Introduction
Despite the good and bad, ups and downs of business in general, there are interesting, influential, and entertaining business stories and successes.

All businesses, from small-to-large, had to start somewhere, including having to be a small business at some stage.

Of course there are the big guns of business, locally, internationally, and internationally. But small businesses also deserve an acknowledgement and respect.

Having such businesses are a part of some famous American lines - 'living the dream', and 'the world is your oyster/there for you'.

Some common, popular big business success stories are:
- Bill Gates, Microsoft
- Richard Branson, Virgin
- Mark Zuckerberg, FaceBook
- Joe Adeboz, Amazon

Businesses
Some local small business stories and successes are:
- John Ibrahim, Golden-Mile -- Darlinghurst to Kings Cross
- Crazy Johns telecommunications
- Car dealership guy (Maurie Valpato)
- Turkish Tailor/Walter (clothing store), Auburn
- JJs Coffee House, Lidcombe
- Ken, Coca-Cola Amatil & McDonald's
- Dick Smith, Dick Smith Electronics/Dick Smith Foods
- Mark Bouris (Wizard Home Loans, Yellow Brick Road Investments).

John Ibrahim
John Ibrahim was born in 1968, is 50 years old, and is a 'Golden Mile' (Darlinghurst to Kings Cross) nightclub and business owner. He is linked with a minimum of 17 clubs in the area. Ibrahim began investing small money-percentages in businesses in the Golden Mile just as the area was coming up and growing in the early years. Of course the Golden Mile is notorious for wrong, criminal-like places, like strip clubs and brothels, homosexuality (gay and lesbian), and bars and clubs. In stating this, Ibrahim was indirectly liked with drugs and organised crime.
This image and reputation of the Golden Mile gave Ibrahim's investments a tarnished outlook, as shown by the recent reality-documentary shown, 'Underbelly'. Over time in the Golden Mile, Ibrahim's investments grew and prospered to the point he became one of Australia's successful multi-millionaires ('John Ibrahim', Wikipedia).

Crazy John's telecommunications
John Ilhan was the founder and owner of Crazy John's telecommunications in 1991, who created a successful business franchise, particularly in phones and mobile phones. Ilhan had a Turkish background, migrating to Australia. Crazy John's was at the time the largest independent phone retailer in Australia, with 60 retail stores and 400 employees. The company headquarters was based in Victoria.

The core reasons for Crazy John's success was its sales and marketing shining through, with advertising for everyday Australians in general. The ads were happy-go-lucky, fun, positive, uplifting, and an energetic feel to the ads. There was a distinct Aussie accent in the ads, mentioning good quality and price, using a Crazy Johns mascot most of the time. Illhan sponsored the Collingwood VFL Football Club.

Ilhan knew he could not match the bigger telecommunications companies, like Telstra, Vodafone, Optus, Lycamobile, and Lebara. So he strategically used the sales and marketing. The sales and marketing connected together well with new Crazy John's franchises opening up all around Australia.

Tragically, John Illhan died suddenly in 2007. His wife Patricia sold her 75% stake in Crazy John's to bigger telecommunications provider, Vodafone. A 200 staff were then made redundant. In January 2013, Vodafone shut 40 Crazy John's stores as part of Vodafone's cost-cutting, and rebranded the remaining Crazy John's stores back to the Vodafone title ('Crazy John's', Wikipedia).

Car dealership guy (Anonymous)
By the age of 14, 'Anonymous' would buy and/or find run-down and/or cheaper vehicles on-the-side. He then would repair, change, and modify the vehicles, and sell them at a higher price, therefore making profit. While this project worked for a while, there was apparently a limit set on the number of vehicles purchased by the general public by relevant government authorities. This was especially the case because at the time, 'Anonymous' was not an official mechanic and or vehicle dealer.

'Anonymous' bided his time, and then opened up, owned, and operated his first very own dealership in Sydney. He then went on to open another eight dealerships, including those in Church Street, Parramatta.

Alim International Tailor/Walter (clothing store), Auburn, Sydney
K. Arabaci's Turkish Alim International Tailor (Men's and Women's wear), and Walter clothing store are small businesses in the main street of Auburn, Sydney, for 20-30 years. Their businesses weathered the storm of good and bad retail times in the Auburn area. However, Walter's clothing store became bankrupt some years ago, despite its long stay in Auburn. The Turkish Tailor had a somewhat bigger store in size to Walter's, with both stores having their own unique decorative and stylish.

An anonymous former worker with Walter said, if Walter had planned properly, with such a long stay in the Auburn area, he would have eventually paid off the mortgage, instead of rent, of the store. Walter at the time also had some ownership-investment in an Oporto's store in Sydney. He then went into courier driving a few years after his Auburn store was closed down.

Although Walter had cheaper clothing lines out the front of his store, the Turkish Tailor was somewhat ahead of Walter, with a greater variety of attractive, cheaper clothing. He had shirts (t-shirts, singlets, polos, dress, and formal); pants (shorts, chinos, cargos, jeans, slacks, and formal); belts; hats; scarves; and normal and dress hats. Walter had something similar to this, but not as much.

The Turkish Tailor took his store one step further and did some recent refurbishing fit-outs. With this design, the cheaper clothes were out the front as normal, the dress and formal suits and wear all down the left of the store, and the other clothing gear to the middle and right of the store, both sides quite visible to the customer.

The Turkish Tailor had another advantage over Walter with being a direct tailor, whereas Walter was a semi-indirect tailor. So customers could get their clothes fixed and altered at both the Turkish Tailor and Walter's, indirectly bringing these customers-potential customers into the stores to have a look around.

