My business, Artichokes Unlimited, was struggling. A mystery. Who doesn't like artichokes? I ran into my friend Keith, who ran Squash City, a high end emporium, and mentioned the problem. I could go bankrupt, I moaned.
He said one word--marketing. He got the word out that squash was the hip food of the year. Even had a musician friend write a song about it. Gave me the name of his publicist Josie.
This woman is a whirlwind of activity. She organized a Miss Artichoke contest that got coverage in three papers and over 500 people in the high school auditorium. I put in a coffee bar, hired a torch singer--torch songs go well with this food staple--even placed my grandmother at the door as a greeter.
Things really picked up. Then one day a man entered, introduced himself as Carl, a venture capitalist, and wanted to discuss the possibility of expanding my business into a franchise. He gave me his card, emblazoned with an artichoke and smiled. I just knew I could trust this man. Besides, there's never been any evidence the Mafia has ever been involved with black market artichoke importing. I see an unlimited future. I might even move into beets.
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