The 321 Exit
Sheaya sits down with entrepreneurs who’ve done the hard thing: clawed their way out of survival mode, built real companies, taken punches from recessions, lawsuits and bad partners, and still found a way to walk away with life‑changing checks. They break down the decisions, mistakes and near‑misses no one talks about publicly—what they’d do differently five years before selling, the conversations that almost killed their deals, and what actually happens to your identity, relationships and bank account after you exit.
If you’re a founder who’s tired, thinking about selling, or just wants to build with an exit in mind, The 321 Exit gives you the playbook and the therapy session in one place—so when it’s time to sell your business, you’re not guessing.
The 321 Exit
No Plan B: The 90‑Day Countdown To The American Dream
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
With only 90 days on the clock, every “perfect” deal fell apart in due diligence, and the American dream started to look like a one-way ticket back to France.
We sit down with Steve Payet to unpack what that kind of risk really feels like, and what happens when it doesn't unfold the way you think it will. We talk through the E2 visa route, the pressure of buying a business under a deadline, and the hard-earned lessons that come from reviewing financials that do not match reality. If you care about entrepreneurship, business acquisition, and building a company worth owning, Steve’s story is a reminder that preparation and hard work matters, but relationships can change everything.
A local introduction, three phone calls, and a deal that gets his family established, plus the reality of running a marine business. Steve shares how he learned the language, the operations, and even the mechanics, along with the scary moment a health crisis forced him to rethink what growth is costing. We also get into smart decisions that helped the company scale.
If you’re building toward a real exit, dreaming about moving countries, or trying to buy a business the right way, press play, then subscribe, share this with an entrepreneur who needs it, and leave a review so more people can find the show.
A Risky Leap To Florida
SPEAKER_00This is the 321 Exit Podcast, where good businesses get built and great ones get sold. Every episode, we break down what it actually takes to grow a business worth buying, from the late nights of tough calls to the strategies that turn hard work into real exits. Because let's be honest, not every business makes it out, and even a fewer make it out. So we talked to the people who did it.
SPEAKER_04In 2015, Steve Payot walked away from a secure banking career, sold his house, gave up his work permit, and put his wife and two kids on a plane to Florida with no business, no visa, and no plan B. His colleagues thought he was insane. His attorney told him he didn't even have the minimum cash he would need. And three days before he was supposed to fly back to France with everything already sold, one stranger changed the entire trajectory of his life. This is what it really costs to chase the American dream. And when there is no safety net, only faith, family, and a 90-day countdown. Hello, Z Fayette. Welcome to the 321 exit. I am so excited to talk to you more about your story today. Thank you. And to dig into what it takes to be an entrepreneur and chase the American dream.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, sounds good. Thank you, Shay. Thank you for having me.
SPEAKER_04I'm so excited
Growing Up In The Alps
SPEAKER_04you're here. Can you take us all the way back to where your story starts in France?
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_04And around the middle school age of 14, what life was like, um, stuff like that.
SPEAKER_01So yeah, absolutely. So yeah, I I was born and raised in France. Um, my my parents got divorced when I was 14. So uh I was raised by my mom uh and um you know went to um graduated at 18 years old and I had the opportunity to buy to start my own my first business uh as an entrepreneur. So uh I was um um organizing organizing uh events, um all kinds of events, you know, sports events like uh thrive loan and and and stuff like that, and also concerts, and uh I was doing a lot of incentive also with the with the companies, local companies over there, uh like sports-oriented incentive. So yeah, it was fun.
SPEAKER_04Entertainment and events is such a special place. You have to work really hard in that industry.
SPEAKER_01People think it's easy, but it's not, because there's uh I mean there's no weekends, there's no, you know, uh, but you know, we were young, we were stupid and ambitious, so that's that's what it takes. And we we had a beautiful bit uh playground, you know. I I grew up in the Alps, so we had the mountains, we had the lake, so uh plenty, plenty of things to do, you know, very touristic area to uh to start a business, so it was it was a lot of fun.
SPEAKER_04Prime opportunity.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_04So around middle school, let's talk a little bit about I just know you and know your story. But you said your dad had left at 14. What was that transition like for you and your family?
SPEAKER_01Um it was very complicated, I'm not gonna lie. You know, it was um it was a difficult time, but um my mom, um my mom was just the perfect person. She she took over uh you know everything, you know, financially and everything. She was not working at this time. Um so and she had no degree or anything like that. But she uh I don't know how she did it, but she she's been uh a real example for both my brother and I, you know, because she uh started from scratch and she found a a really good job, or uh she worked for the UN actually in Geneva. Uh so she f she's you know she went from zero to a really good, you know, situation. Um and um yeah, honestly, she she's my inspiration, I would say, because uh the way she just uh you know took over her life and and just uh, you know, I mean she had two kids to raise, so that was her motivation and uh and she is awesome.
SPEAKER_04She she she's a she's a She didn't have any quit in her, did she?
SPEAKER_01Nope, no, no, no, no, she couldn't. Where where my dad kind of stepped away and and failed, you know, she she took over and she was she was yeah, she she was my my inspiration.
SPEAKER_04Phrases or things that she beat into your head that you like constantly hear now and think of?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean one of the biggest things that she would say was, you know, if you if you really trust, you know, you you when you don't have a choice, when you you're in in front of the wall, you know, that that's all you do. You just fight for for it, you know, fight for life. Life is not easy, but uh uh, you know, she's always put God first in her life, and uh that's that's the biggest, you know, um story, I would say, uh and and testimony.
SPEAKER_04I like goosebumps because it's like she proved you it was possible, right? Like she didn't do the same things as you, but she faced something just as difficult and covered it out.
SPEAKER_01Yep, that's right.
SPEAKER_04Oh forgot goosebumps.
SPEAKER_01That's exactly it.
SPEAKER_04Let's talk about the entertainment
First Business In Events
SPEAKER_04events in the Alps. Like, let's talk a little bit about like, you know, you're going into this no experience, and France isn't the easiest business place, easiest for new businesses to start.
SPEAKER_03Right.
SPEAKER_04Can you just walk me through like how did you get it going? Like how did you keep it going, and at what point you walked away?
