Millions of viewers that tuned in to watch season 1 of Starz’ hit series ‘BMF,’ which is based on enterprising real life brothers Demetrius (Meech) and Terry (Tee) Flenory as they embark on their mission to get rich by way of Detroit’s underworld—wondered if season 2 of the series could live up to the expectations after the huge success of the first season.
To their delight, season 2 of BMF definitely over-delivered on those expectations. And while season 1 of the series provided its share of business lessons for up-and-coming entrepreneurs. Season 2 has also provided some great gems as well.
These are three of the best business lessons from season 2 of BMF that’ll help you become an even better entrepreneur than you already are.
1. The customer is your boss
In episode 2 of the second season titled, "Family Business," we got a closer look at Terry's journey to become a legitimate entrepreneur. After starting a limousine service with his father Charles; one day as a driver, Terry finds himself becoming easily perturbed with one particular passenger that continuously tells Terry that he's taking the wrong route to his destination.
Hearing enough, Terry kicks the passenger out of his car and throws his luggage on the highway.
After receiving a complaint from the customer, Charles and Terry get into an argument, where Terry tells his dad, "That guy was being a jerk, telling me how to drive, acting like he was my damn boss."
To which Charles replies, "The customers are our bosses. And a bad reputation can ruin us before we even get started."
Contrary to what many believe about the independence of entrepreneurship, Charles was absolutely right. As an entrepreneur, you definitely have multiple bosses—those bosses are your customers. And as many employees could attest, bosses aren't always the easiest people in the world to get along with (hard to believe, I know).
No matter how successful you become, as a business owner, always remember—the customer is your boss. That's because they're the ones that will determine if and how much you'll get paid.
Like traditional bosses, current and former customers could either give you a good reference (by way of reviews) that'll be appealing to your next boss. Or they could give you a bad one (by way of negative reviews) that'll discourage someone else from wanting to hire you.
This is why as an entrepreneur, it is of vital importance that your business places an emphasis on customer success through great customer service. In order to keep your job as an entrepreneur, you must attain and just as importantly—retain customers aka your bosses.
Here’s a few ways you can do that:
Provide superior service at every customer touchpoint.
Politely resolve all customers complaints.
Email customers rewards to show your appreciation.
Ask customers how much they enjoyed their experience with your brand and what you could do to serve them better.
2. A great run beats a bad stand
Ask anyone that watched season 2 of BMF and I’m sure they’ll agree—every episode was lit. But one episode in particular that was extra lit—was episode 4 titled, “Running On E.” In this episode, things start to really get hot for the Flenory brothers after they lose a shipment that was consigned to them by their Detroit supplier.
To make things even worse, Meech is shot by his arch nemesis, a psychopath named Lamar. After Terry helps Meech escape out of the hospital before Lamar finds him there, the brothers decide it would be best to flee Detroit and head to Atlanta to regroup—instead of going to war with both Lamar and their supplier.
Much like this episode, in entrepreneurship, it’s often best for startups to retreat and regroup—rather than directly engaging larger competitors in your industry that could easily crush you if provoked.
For example, SIA Collective is a multi-million dollar footwear and apparel brand that even some hypebeasts may have never even heard of. And that’s just fine with the brand’s founder Devlin Carter.
Many entrepreneurs that have experienced the success Carter has in the fashion industry would set their sights on going after fashion powerhouses like Nike, Louis Vuitton, and Gucci. However, Carter chooses to stay away from engaging with the behemoths by simply catering to his brand’s niche following. “You have to cater to your audience, you can’t take Ls.” Said Carter in an interview with The Breakfast Club.
As a founder, avoid taking Ls (losses) with your brand by creating a niche and cater to your niche’s audience. You could generate a lot of money by staying in your own lane and avoiding the big guys. In other words, don’t hesitate to run away from a battle—before it begins.
3. Don’t expand before you’re ready
For an entrepreneur, ambition is sort of like a superpower. And as with all superpowers—ambition has both its pros and cons. As Meech and Terry find out in episode 9 of season 2 titled, “High Treason.”
In this episode, fresh from an out-of-town meeting with their new Colombian connection—the brothers return back to the streets of Detroit as the new kings of the underworld. Allowing their ambition to get the best of them—they decide to take the entire BMF crew down to Atlanta with hopes of expanding their operation.
Unfortunately for the Flenory’s, a few Atlanta natives didn’t take too kindly to BMF infringing on their turf. And let them know so under no uncertain terms.
One brand that could also attest to just how costly expanding too soon could be—is British supermarket chain Tesco.
In 2006, having already become the largest retailer in the UK, Tesco announced that they were expanding their operations by entering the U.S. and would be opening stores on the west coast. Stating that they’d spend as much as $435 million a year to build stores in the market—Tesco planned on becoming just as big—if not bigger, in the U.S. than mega store chains Walmart and Costco.
Sadly, for Tesco—their ambitions did not come to fruition. Wrongly assessing the purchasing habits of U.S. consumers, in 2012, the retailer declared it was leaving the U.S. after having lost a reported $1.6 billion. Serving as a cautious tale to all ambitious entrepreneurs that although expansion is tempting—doing so before you’re ready could be extremely costly.