Page 210 - James Caan - The Real Deal

The Real Deal

selling theirs? Why shouldn’t I invest in my brand rather than
somebody else’s? And why would you want to work so hard and
not own a piece of it?’
‘Where are you going with this?’
‘I’ll put up the cash, you come over to the UK and you run the
business. You know exactly what you’re doing, you know exactly
how to create the brand, the systems, the procedures and the
processes. You know how to franchise a business. You have
convinced me beyond doubt that you know it backwards – so if
it’s that good an opportunity, why don’t we just do it? I’ll give you
equity in it.’
‘I’ve never thought of that.’ He was completely thrown. ‘I
couldn’t do it. I’m an American, I just ran for Congress, for
Chrissakes. I’ve got a great life here, a great house, my friends are
here . . . I couldn’t.’
I wasn’t prepared to take no for an answer, so that evening I
rang him from my hotel room. I couldn’t get the idea of starting
an international recruitment franchise out of my system. Just as
with rec2rec or recruitment fairs, I had made my mind up that this
was what I wanted to do and, crucially, that Doug was the guy I
wanted to do it with.
‘Listen, Doug, you know that conversation we had? I really
want you to think about it. When I get back to the UK, let me send
you a ticket. I’ll pay your expenses, pay for your flight, and let me
just show you what I’m doing.’
‘OK, I’ll come over – but don’t pitch me. I’m not leaving the
States, but I don’t mind flying to London and giving you my
thoughts on how you could do it yourself.’
‘You’ve got a deal. I promise I won’t waste my time trying to
persuade you to do something you’re clearly not interested in.’
I really don’t know why I had so much front. Doug was one of
the biggest names in the American recruitment industry and I was,
frankly, a nobody out there. It was like David asking Goliath to

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