SPEAKER_01So uh it started as an internship. So we're still, you know, uh at school with my wife, uh, and um and there was this internship that really cut caught my attention. It was it was called Alp Organization, uh, so an American name for for the for the business, which is kind of funny. Uh, and it was um, so the guy just started the business, you know, he was uh hiring, you know, um students like us to to launch the business, right? So uh the concept was to um entertain on one side and then organize on the other side. So there was like two branches. Uh one of one of them was the organization of events like you know, sports events. Uh um we had um uh like a red uh you know in the mountains where you had to run and then cycle and then swim and then uh well like it was really cool. So it was a huge event. Uh we had like 800 per participants, I think, something like that. Huge huge events, yeah. It was very popular. Uh the TV was here and everything. So it was fun. It was really, really fun. So we started with the internship, and uh uh two years later, you know, he uh he had an opportunity to um uh to do something completely different. So I was like, would you sell this company to me? And he was like, Yeah, I didn't think about it, but yeah, sure, if you want it. So that's that's how we uh we started it, you know. Like two years after we we did our internship, you know, we we ended up buying this company.
SPEAKER_04So that's amazing. That's like your first work experience. Like how crazy. Because it was a normal job where you like clock in and clock out, and it's someone else's responsibility, it's just a different animal than it being your responsibility because that's 24-7.
SPEAKER_01That is 24-7 for sure. You had 800 participants, you had to like have like safety precautions and like emergency responders and like we had to deal with all kinds of regulation, as you can't imagine, because we had to close some roads, so we had to to make sure the city was aware of it. You know, we had to have all the permitting. I mean, it was big, it was big, but it was so exciting, yeah. As you can imagine, it was fun, you know, to to do that. But you know, when you're 18-year-old, you're kind of figuring everything out. So uh I was kind of thrown in in the fire all that. But uh, but overall it was it was an amazing experience, and uh yeah, I really loved it. It was fun.
SPEAKER_04Do you like the problem solving in the logistics piece, or is that just something that comes with the game?
SPEAKER_01It comes with the game. No matter what you do, you know, it comes with the game, you know. Even when you're not expecting it, it it's it's gonna come to you. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04I get excited about the problem solving. I don't like I think a regular job's boring for me because there's not enough problem solving.
SPEAKER_01You know, that's so true.
SPEAKER_04Oh man. So in that first business, what was the first time you felt like you had success?
SPEAKER_01Well, pretty early, you know, we we could see that you know the events that we're uh organizing were were big successes, you know, and uh it was drawing a lot of attention. Um so you know, and it was just going, you know. I I just jumped on something that was already, you know, kind of going, you know, and we helped uh the this business grow. So, you know, we were here at the very beginning at the launch of the business, and we could see that there was an attraction, there was, you know, uh need uh in this field, and uh it was just uh yeah, I mean, we we could feel the success, um, but the downside in France was the the taxes, because you know, in France you have to pay taxes before you pay yourself. So for the for the past two years, we're not able to make any money. I mean, money for the for the uh for the taxes, but not for ourselves, for the government, but not for ourselves. So that was the that was the the downside of it, you know. And it took us at least two years to to you know to be like flat and starting, you know, to to get some revenue out of it.
SPEAKER_04So can you tell me a little bit about like I I like with new entrepreneurs, they don't always know that it's gonna be a roller coaster ride. Can you talk to me a little bit about like riding that roller coaster and the ups it downs financially?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean that it is the the roller coaster because you you know when when you're when things are going good, it's like it's the mountaintop, you know, you think like that you're the the king of the world, but then you know when things get uh more complicated, you know, the money's not coming in, and then or you know, the regulation will come into place. I mean, there's so many things that can go wrong, I would say. Uh so you know, you're you yeah, it's it's a roller coaster. For sure, you know.
SPEAKER_04Speaking of that, um,
Taxes And The Entrepreneur Roller Coaster
SPEAKER_04so what how did you transition? What was next?
SPEAKER_01Um, so next to this, um I had this business for like three years and a half, I would say, just when I was barely starting to, you know, uh get on track, but not enough to start a life. Uh and you know, my my wife and I were were moving together. Uh uh a baby was coming, so it was like it was hard, but you know, at one point I had to make the decision to, you know, find something more stable, you know, like uh uh a stable revenue and all that. So um, so that's when you know I decided to quit, you know. So I I just stopped the the business. Uh there was no nobody to take over. So, you know, the investment was kind of, you know, we we called it flat. We sold some some material and that was it. So and that's when I uh started working for the bank. So first experience in in the banking industry, and I I really thought it'd be just a year or two, but it I used to way more than expected.
SPEAKER_04So can you talk to me about that transition? Like going from running your own business to now being at the bottom of the career total pool and checking in with people, and like what was that like for you?
SPEAKER_01So transition was not that complicated because you know, um, with the background that we had, we uh we had a I had a background in sales, so and and banking is all about selling. So, you know, I just had to learn, you know, the products and and the different things that the bank has to offer. Um and compared to the to being an entrepreneur, it was a piece of cake, you know. It was it was easy. Everything was easy. Uh responsibilities came pretty quick. Um, and you know, I I got a promotion after a year and a half, I think, something like that. And uh so it was it was it was an easy job. Uh we are we had a really good you know um management at that point. So uh they they were just pushing the young you know generation up. Um and um and it it was good, but uh, but it was boring, you know, when you when you're used to do you know to own your business and do all the things that you that I used to do, and like and now I'm sitting in a you know behind a desk and I'm not moving and I'm wearing a a suit and a tie, you know. It's like it was it was yeah, I mean it was not a bad experience, but it was very boring
Trading Entrepreneurship For Banking
SPEAKER_01compared to what I was doing before.
SPEAKER_04I can imagine. What was your favorite part of that job and the worst part of that job?
SPEAKER_01I guess the best part was really the um the social side of it, because um the it was one of the biggest bank, you know, in France. It was uh um just book Bank of America in France, pretty much, right? It's uh and uh so we we had a lot a big social, you know, uh part of it, you know, a lot of uh events, a lot of getting together, a lot of training together and everything. And we had a really good team, you know. Uh we would get along uh really good. So it was it was a good environment in general, I would say.
SPEAKER_04So yeah, that almost sounds like you know the college experience the American kid college experience almost, you know?
SPEAKER_01Like go away, have fun, have fun, party and all that, you know. So that that's it, that's exactly it.
SPEAKER_04That's so awesome. Um for you, when you got to the end of the banking, so how long did you stay?
