Profile on Erik Best

by Cameron Bosnik

            Although considered by the Czech people as only an American journalist reporting on the politics of the Czech Republic, Erik Best also considers himself to be the owner of a successful small business.  When moving to Prague in 1991, Best did not see his business lasting more than a few years. However, the Fleet Sheet has successfully been published for over twenty years. With over 6,500 subscribers, the Fleet Sheet, is a one page report on the current business and politics in the Czech Republic. Best prides himself on the efficiency of his thriving small business, however, journalism wasn't always his career path. Although he wrote for the Missoulian - a small newspaper in Montana - at the mere age of fifteen, he turned down a journalism scholarship to Vanderbilt to study foreign policy at Georgetown with a goal to work for the United States government. Graduating in 1985, Best went on to receive his masters in Russian language from Middlebury and then his MBA from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in 1987. He thought he would work in foreign policy in the government, however, after realizing his nonconformist tendencies, Best knew wouldn’t last long as a employee of the United States. After working in investment banking for a few years, Best went onto travel and found himself with a job offer in the Czech Republic. Just a year after he settled in Prague, the Fleet Sheet was launched and an ambitious Best crossed his fingers and worked toward success. It's safe to say that Best's best just might have been good enough. Because twenty one years later, Best's Fleet Sheet continues to prosper today. And even though he didn't have a desire to be a journalist, it seems that Erik Best sure has a knack for it.