How I Look For Opportunity | Open Doors and Opportunity

I was sitting at the bar at Ford's Garage in the Cape minding my own business when another guy came in and sat a few seats down around the corner. I had just ordered something to eat. When the food arrived I took one bite and was done. There wasn't anything wrong with it, I just didn't like it.

One server served it, another, moments later noticing I pushed my plate away came over and said, "you done?" "Yeah."

That's when she realized I hadn't ate it. "Was something wrong with it?"

"Oh no, I just didn't like it."

"I'll have them take it off the bill."

"You don't have to. I wanted it. I ordered it. I tried it. I didn't like it. It's not you, it's me. I'll pay for it."

She wanders off and before long the guy around the corner asked me about it. I told him the same thing. I wanted it. I ordered it. I tried it. I didn't like it. But I'll still pay for it.

About that time the manager came and said she was going to take it off the bill. It was the right thing to do, but she didn't have to.

Once she leaves the guy says he had been in the restaurant business for 30 years and it was the right thing to do.

At the time I was the chief marketing officer of a restaurant group, so naturally I had to ask - "Are you still in the business?"

"Oh no. My wife and I sold the business and moved up here from Key West."

Who moves away from Key West? That was my first thought, and my second was, "What was the business?"

Key West Key Lime Pie Company.

Wow.

I asked him what he was doing now and he said "living on the royalties and this BBQ thing" and slides me his card.

Royalties? Are they doing good? "Well, I'm still getting a check each month, so that's good".

He went on further to tell me that he was on a TV show called The Profit that told the whole story. It was on CNBC.

I don't watch TV, often, I'm too busy. But he said I should watch it and so one night I found his episode online and watched it.

First I have to say, I liked the show. Pretty cool concept and I like how the host Mark spends his own money.

It turns out you can make a pie for $2.40 or something. They retail for $19 and they sell around 40,000 each year.

At the end of the show the guy I met at Ford's, Jim, he sold out for $400,000 plus $1 a pie.

I went over to their website, Facebook, other online properties. I read their news, what was happening and everything else I could. I even researched other other key lime pie makers.

There's opportunity there. Opportunity is everywhere.

The marketing was terrible. There was a lot that could be done to move these pies.

It didn't look like anything was happening.

So I did what I always do -- I emailed the company with an offer:

"Let me buy pies from you for $12 with you doing the white label printing and drop shipping, and we'll go into to business together"

That's a win/win.

The business still gets to make a profit of $9.50 or so a pie.

They keep their brand name. Maybe they make my pies just a little different, but only slightly.

I get to earn $6 a pie.

$1 could go into marketing and $5 would go to me.

I was certain that just like them, once I ramped up, I could sell 40,000 pies a year. Basically double their output.

$5 million bottom line without touching the product - just sending orders. That's pretty good.