SPEAKER_01So I stayed for three years in this first bank, and then I was um chased by uh by another bank, bigger bank, uh, after three years. So I moved to the to well, I'll start working for this other um bank, which was more a wealth banking um branch. Uh, and then I stayed over there for like two or three years, I think. And then I was hired by a Swiss bank, which was um which was another level uh of you know banking. Uh um so like I said, I was not thinking about staying in the banking industry, but I stayed all together 15 years, you know, in the banking industry. So so yeah.
SPEAKER_04Was it like a lightning bolt, I gotta get out of here, or was it a slow progression of like, I don't want to do this anymore?
SPEAKER_01It was at the very beginning I knew that I was not gonna stay, but you know, the the financial, you know, side of it made me stay, you know, because uh my family was growing, you know. I had a one kid, and then the second one came in and picked her, and uh, and you know, and we we had to move to a bigger house and and everything in life, just life, right? So I was like, okay, maybe I'll do another year, you know. I was keep pushing it, pushing it, pushing it. Uh to a point where I was like, okay, I guess I'll gonna stay in the banking industry my whole life. Right. So, and uh, and I had a really, really good job in in Geneva, you know, my myself. It was just just ridiculous, you know, for what I was doing. I I I felt like I didn't deserve that, you know. But uh just the way it was, and and I got used to it, and I was just you know rolling at one point, you know. Um, so yeah, I mean, I can't say that it was a bad experience because I met a lot of amazing people uh along the road, you know. I I made really good good friends, like lifetime friends. Um but I was just you know an entrepreneur inside of me, very frustrated for not not being able to do what I really like to do.
SPEAKER_04So totally uh he talked to me about I don't even know how to like ask this to you, but like the the entrepreneur inside of you. You were like you were doing the things, you were checking the boxes, like this is what you needed to do.
SPEAKER_03Right.
SPEAKER_04Like like that entrepreneurship was always still inside of you, but like what was that struggle like? Was it a struggle or was it like easy to to be like I'll get to my entrepreneurship, but not now?
SPEAKER_01Well, it was not easy because I didn't have any vision of the future. I didn't know where it was going, you know, and my everything was lined up for me to stay my whole life, right? Because what else could I do, right? So, and especially, you know, when you when you you you start a family, you start, you know, in your career, and um, I mean everything costs a lot of money, so you know, and then your your way of living is way is going higher. And when you have to provide for your family, provide for the new house, the fancy house that you just got, and the ha and the cars and all, and you know, all that comes together, uh, you're like, yeah, I don't have any other other choice, right? So this is just my life now, and this is how I'm gonna, you know, go by. And you know, and I I've yeah, I've I've been working with people that that's been in bank for for the their whole until retirement. So I could see them, and I'm like, maybe that's that's what I'm meant to be, you know, maybe that's just the way it should be, you know.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. That's so interesting. I love it. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_04So what what was next? So there was a next.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Uh so the next
The Long Slow Drift In Banking
SPEAKER_01was absolutely not uh expected. Um I've been traveling in Florida back and forth for years because my my uh uncle lives in in Orlando and I used to visit him every year, you know. Um and I've always had in my mind, in my head, when I was a little kid, by the way, I I uh came in the United States to live with my grandparents for a whole year. That's where I I learned English. Um and I spent I spent a whole kindergarten year in the United States, and I felt like it always stays it stayed in my heart, you know, that one day I would move in the United States because when I went back to France it was traumatizing because everything is so different in France, you have no idea. But you know, school in France is very strict, is very, you know, uh here is fun. You know, I was I was happy to go to to to school and uh the teachers were really nice and everybody's nice to you, everybody smiles at you, say, hey, how you doing, you know. And France, everything everything is very uh, you know, it's it's it's just different, right? So I I've always had in my in my head, in my my heart, that one day I would move to the United States, right? And I married a French woman, you know, who is French, and she had no interest whatsoever to come in the United States. Uh until life happened, uh, you know, and um uh her dad passed away, and it was it was a very hard season for us, you know. And um, that's also when she realized that life is short, and she was like, you know what? You always told me that one day we'll we would leave in the United States. Well, well, if we have to do it, it has to be now because the kids are still little. And uh, and this is this is a good opportunity. And I was like, What are you saying? What are you talking about? You always said that you know it was not for you, that you know, your family is here and friends, blah, blah, blah. And she's like, no, I think I think I'm ready. I I feel called to go. I was like, okay, let's uh let's see how we can make it happen, right? So uh so this is when we um uh we we start doing some research and you know, how can we do it? You know, what's possible? And uh uh we found out that you know if we if we would buy a business, you know, we would get a visa that would give us access to um you know to to life in the United States. So we uh called a broker, a business broker, um and uh a French business broker, matter of fact, in Orlando. And uh he is like, yeah, so it's super easy. What all you have to do is invest some money and just um, you know, um if if you have you know if you buy a business here, they will give you an E2 visa, which will give you access to the you know, to to United States. So uh so that's what we did. We've been doing, you know, looking around, looking for something to buy, and you know, with the with the banking, uh the years in the banking industry, uh I had some savings, I had some money, we had we sold the house, we we sold everything that we had, and we're like, okay, so this is how much we have, and how can we make it work, right? So um so yeah, one thing went to another and uh everything kind of lined up in a way that that made no sense at all. Uh but but got us got us here and got us back to my my first love, you know, entrepreneurship.
SPEAKER_04What were you looking what business were you thinking
Why The US Dream Returned
SPEAKER_04it was going to be? Like, did you have a vision of like it'll probably be like this? Or were you just like, well, this isn't I'm just gonna take it one step at a time. Let's see what happens. Which which were you?
SPEAKER_01Well, I was in my mind, I was like, if we move to Florida, I we have to do something fun, right? I don't want to be uh like in a cubicle, you know, or I don't want to be in in behind my office every day, you know. I've done this way too long, you know. So since it's gonna be a complete change of life, you know, I want to do something fun. Uh and in France, we used to live, like I said, you know, in the Alps, uh close to the mountains, but also close to the lake. We have the the the biggest slate and lake in Europe. Uh and we used to boat all the time. So I was like, I want to be on the water. Uh so my wife and I agreed on that. So we're looking for something, you know, jet ski related or uh boat related or even kayak related. We're ready for anything, you know, or like whatever it is, you know, we want to we want something fun and we want something um you know like touristic and and and that's that was our our first idea. But guess what? You know, finding that kind of business is not easy. So we've been traveling for we've been looking for more than a year, you know, uh in a distance, because when I was in France, I was, you know, looking for anything to buy and couldn't find anything. And finally we came in uh in Florida for three months to look for something, and we traveled all over the place, you know, north, south, east, west, everywhere in Florida, and we couldn't find anything. So it was very frustrating and very discouraging, you know, because we we were ready, we we already sold everything, you know, over.
