Patrons of Sweet Pete’s in Lake Forest are generally excited to be there. It is a candy store, after all. But a sugar rush pales in comparison to the buzz generated whenever Marcus Lemonis visits. “Adults, children; everyone wants to take a picture with him,” General Manager Gina Gault states. “He’s always willing to accommodate whomever approaches him. He’s very patient and pleasant to be around.”

Lemonis, billionaire entrepreneur and Lake Forest resident, is the host of The Profit, one of CNBC’s signature non punditry series, and it is in these impromptu encounters that he sees the true value of his business reality show, which wrapped its third season last February. He recalls a visit to Sweet Pete’s to pick up some candy (he likes Gummies) and being questioned by four pre-teen boys about being a business owner. “That’s the change we need to see with young kids,” he reflects in a phone interview. “Rather than set their sights on being a professional athlete or a pop star, they need to see how business can help them make their own way, especially those who feel down and out.”

This is not an empty motivational bromide with Lemonis; it is the very foundation of his own inspiring story. He was one of those outcast kids for whom business was his salvation.

Lemonis is the first to observe that a casual consideration of his life thus far would indicate that he won the Lotto’s grand prize: “I was brought in from a foreign country (war-torn Lebanon in 1973, the roof over my head and an education,” he says. But he has been candid about what he calls, with measured understatement, “a really, really tough childhood.” Lemonis suffered from “a significant eating disorder” and endured sexual abuse by a member of his extended family. There were thoughts of suicide.

Work, he says, offered solace for a child who was not good at sports and felt socially awkward. “Work for me was an escape from a reality I didn’t like,” Lemonis say. “It was a place I could excel. It’s the great equalizer. If you want to get ahead in life, there is nobody who will stop you from working hard.”

Lemonis, an only child, credits his parents for his work ethic. The Miami-based family owned the largest Chevrolet dealership in Florida. After graduating from Marquette University in 1995, he returned to Miami. He pursued a path in politics, but that road was a dead end. At 22, the neophyte candidate lost his bid for a seat in the Florida House of Representatives, but out of his failed campaign came powerful connections that introduced him to billionaire entrepreneur Wayne Huizenga and his company, Auto-Nation. This led him to the Chicago area and Lincolnshire, where he put down roots and began to build the base of his own eventual $3 billion empire as the chairman and CEO of RV and outdoor retailer Camping World.

“I was looking to get closer to the lake,” he says, and in 2004, drawn by its “nice small town” feel, he moved to Lake Forest where he initially lived on the west side of Ridge Road. Six years ago, he moved closer to Lake Forest’s downtown. He is literally invested in the community, with three downtown businesses: Sweet Pete’s, MLG restaurant, which opened last June in the space formerly occupied by The Grille on Laurel, and highend women’s boutique, Denim & Soul. Lemonis plans to open a fourth business, Bentley’s Pet Stuff, a family-owned purveyor of healthy pet food, in October.

In neighboring Highland Park, Lemonis invested in The Simple Greek, a fast casual restaurant that opened in 2015. The Profit chronicles how Lemonis transforms struggling or underperforming businesses. A 2012 appearance on the ABC reality series, The Secret Millionaire, brought him to the attention of networks wishing to develop their own business series. When he pitched the concept of The Profit, he was, and continues to be, insistent, that the series put the “reality” back in reality television.

For starters, it is his money—a reported $35 million to date he has invested into these enterprises. “I have debates with people all the time about what’s real and what’s not,” he said. “I have to show them my checkbook to show them the losses that I incur sometimes. You can’t script that stuff. It’s been painful in some cases.”

In 2015, for example, he closed Sophie’s Bakery in Highland Park. On the show, he must act not only as a boss, but also as a marriage or family counselor and psychologist to get at the root of people issues holding some businesses back. “Flawed personal thinking leads to bad decision-making in other areas,” he says. “I want people to be real and expose who they are at all costs.”

That includes himself, and such challenges, losses, and setbacks are lessons that Lemonis thinks are important to impart for the integrity of the show. “Even if it exposes me for making a mistake,” he reiterates. “I’m fine with being vulnerable and not having all the answers. But it still hurts when a business fails. A lot of people would like to convince me that it’s character building and you grow, but nobody goes into a business deal saying, ‘I hope I lose so I can grow.’”

As if Lemonis didn’t already feel like “a rubber man being pulled in all different directions,” he has taken on a new venture, The Partner, a spin-off of The Profit, which will premiere later this year. (The Profit’s fourth season launched August 23). This show was created to help him delegate responsibility to help run the myriad companies in which he is invested. The winning participant will not only receive a $163,000 contract, but also a 1 percent equity stake in that company.

“This is a show that will give people a new look on how employers hire,” Lemonis says. “It’s about finding clever solutions for people to get jobs. I used to think getting a job was about putting a resume together. Obviously, it’s a whole different ball of wax.”

In an election year in which immigration has emerged as a divisive issue, Lemonis views his own journey as an object lesson in the enduring resonance of the American Dream. “I can’t speak for how other people feel about immigration,” he muses. “For me, I wouldn’t be who I am if I wasn’t let into this country. I was given a gift, an opportunity, to come here. I also realized I had to earn my way. That’s an important distinction. It doesn’t matter what political party you’re affiliated with. If you’re given an opportunity, you are responsible to make the best of it and to provide for yourself and the people around you. That’s the one thing about this country; if you work hard, you get a chance. That’s a good citizen program.”