Byrne Murphy set out to bring the slam-dunk American concept of cut-price designer fashion outlet malls to Europe, the home of most of that designer fashion in the first place. Starting in 1992, the year Europe was supposed to end its internal trade barriers, the naive young entrepreneur finds nothing but obstacles to this terrific idea, ranging from a larcenous French mayor to a mysterious Italian business 'partner', to cigar-chomping German politicians, and to sympathetic but slow English officials. His path to ultimate success is littered with colourful and instructive stories about how international business really gets done, none of which Mr. Murphy got taught at Harvard nor in business school in Virginia. Does he really need to pay the French mayor 20 million francs for a roadway? Will Queen Elizabeth get stuck in the McDonald's drive-thru? Why does 'Yes' in Italy seem so much like 'No' anywhere else?This charmingly written memoir is entertaining but also illuminating, serving as a multicultural case study that will help budding entrepreneurs learn to recognize when they don't even know what they don't know.