SPEAKER_04And the countdown was on. There's a timer.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, there was a timer. Yeah. So three months, we had just three months to find a business so we could get things rolling and and uh apply for the visa and and then we would move here. Because we we had sold everything we had. So the house, the cars, everything. Everything we have. We had just just 10 luggages uh with us, you know, and we we told the kids we're not going back. So we didn't put them back to school. Uh you know.
SPEAKER_04So when you came to Florida, there was no intention of going back to France.
SPEAKER_01No, no intention.
SPEAKER_04The plan was we're gonna find a business and we're gonna make it work.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, we had no plan B. No plan B. So it was it was scary, but at the same time, it's like, I mean, three months is plenty, we'll find something, right? And um, and we did.
SPEAKER_04What did what did her family or your family think for?
SPEAKER_01Oh, everybody thought we were crazy. Everybody was like, we hope it's gonna work, but these kids are crazy. And I think you need you we had to be a little crazy to do what we did because we were so confident, and so we felt the calling, you know, that God was leading us here. We didn't know where we're going, but we were definitely going. And we were like, He's gonna figure it out. And and he did, and he did. So there's a happy ending.
SPEAKER_04Did you get like lectures from family, or did you get like, you know, like shot down a little bit on things, or was it like, well, cross your fingers for you, good luck.
SPEAKER_01We yeah, I mean, we didn't let's put it that way. Not everybody knew all the details, but we were so confident that nobody really, even my family, I mean, we told them that it was difficult, but we didn't say why it was difficult, what we were going through. We we kind of hit a part of it, you know, because we didn't want them to be worried too worried about us. And and and we were so, I don't know how to tell it, but how to say it, but we were just confident that things were gonna work out, you know, and it was like it has to work out because everything had lined up in a way that made no sense before. We sold the house at the at the highest price price, way above the the the market price. Um, we I mean everything was lining up perfectly fine. So uh there was no reasons, you know, it would fall apart you know after that, right?
SPEAKER_04So I love that so much. So so you're you're hitting obstacle after obstacle.
Selling Everything For An E2 Visa
SPEAKER_04Can you walk me through like the sequence of obstacles that it just felt like man, this is staging up against us?
SPEAKER_01Oh gosh, yeah. Well, it started by the the the sale of the house. So we had to sell the house at least 465,000, you know, to get enough money to move here. We had three, four offers way under the market uh price, like way, way under. So we're like, okay, if we if we don't sell the house, that's the the step one, right? If we don't sell the house, we're not going, right? And uh we've waited for like three, four months uh to get a decent offer, but no offers were coming. And then suddenly this lady knocked at the door and she said, Hey, I saw your ad online, and I think this is the house uh that I really want to buy, and uh I want to buy it at the at the selling price. So I was like, Okay, you know, and we signed up uh the the the the paperwork. She had to sell her house first before she could buy ours, which was giving us just enough time to sell every furniture, everything that was inside the house because it was like a 15 years old house, you know, so you can imagine how much stuff there was in there, right? Oh, yeah uh so we had to get rid of everything, you know. We told the kids, okay, just keep like 10 to 15 toys, you know, favorite toys, everything else will have to go. So we gave away a lot of stuff. Um I had a whole trailer in front of the house that we were filling up, you know, emptying, filling up empty. We we had to go to the trash, we trashed a lot of things. We sold uh the all the furniture and everything, and it took us just six months to do that, and that was right when this lady was ready to buy our house. Wow. So talking about perfect, you know, when when things are lining up like this so perfectly, you're like, okay, there's a reason for that, right?
SPEAKER_04Before we get to the next obstacle, I have to know what were the conversations with your kids? Because you guys didn't know what was gonna happen.
SPEAKER_01So how did you talk to them about well we did uh we took a trip uh with the kids, and that's that was one thing, you know, when uh my my wife and I decided to do this to jump in. Um we we were very clear uh on that, you know, where if one of you is not ready to go, we'll cancel. We're staying here, right? So we uh took a trip with the kids um before we sold the house, and uh we took like two weeks vacation in Florida. You know, there's worse places than Florida for the kids, right? So uh and we're like, okay, so you know, we're we're gonna live the the Floridian life for two weeks. We're gonna show you what's what's why we're we decided to move here, and if you like it, good. If you don't, then you know, just let us know. And they were little, you know, my my daughter was 12, my son was six. Um, but still, you know, we felt like it was very important for us to have everybody on board, you know, the whole family on board. It wasn't just my dream or you know what I mean. So um, and uh after the trip, you know, we we had a lot of fun, of course. You know, we would we did everything that Florida has to offer. So we went to the to to Disney, we did, you know, we went to the beach, we did the the the the um we need the the gators, you know, we did we did the the airboats and all that. We rented a boat as well, you know. So uh we did some kayaking. We we had the best you know vacation uh in two weeks, and uh and at the end we're like, so how do you like it? Do you want to move there? It's like oh yeah, that would be so cool. So we're like, okay.
SPEAKER_04Were they ever worried about leaving family and friends?
SPEAKER_01A little bit, yeah, for sure. Yeah, everybody that that was the worst thing, I would say, you know, when I look back, and still today, you know, being away far away from the family is is difficult, so I'm not gonna lie.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, yeah. No, I can't imagine being in a country and not knowing anyone.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_04It's an adventure, a big adventure.
SPEAKER_01It's a huge adventure, and uh it's uh um and only that, but you know, we moved thinking that my uncle will be around, but the truth is it's just life, you know, he got busy with his work and we got busy with our business, and you know, we we didn't see each other as much as we were hoping. So uh for the first six months we're pretty much by our own, you know. So so that was um, yeah, that was not easy, but uh, but it was worth it.
SPEAKER_04I want to know about some of the more obstacles, but um, I'm assuming
Ninety Days And No Business
SPEAKER_04the language was a huge obstacle for you and your family. You knew English a a little bit, right?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I I spoke English before. I used to work in English, you know, in the banking industry. I I uh English was my my first language, but my uh my wife didn't speak, my kids didn't speak uh uh speak a word. So that was funny. The the first week the first weeks were really funny. But um overall, you know, um it's funny because I re it reminded me when I was a kid when I came here in the United States for a whole year. Uh, when my kids went to school, they came back with the same smile on their face and they were like, school is awesome here. We love school here. Um, so that was just confirming that we did the, you know, made the right decision. Um, but yeah, that the language was not really an obstacle because they the kids caught caught up English in just a few months. I mean three months with it. Three months they were speaking English to each other. They were not speaking French anymore. You know, I doubt.
