“Bootleg†and poorly run: Usually a business facing these problems is underfunded and not well managed. To solve this problem, find the capital your business needs in order to run properly or change your business model or scale back and operate only the part of the business that you can operate well at all times based on the capital you have or the cash flow you can generate from sales. Never give arbitrary discounts to anyone–including family or friends. It is the responsibility of business owners to break this culture of expecting a hook up. You are running a business, your prices are set to recoup costs and provide profit. Arbitrary discounts, which are discounts you haven’t analyzed and prepared the business to make up for, will zap your bottom line. If your business is not well managed your systems and/or staff need to be reviewed and replaced or upgraded. If you don’t know how to make these changes get help immediately to figure it out. The U.S. Small Business Administration and SCORE offer free or low-cost help to entrepreneurs. Take advantage of it; taxpayer dollars are covering the costs so use these services so much that they know you on a first name basis.