wasn't it five? Well two may be renovating still or they decided to not renew the franchise. Basically its a sandwhich shop franchsie where you can see them make the gyro in front of you. Fast casual like chiptole. 

 

http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-simple-greek-mount-lebanon

[silverspoons]

I was surprised Marcus did a follow up on this episode since there have been so many legal issues. So he is claiming that he is at a loss from investing but now has 58 locations for himself, and the original owners location closed along with 4 of the 5 franchise owners? In the episode it showed the 5 franchise owners with sad stories of single mom and money issues and Marcus promised to help and they were all excited, then in the follow up he said he only could help one because it was too expensive to help the others? Do the original owners that called him for help. have anything? seems like they do not?? and Marcus has 58 locations now?

[CrazyInAlabama]

I think the original franchise locations were in bad locations, were hopeless to save unless Marcus paid everything off, and might not have wanted to change to the Simple Greek model. 

 The original owners (wife, step dad, and two sons) were trying to franchise, but the franchise owners said the owners weren't helping the franchise owners at all.   Then when the lawsuit was filed by the wife, and second husband, I imagine the sons had to choose to go with Marcus, or stay with the family.   I remember one son was the person managing the Illinois Simple Greek location, so I don't know what he did later.

[tres bien]

This was very confusing.  Does Marcus own anything with the owners? How much money has he lost? How much money is he ok with continuing to lose, And being sued. Is that ok too?

[CrazyInAlabama]

My guess is that when Marcus changed the name from the original to Simple Greek, that he was including the original owners in the corporation, but started a new corporation and trademarked name.       But remember he was angry when the step dad was still trying to sell franchises under the original name, and was still was doing nothing to help the current franchises.    I hate the companies where they apply to be on the show, then fight everything Marcus wants to do to help them.     I really like the Simple Greek fast and fresh concept, and wish I had one close to me (the two nearest are a 4 hour round trip to either one).     I wonder if the one son stayed with Marcus, or went back to the family?