SPEAKER_04That's a commitment.
SPEAKER_01You know, and and since today, I mean, they don't when they talk to each other, they don't never speak in in French, they speak in English.
SPEAKER_04Wow.
SPEAKER_01You know, so yeah.
SPEAKER_04I like have goosebumps again because you as a little kid was like, I'm gonna go there, and then you watch your kids like kind of have the same feeling. Yeah, like they lunch school, they wanted to be here. Yeah, it's crazy.
SPEAKER_01They made friends. My my daughter for my daughter was a little more difficult for her because she was thir uh yeah, 13 years old. So it's the age is yeah, and she uh she was thrown, you know, uh in the middle of the year, school year, so where the groups are over already made up and everything. So it's hard for her to connect and to make friends. So the first six months uh was a little difficult for her. Uh but then the next year when she started the new year, you know, she made new friends and everything. And and yeah, and then she she yeah, she. I mean, it was funny because she was she was doing um um uh the the the the video um production over at her uh school, middle school. No, no, here they they picked her because they really loved her her French accent. Well, guess guess what? The French accent dis disappeared after like three months, it was completely gone. So at first they would ask her to do the pledge, you know, uh with her French accent, but that disappeared really quick.
SPEAKER_03That fired on them.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. When you see them today and when you listen to them, you have you would never guess that they're they're you know French and you know that they have a different native language.
SPEAKER_04Amazing. Kids are so smart, yeah.
SPEAKER_01They are, yeah.
SPEAKER_04Okay, so I know there was more obstacles. We did skip ahead to the kids stuff, but I I just had to know. But so you had the obstacles of um you're here in 90 days, you're on a let's go back to your you're on a time clock.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_04And you have to make it work. What other obstacles happened in that 90-day window?
SPEAKER_01Um, many, many different obstacles. Uh we um we found different uh businesses that were interested on paper, but as soon as we did the due diligence, we found out that the numbers were not right, that the the tax was not right. There was always something, right? So um so very discouraging because we were so confident that we I mean, we were looking everywhere. Like I said, we went all the way to Jacksonville, Tampa, you know, Orlando, everywhere. We went everywhere, except for Melbourne, by the way. Uh we I had no idea of Melbourne, I've never been to Melbourne before, you know. So, but I we were looking at Cocoa Beach, we were looking Daytona, uh almost to Miami. We didn't want to go down to Miami, but you know, uh uh Boca uh was was one of the places that we looked at, and and we couldn't find anything, so we're like disappointing. We're at the at at one point we were ready to take anything, you know. Uh we even looked at uh uh like a pack and chip, you know, uh pike and chip uh business, which was completely far from what I was looking for.
SPEAKER_04But I was behind a desk again.
SPEAKER_01You know, behind the desk again and and boring again, you know. So I was like, do I really want to do that? I was like, I really want to come to the United States. So if I need to do that, then I'll do it, you know. But but yeah, so it was it was very, very complicated. And uh and yeah, three days before it was time to go back, because we we were on an Esther visa. Uh and with with this visa, you know, when you're done, you have to leave. You know, there's no oh I'm gonna stay another week. No, you know, your visa is over, you have to put everybody in the plane and leave the country, you know, if you don't want to get kicked out, you know, or illegal uh in the in the country, which we we we really we never wanted to to go that route, right? So so yeah, three days before it was time to uh fly back to uh to France, my broker was like, you know what, I have one last idea because uh we kid you know, we visited maybe 30 different businesses.
SPEAKER_04Were you getting your hopes up every time you were like doing your due diligence and doing your yeah, yeah, it's rough.
SPEAKER_01It's rough. It's rough because you're like, this is the one, this is the one. And then it's like, no, everything is falling apart. It's like, no way, no way. When I look back now, I'm like, oh thank god I didn't do that, you know. At one point I was ready to to start my own business, you know. I was like, you know, with the the money that we have, instead of buying something, I'll just start something, you know, I'll buy a few boats, you know, and uh I'll find a location and uh you know we can we can do that, right? Uh so we looked at Port Camarill, uh we found a location, we've we we have found a few boats to buy and everything. We're ready to rock. Uh and uh and then my broker was like, before you do that, you know, I want you to meet with uh Sophie, who has a uh Limo uh business here in Melbourne. And uh he's like, I know that she has
Kids And Culture Shock
SPEAKER_01a good network here and um she might have some ideas, you know. She's close to the ocean, so you never know. And uh thank God he did that because we met with her and uh and she gave me three phone numbers. She was like, call this guy um and see if there's anything he can do for you. So I called a guy and he's like, Yeah, I'm like, you know what? I'm my name is Steve. You know, I have a family. Uh my wife and two kids were trying to buy a business here in Florida. Can you help me? He's like, I can't, I don't know. I can't I don't see how I can help you. So yeah, second phone number, same thing. And then third phone number was Matt Kerf. And I called Matt. And I'm like, hey Matt, uh my name is Steve, you know, family of four, you know, I have two kids, we're ready to move in the United States, but we can't find a business to buy. Can you help me? He's like, let's go have lunch. I was like, okay, let's go. And funny, funny uh thing, you know, as I was looking for a boating, you know, or something related to jet ski and boat rentals, of course, 321 boat would come up everywhere because they were there the big company, the largest company uh boat rental in this company, so in the in the area. So I would see their ad everywhere.
SPEAKER_04And uh did you know the connection before you lunch?
SPEAKER_01No. I I think so. That's the best part. So we I met with him.
SPEAKER_04Do you remember what restaurant?
SPEAKER_01It was Grills. Riverside Grills.
SPEAKER_04Riverside Grills, not even Pork.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah, Riverside Grills. Uh so I met with the guy and he's wearing a hat, three to one boat club. I'm like, you gotta be kidding me.
unknownThat's the sign, right?
