The fat man had met with the boss earlier and has since increased the company's clientele. He gets his commission, sales and prodution have increased, and everyone is happy.

Once a week, the production manager helps offload a shipment of supplies in the back warehouse when a transport truck arrives at the loading dock.

He often unloads a few skids containing everything from hundreds of plastic containers, product labels, soy sauce from Japan, olive oil and balsamic vinegar from Italy, cleaning supplies, industrial sizes of paper towels, etc.

There are a lot of resources needed to get to the final product that appears on store shelves.

One day, however, the boss received quite a large bill for a truck rental.

She called the sales rep. and production manager to the office, where they explained the situation to her without the slightest bit of emotion.

Shocked, she called for a meeting at the end of the day that all employees had to attend as soon as the driver got back.

At the end of the day, when the driver returned, the meeting was held, and all three greys were fired and had to vacate the premises.

An internal investigation by the production staff also revealed that the sales rep. spent most of his time at work calling random people trying to convince them to commit suicide rather than trying to find new customers.

In disarray, the boss called the fat man, who assured her he would have replacement workers the next day and also that he had an idea to run by her.

She agreed.

The next day the fat man arrived with his band of misfits. The boss rejected them due to them looking like trash as well as having hired her own replacement workers from her own Japanese community.

She was interested to hear his idea, though.

He told her he has made contacts in several big chain supermarkets and that he could have her product available on their shelves.

There was just one caveat.

"In order to sell your products in their stores, you will have to obtain HAACP certification."

"What is that?" asked the boss.

"It's a governmental regulatory agency that ensures quality, safety, and proper production methods. You and your employees will have to take a course, and if you all pass, you will receive your certificate. However, it can be quite expensive."

"It sounds like a scam," said the boss.

"Think of it as the price of doing business. To access that next level of market, the State wants its fee."

He continued.

"Do you want to keep doing business with small independent family owned stores or do you want to reach a much bigger market?"

The boss thanked him and told him she would need some time to decide.

After a few days of contemplating, the boss held a meeting with her staff and announced they would be going ahead with the certification.

She figured she was in a new land and had to play by their rules. She was also determined to succeed, and going home unsuccessfull was not an option. 

She then informed the fat man, who was very happy about the news.

He told her he would put her in contact with a government agent within the next few days.