JJs Coffee House, Lidcombe, Sydney
JJs Coffee House has been a long-stay business icon in the Lidcombe, Sydney area. The local Auburn-Cumberland Council has assisted and invested in local businesses like JJs by giving cheaper rental costs. JJs is also very central to Lidcombe train station and one of the main roads in Lidcombe, John Street. The other popular main street is Joseph Street on the opposite side of the station.

JJs specialty in food, like other eateries, cafes and restaurants, is a solid investment, as food is a non-durable item consumed daily, everyday. Many customers from close, and far-and-wide, have purchased something from JJs -- hot beverages like coffees and teas, soft/flavoured drinks, and various food items like, fried food, burgers, rolls, sandwiches, salads, chips, wraps and kebabs, and pizza.

Ken, Coca-Cola Amatil & McDonald's
Ken was a truck driver for Coca-Cola Amatil for around 20 years. In this time, Ken did 16 years of night-school. When a job position advertisement for a Manager for the Coca-Cola Asia-Pacific appeared at Coca-Cola, Ken went for it. In fact, Ken surpassed other worthy job appliers and got the job, spending a number of years there.

To think things could not get any better for Ken, the McDonald's restaurant franchises arrived in Australia, classed at the time as somewhat of a risky venture. Ken took a risk and put his redundancy from Coca-Cola, his house, and other money-assets into his starting McDonald's franchises -- two stores in Campbelltown, and two stores in Macarthur. For four years, Ken lived out of a basic caravan while his McDonald franchises would hopefully grow and prosper. After these four years had passed, Ken, at the time, had the most successful McDonald's franchises in all of Australia.

Sometimes it takes time long-term for businesses to succeed, like Ken's. In stating this, such business-people will cherish and appreciate it more, than short-term success where the business quickly goes up, then quickly goes down.

Dick Smith, Dick Smith Electronics/Dick Smith Foods
Dick Smith is a 73-year-old Australian entrepreneur, businessman, record-breaking aviator, philanthropist, and political activist. Smith was almost like a mini, Australian version of a Bill Gates, and Richard Branson, branching out from his schooling days, including North Sydney Technical High School, into his idea of a quality, affordable, and reputable electronics store, eventually being titled, 'Dick Smith Electronics'. Smith later also created, 'Dick Smith Foods', the ever popular and unique, 'Australian Geographic', and media production company, 'Smith&Nasht'. Some of Smith's money went to needy people and organisations. He was awarded Australian of the Year in 1986.

Dick Smith Electronics grew rapidly in the late-1970s, and was later sold to Woolworths for $25 million. However, hundreds of Smith's stores in Australia and New Zealand were closed-down in May 2016.

Dick Smith Foods was founded in 1999, as foods sold in Australia by Australian-owned businesses. Dick Smith Foods was Smith's crusade against foreign ownership of Australian food producers.

Smith took full advantage of his time as a businessman- adventurer, undertaking journeys all around Australia in hot-air-balloons, planes, and motor vehicles ('Dick Smith', Wikipedia).

Mark Bouris (Wizard Home Loans, Yellow Brick Road Investments)
Mark Bouris was a young boy of Greek-heritage who migrated to Australia in with this family. He is a business executive, entrepreneur, and media personality. Mark is also an attractive man, with bluish-eyes, tanned skin, well-groomed, stylish hair, and dress in dressy, formal suits, creating a perfect businessman image. Bouris is educated, qualifying from the reputable University of NSW.

Again, like Crazy Johns telecommunications, Bouris' sales and marketing were very powerful and influential. Bouris would physically mix it with the best of business-people, and stars, celebrities, and high-flyers. The 'Wizard Home Loans' of Bouris is a particular successful franchise, founded in 1996, and was Australia's second largest non-bank mortgage lender behind John.... 'Aussie Home Loans'. Wizard Home Loans was later sold to the business-money giant, GE Money in 2004, for $500 million. Interestingly enough, during the Global Financial Crisis in 2008, GE Money sold Wizard Home Loans to arch-rival competitor, Aussie Home Loans, for a fraction of the $500 million it initially spent to buy Wizard Home Loans.

Wizard Home Loans also became the primary sponsor at the time of the NSW Blues Rugby League team, which really assisted the business to really start to succeed. Mark would also have special-guest spots on the ever-famous, 'Footy Show', with Paul Vautin and Peter Sterling. During this time on the Footy Show, as well as other designated times on mainstream television, was advertised Wizard Home Loans.

He went more directly into money and finance, with Yellow Brick Road investments, another of Bouris' business and concept yet to make its mark and become successful, like Wizard Home Loans, and The Apprentice.

Bouris did a Donald Trump affair (American businessman, and current American President) and host his television game show, The Apprentice, with the ever famous line, 'You're fired'. Many a direct and indirect business person, and certain hand-picked stars, celebrities, and high-flyers, appeared on The Apprentice, for example, Wendall Sailor (former Brisbane Broncos, Queensland, and Australian Rugby League player), and Deni Hines (Pop singer-performer and daughter of Marcia Hines) ('Mark Bouris', Wikipedia).

Bibliography
- Hanna, Paul. 'Ken -- Coca-Cola/McDonald's, You Can Do It
- Personal References:
I had a number of individual conversations with family, friends, and acquaintances about people who have made successful businesses, including car dealership guy.

I live in Auburn-Cumberland Council area near to JJs Coffee House, Alim International Tailor, and Walter's clothing store.

I have watched on mainstream television Mark Bouris, on the Footy Show, and his sponsorship of NSW Blues with Wizard Home Loans.
A television show-documentary, and tv series Underbelly, on how John Ibrahim made his money.

I have read and viewed media stories on Dick Smith Electronics and business. I have seen some Dick Smith foods in Woolworths and Coles supermarkets, for example, jams and peanut butter spreads.
- Wikipedia:
'Crazy John's'
'Dick Smith'
'John Ibrahim'
'Mark Bouris'