SPEAKER_01That was the sign. And you know what when you see, you know, how things are perfectly lined up, that that was another sign. I was like, okay, that this is it. And uh so we had a really, really nice lunch, we had a really good conversation, but nothing right away, right? So it's like, well, it was really nice meeting you, blah, blah, blah. And we took our flight the next day, right? So that was the the two days before we were leaving. So I came back to my wife and was like, you know what? I met with Matt from 321 Boat, you know, the the advertising that we saw everywhere. Uh, he's the guy, he's the he owns that, right? He he started that. And she's like, okay, so we uh packed up, we flew back in France.
SPEAKER_04Good week time out. Okay, so the night before you had uh lunch with Matt, what was the conversation like with your wife? Because there was no hope in sight.
SPEAKER_01No, but uh my broker told me, you know, sometimes uh, you know, a rela uh uh you know, a meet um meeting someone like Matt could change your life. And that's what he said. This was his his words, right?
SPEAKER_04What was that? What was that meeting like meeting someone like Matt? What was that?
SPEAKER_01Because um so Sophie told me to call Matt because she was part of the boat club and she was like, you never know. And when Matt said, okay, I I want to have lunch with uh with you, my broker told me right away, if he wants to have lunch with you, it's a good sign. He might have something in his mind, you know, he he might be thinking of something, you know, and some things sometimes these are the best, you know, uh uh conversation that you can have that can come, you know, go somewhere. Right. Yeah. And and uh and and he was right.
SPEAKER_04So the conversation with your wife before there was hope was we'll just go back and start over. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. And I shared with Matt the idea of starting something at Port Canaveral, and he cut me off right away. He's like, if you do that, you're gonna fail. A lot of people tried that and they failed. Fort Canaveral is not a good place, and now I know why. But so I was like, okay, so yeah.
SPEAKER_04Okay, so then you go to lunch with Matt. Yeah, you have a flight the next day, like less than 24 hours later. What's the conversation like that night? What's the feeling like?
SPEAKER_01Well, the feeling is super good because uh Matt and I connected like this, you know. He was, you know, Matt, he's very, very friendly, very, you know, calm, very,
Three Phone Calls That Changed Everything
SPEAKER_01you know, he was very uh uh comforting, you know. He was he was just a perfect guy, you know, super nice, super friendly, successful, you know. And I was like, if he wants to help us, he will get us somewhere. If we do it on our own, you know, not knowing the country, not knowing Florida, not knowing anything, you know. We're I'm a banker, you know. I I I used to have a business one back in the days, but you know, I have no experience, and especially I'm a different country, right?
SPEAKER_04So what about the kids that night? Were they hopeful too, or were they a little sad to go back?
SPEAKER_01They were sad to go back. They didn't really understand what was going on because I didn't go too deep into uh into it, you know, with them. Uh but uh but yeah, they they were really sad to go back, you know, especially since we didn't really have anything.
SPEAKER_04Any plans to do that. Okay. So I just because I'm not as familiar with the visas, is there a time limit before you're allowed to come back? Or if you buy a business, it's fine, you could just come back, or is there a waiting period?
SPEAKER_01I there was three weeks uh before I could take it the next flight and come back. Uh so we I had to stay out of the country for at least uh three weeks.
SPEAKER_03Okay, not too bad. It's not like a six-month waiting period.
SPEAKER_01And uh and Matt sent me an email two weeks after we left, and he was like, you know, I uh it was a pleasure meeting you, you know. I've been putting a lot of thoughts into your situation, and I and I think I want to help you out. Uh and he said, Um, how about since you wanted to to start a jet ski business, how about if I sell the jet ski part of the business uh uh to you so you can have a visa, bring your family in and and you know, get you set up, right? And I was like, Wow. Absolutely, you know, I was like, okay, this is what you were, you know, that was the big picture that I didn't see before, but you know, God had the big picture for us, and he was like, you know, this is this is where I want you to be, you know, and um and not only that, but in his email, he was like, uh, so the jet ski, that's that's one part, you get your visa, you can move in Florida, and uh we'll help you set up because he was ready to give away uh one of his condo so we could have a place to live. Uh he had an extra card that he would let me use. All right.
SPEAKER_04So what a guy.
SPEAKER_01I know, right? And uh, and then he's like, um, and you know, my my son in law, he runs the business for me, but he hates it. You know, he's not gonna stay. Uh at some point he's gonna leave the the company and do his own thing. Uh so would you consider um taking Taking over his position. So you'll be at the same location. You can run your business, you can run three to one boat, you know, and down the road, maybe you'll buy off. And I was like, wow, that's that's really good.
SPEAKER_04That's the American dream.
SPEAKER_01That's the American dream right there. So guess what? I called my broker and I'm like, hey Sylvan, um, you know, this is uh I had a good conversation with Matt. This is what he's offering me. Uh, what do you think? And I'm in French, he's in Florida, so I think that the connection is is bad, right? So I'm like, hey, can you can you hear me? He's like, wait a second, let me think for a second. And he's like, dude, this is this is the chance of your life. If you do that, not only that you're gonna get an E2 visa, but you will qualify for the green car. So it's not a five years picture, it's a lifetime picture. And I I started crying. I was like, God is good.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Because, you know, it was way better than I could expect it. You know, it's way, way better.
SPEAKER_04I can't imagine getting on the plane with like zero ideas. And pretty much like we're done.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Two days.
SPEAKER_04Wild.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_04So wild.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Did you ever own a boat before you came to Florida?
SPEAKER_01I had we we would share a boat with my uh father-in-law in France. It was a sailboat. Okay.
SPEAKER_04Oh, sailboat's totally different than what you were though.
SPEAKER_01I agree. But still, you know, we were on the water all the time.
SPEAKER_04We didn't have as much experience. So you were a waterman, but you didn't have experience with like motors. No.
SPEAKER_01I didn't have a I didn't have a boating, uh boating license. You know, I had no clue whatsoever what's what's coming up. I had to learn everything from Shrek.
SPEAKER_04Oh, okay. So now we're getting into the good stuff. This is the entrepreneur stuff, right? So you get here, and then you you're day one, you know nothing. You listen. Like literally nothing. Like, where do we go from here?
SPEAKER_01Yeah. It's crazy because when I I first started, you know, I uh first of all, I thought that my English was good, but in the banking industry, in this industry, it was like zero. I could not understand, I didn't know not understand the the the accent, the slang, uh, and and just you know the the marine industry in general. So people would call me and would ask me questions, and I was like, I had no idea what you're asking for. So what do you do at this moment? Well, you see you you're like, hey, I can't really hear you. Let me call you back. And you write down and you do your research, and then you call back and say, Yeah, yeah, I that's what I did.
