1 If you were Kevin, how would you initiate a conversation with Jeremy? What would you want to learn? What would you say? For 13 years, Jeremy Black and Kevin Jack worked in adjoining cubicles for the department of transportation in their state. Although Kevin was eight years older than Jeremy, the two men developed a strong friendship. They grumbled about their humdrum jobs (decent pay, great benefits, no excitement or chance for advancement) and argued over the AFL and NRL. They discovered a mutual love for antique furniture - Jeremy for restoration and Kevin for collecting. Together with their wives, Jenny and Susan, they haunted estate sales and antique stores. At some point - neither remembered when - they began discussing the possibility of someday becoming partners and opening their own antique furniture sales and restoration business. Six years ago, talk became reality. They took the plunge, left their jobs with the state, and opened Black- Jack Antiques: Furniture and Restoration. They did not bother to write a business plan or a partnership agreement.