Emily Morrissey:

Erik Best profile (the article is written for a magazine that is read by the general public)

What brings an American businessman with a masters in Russian to the Czech Republic? The answer is opportunity. Erik Best started out as a young sports writer in Montana but his global mindset brought him to Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service to pursue an undergraduate bachelors degree in East European Studies and Russian language. From there he went on to further his knowledge of Russian, and to accustom himself to the cold weather, in rural Vermont at Middlebury College. After living in Russia for a year he returned to his home state of North Carolina to complete his MBA at Chapel Hill. While he worked for several years in investment banking and management consulting Erik knew he wanted to explore other options. After rounding up some frequent flyer miles and Erik took off across the globe. He explored regions from Mexico, to Spain and Croatia before ultimately deciding to settle down in Prague. The charming Central European city has been known to capture a few hearts before. A year after arriving Erik began producing his successful daily newsletter, the Fleet Sheet, and somewhat optimistically planned to continue for five or so years. Here we are twelve years later and the Fleet Sheet has found more success than Erik ever could have imagined. The company has even expanded and now offers a limited version of their newsletter free of charge, and content available in Czech language. With the stereotypical forward personality of any successful businessman Erik has not failed to make a name for himself in the Czech Republic. He openly and sometimes publicly comments on high profile issues, such as the upcoming Czech elections and is not afraid that his opinions may be unpopular at times. Erik had proven that his outspoken and occasionally, self-admittedly, arrogant personality has not held him back from success. Without revealing specifics about the success of the Fleet Sheet Erik simply stated “I am doing fairly well” with a smile. Erik didn’t discuss any major changes in the near future at the company and is currently enjoying sharing his success with his Czech wife and four children. As a man who never seems to want to stop learning and exploring I am sure it will not be long before we see more great things coming from Erik Best. He certainly is a man to watch in the Czech Republic.