SPEAKER_04I love it. What a dream. That's a good thing.
SPEAKER_01It was terrible. It was the first
The Deal That Opened A Life
SPEAKER_01week was terrible. A lot of like, you know, sweating, you know, of like, oh my gosh, what am I doing? I don't know anything about jet skis, you know. I I had no clue.
SPEAKER_04Did you ever have a thought that this was the wrong business? No.
SPEAKER_01No, no, I didn't have time to think that, you know, because you're you're on survival mode, and yeah, I was more uh like, okay, I need to learn everything I need to know in the shortest time ever, right? So if I can learn everything in one week, that's what I'll do. So I did all my research. I I did all the YouTube videos, I did everything that you can think of. And I've learned everything from scratch because I had to be at my best the sooner, sooner than later. Um, and the son-in-law didn't see me as a really good thing, you know, that I would take over his position and he he was bossing up everybody here. He was not he was not the best person to just wasn't happy to be here.
SPEAKER_04I get it. You know, you don't want to be there. Why would you want to help?
SPEAKER_01And instead of helping Amy, he was he was taking me down every time he could, you know. So so I was like, okay, I'm on my own and I'm gonna figure it out, and God is with me, you know, who can be against me? And and that's that's how I I did it. And and in no time I learned everything. I was able, a few months later, I was able to take uh whole jet ski apart and reinstall new motor in it and everything that goes with it. I bought all the tools that I needed, and you know, I I got I just became you know the the jet ski expert, you know, in Bernard County. So so that was pretty cool.
SPEAKER_04Selfishly, I want to ask you a question that I don't know um like if you if you're gonna even relate. So if you don't, that's fine. But in my entrepreneurship journey, it's because I know where I'm going and what needs to be done, like you knew I have to learn all these jet skis, I have to watch these YouTube videos, like you knew the path. Like, but you can't build Rome in a day no matter how hard you try. Like, how do you manage that feeling? Because it's like you could be running as fast as you can and you don't feel like it's fast enough.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Well, the good thing about this area is um the location, you know. Um we have no competitors whatsoever. 25 miles north, 25 miles south is gonna be our first competitors, and they don't do the same as we do, right? So that's the beauty of it. You know, I at first we were going to go uh on the other coast, on the west coast, but guess what? If you go to Sarasota or Tampa area, there's like hundreds of businesses like that. They're everywhere, right? So now you have to fight against competitors. Here, there's no competition, com competition. So it was super easy. The phone was ringing every day. Uh at the end of the day, I wanted to throw the phone in the water. That's how much, you know, phone calls I would get. So it was non-stop and it was successful right away. And Matt has told me that at first, and you know, everything that he told me, he was right, like a hundred percent right, you know. And uh he did not lie to me uh about anything, you know, when we moved here. And um, and he told me, he was like, you know, I don't care about the jet ski. So if you do care, if if this is your business, I know you're gonna do the right thing and you're gonna do way better than what I did because I would turn away business. That's what Matt told me. And he was right. You know, when I took over, I mean, the business just exploded. You know, it was really, really good. We we started making money the second month, you know. So compared to France, where I had to work for like two years flat, you know, without taking any salary, the the jet ski business was giving us revenue in the second month.
SPEAKER_04So you like there is no business where you would have done due diligence and and realized they're turning business away, and then all you have to do is just show up. Yeah, just show up to just to increase the business. Like that's wild.
SPEAKER_01That's it. Just show up, just enter the phone and show up and have running jet skis. Don't have any breakdown jet skis. Because I spent hours fixing the skis, you know, after a day, you know, I had this people are rough with the jet skis. So it was, yeah.
SPEAKER_04Can you talk to me about the worst day you've ever had in your business?
SPEAKER_01The worst day was probably when I had a mini stroke one day. Uh, I was by myself. Um, the actual manager was not here. And I was by myself running my business and the 321 boat uh business. And uh I don't know why, you know, my uh my vision got blurry, I I couldn't figure things out, you know, my brain was not functioning, you know. And uh and I called my wife and I was like, I feel weird, you know, and she came right away. Uh she brought me some lunch and we sat down on the boat for a little bit, you know, and I was like, I don't understand what I'm doing. I phone was ringing and I couldn't answer the phone. I was completely lost. And she was like, You're you're having a stroke. So we went straight to the to the hospital, and uh it was a mini stroke. So I spent three days uh at the hospital, you know, they did all kind of testing and everything on me, and uh they found out that it was it was a mini stroke.
SPEAKER_04I cannot even imagine.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it was tough. It was just um, I guess the heat, you know, overworking, and the change of uh of food, you know, uh that that kind of messed everything up. Uh so so yeah, it was a little scary. That is good.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, yeah, and our healthcare is a lot different.
SPEAKER_01Completely different.
SPEAKER_04Is that the first experience you had with healthcare?
SPEAKER_01That was the first time, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_04It was it was right open those bills.
SPEAKER_01Well we had good thing we had a um we had a really good entrance from France that we kept, you know, for the first years um that would cover in case of emergency, you know. And uh I was
Learning Jet Skis From Scratch
SPEAKER_01it was a hundred percent, you know, uh covered by the entrance.
SPEAKER_03That's nice.
SPEAKER_01So that was nice, but yeah, when I saw the bill at the end, I was like, oh my goodness.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, that's an introduction to America right there.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was not prepared for that.
SPEAKER_04Oh man, that's so crazy. Okay, so talk to me about like some of the best businesses decisions that you've had.
SPEAKER_01Um the best decisions. Probably, I mean, there was a lot of decisions, but the the the first big decision was to change the name of the company. So it was Haley's Jet Skin Boat Rental. Uh, and so there were two branches, three uh Haley's Jet Skin Boat Rental and Three to One Boat Club. And um, it was very complicated for even with a phone, you know, when you answer the phone, you're like Haley's Jet Skin Boat Rental, 321 Boat Club, hey, you know, this is Steve, how can I help you? It's a long way to introduce yourself, right?
SPEAKER_04So especially with you not with English being your second language, and that's your introduction on the phone.
SPEAKER_01Exactly. You know, that was tough at first. I'm not gonna lie. And Haley was was uh Matt's uh daughter, she started the business, you know, a long time ago, but she was far gone, you know, and it there was no way she was coming back. So we decided to shorten the name and to do 321 boat rentals and club that would include everything in there. It was way easier, and even uh on um Google uh the website was changed to 321boat.com uh instead of Haley's Jetski and Boat Rental. So so that was the biggest, you know, scary but uh important decision that we made. Um, and Matt was uh all in, you know, when I told him that we would do that, he was like, Yep, if you think that's good, yeah, that that's what we'll do. So that was uh that was number one. Um uh number two was the move. We went from uh uh uh Anchorage to this location. Uh that was a huge, huge, scary move uh and very big decision to make.
SPEAKER_04Uh but it was How did that change the business?
SPEAKER_01Uh it changed it changed a lot of things. I mean, um the organization went completely different. You know, we were lent renting a few slips over there uh to you know taking care of a whole property, you know, like dealing with uh the bills, the everything, you know, is different, right? So you're not renting renting a few slips here and there, now you have to take care of electricity, of cutting the grass, of everything. So uh it was a huge uh change. But overall it was a great move because uh now that now we have the the whole dock for ourselves. We have our own parking lot and everything, so so it's just it makes a lot of sense, right?
SPEAKER_04So how much has the business model changed from when you bought it to today? It's been 10 years.
SPEAKER_01It's been 10 years, yeah.
SPEAKER_04What talk to me about the changes in the business model and the big changes was the jet ski.
SPEAKER_01We stopped the jet ski completely.
SPEAKER_04Um how how did revenue do after that?
SPEAKER_01It was it was hard. Um we uh we tried to you know uh do different things uh you know to cover for the less lack of revenue. We started uh the kayaks, which didn't work as much as the jet skis, as you can imagine. We started doing shorter uh rentals, so two hours instead of four minimum, uh, which you know kind of brought some some business back. But um, but yeah, we we yeah, we're lacking some some revenue for sure. But uh it was it was the best thing to do because um especially in this area, you know, there's we're in the Mantee Sanctuary and a lot of the jet ski writers, they don't care. Um, you know, no matter how much you repeat yourself on on on you know safety rolls and everything, they as soon as they're on the on the jet ski, they forget everything and they they just go crazy. And um and it was just not not right. So we decide to stop completely.
SPEAKER_04For people who are not as like water savvy, like I think jet skis are like four-wheelers, you know, like the equivalent of like people get on four-wheelers and they do stupid stuff, you know.
SPEAKER_01That's exactly it. Yeah. And they don't understand their the risk, you know. You can you can get hurt, you can hit each other, you can hurt the the nature, you know, and um, and uh yeah. So that was a tough decision to make,
Health Scare And US Healthcare
SPEAKER_01but um but it it had to be me.
SPEAKER_04So I loved hearing about your mom. It's so obvious that when you talk about her, you knew what she went through for you guys because she could have you know not worked as hard or not, you know, she could have gone a different route.
SPEAKER_03Right.
SPEAKER_04Um when your kids ask you 20 years from now what it was like moving, like what do you hope they take from watching you do all of this?
SPEAKER_01Well, I think that um the the the just the you know the the when when you you have to be all in, you ha you can't go like halfway, you know. If you do something you have to be all in, you have to commit, you know, the commitment and uh and um it's okay to take risks, right? It's okay to fail, right? But you can't just stay still, you know, you have to, you know, jump jump all in. And uh I think they they are like that too, you know. So each each of them they they took completely different directions, but uh but when they decide to go that direction, they you know, they they they agreed, you know, on everything, you know. So and and they they are all in. So so that's that's pretty cool. I'm very proud of them.
SPEAKER_04They they just watched you and took from that. I guess yeah. You were all in on America, yeah. They at least watched you do that. Yeah. That's amazing.
SPEAKER_01They were here the whole time, yeah. Even if even if they were like little, you know, they have some really good memories about it.
SPEAKER_04So um, so not anytime soon, but you will exit this business one day, I'm sure. It's in retirement. What is exiting well gonna mean for you? Like what what are you building your you know, so we build towards, you know, the exit? What are you building for?
SPEAKER_01Like what are um retirement, maybe?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, but like so when you get there, what will you say, I I did it? I was so I did everything I wanted to do. I was so successful, I you know, what what is that gonna look like?
SPEAKER_01I think success is not only money, uh, it's really how you can benefit to others. Um, you know, I feel like God has led us here and he has a mission for us, and the mission is three to one vote. And uh as much as I can give to back to the community, that's what I want to do. And um, you know, I'm not looking for for wealth, but I I want to I want to be
Rebrand And Major Operational Moves
SPEAKER_01a blessing for the people around me as much as I can. Um and um and yeah, but that's it. You know, I'm not I'm not like running after a big check, you know, at the end of three to one boat. I'm just I just want to make sure that I fulfill everything I I I needed to do, you know.
SPEAKER_04You are so plugged into this community. I haven't told you this. I saved it for this episode. Um but I work with nonprofits sometimes, and there's a nonprofit that like couldn't say better things about like they just had so many great things to say about you, and like you're you're a community partner to our kids in our community, to our nonprofits in our community. Like, so those are just words when you say that, like you really are plugged in and making the difference. So you didn't even know that, but we just had a mutual connection with a mutual friend. I was helping them with their website, and they were like, Oh, yeah, you gotta put three two one boots logo on our website. And I was like, of course, of course, theme is helping them and part of everything.
SPEAKER_01I try, you know, and that like I said, you know, I really want to be a blessing for the community, you know. Um I I I want to stay humble about it, but but still, you know, this is this is not my business, this is God's business, and uh He wants me to do whatever He wants me to do, I'll I'll do it, you know.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. So last well, second to last question, because we have a traditional question. Yeah, but second to last question is what advice do you have to the person listening to this show right now? And they're in another country and they want the American dream so bad they can't even stand it. What advice do you have for them?
SPEAKER_01Don't give up, follow your dreams. And um, yeah, I mean, there there's plenty of opportunities, you know. It's the the this country is still is still a great, great country. There's there's a lot um, you know, for for families, uh and and and overall, I mean the the way of living and everything is is just it's just great, you know. Sometimes I have nightmares, I kid you not, I have nightmares that you know we didn't get the green card, we had to go back to France, and it's it's terrible, you know. So uh there's no way, you know, I would I would go back.
SPEAKER_04Okay, I I have one more question. So if it all didn't work out and you did have to go back to France, would you ever have started a business again or would the entrepreneurship have died because of all the red tape and the taxes and how difficult it is?
SPEAKER_01I would not start a business back in France. No way, no way. I would probably go somewhere else, but not in France.
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