By Deborah L. Cohen

CHICAGO (Reuters.com) -- Peter Ishkhans knows it's the simple things that can make or break a small retail business: a fresh coat of paint, a clean, uncluttered store with distinctive curb appeal and most important, a consistent and engaging theme for the entire operation, including its owners and the people who work there.

Ishkhans, a celebrity hair stylist and host of the Style Network's business turn-around series "Peter Perfect," doesn't use sophisticated MBA tactics to transform the mom-and-pop shops his show identifies for makeovers. Instead, he brings an eye for design and the common-sense business acumen that come from years of owning his own salon in Los Angeles' tony Beverly Hills neighborhood.

"It's really about creating a brand for someone, an image," says Ishkhans, who grew up in London and developed an interest in furniture and interior design at a young age. "They never really think about creating an experience for people rather than just a place for people to come."

"Peter Perfect" has to date transformed 17 businesses, ranging from an art education studio to a second-hand bridal shop. The show's team, which consists of more than 50 researchers, producers, writers, skilled tradesmen and others, scouts out candidates with the right formula to capture the attention of the Style Network's female-centric viewers. They must be at a make-or-break point in the business, have owners with everyman appeal and a viable product or service that with the right amount of attention, can be turned into a hot commodity.

The results are often overwhelming. Take custom bakery For Heavens Cakes in Thousand Oaks, California. It got some 95,000 hits on its website in the first hour its episode aired. Among other changes, owner Lisa Donahue now has a dedicated retail space in the front of her store, thriving Internet sales with customers as far-flung as South Africa and Singapore and corporate clients that include celebrity golfer Tiger Woods. She has had to hire extra staff to keep up with increased demand.

"Nothing but positive things have come from this," says Donahue, who continues to get a buzz when her episode runs in repeat. "It was a phenomenal experience."

RECESSIONARY APPEAL

Now more than ever, against the backdrop of a recession, the right image for any business is critical to its success, says Stephanie Drachkovitch, co-founder and executive producer of 44 Blue Productions, which developed Peter Perfect for the Style Network. Drachkovitch spotted Ishkhans' potential to carry his own show after working with him on episodes of the salon-focused reality program "Split Ends."

"People need help; we call it a kind of economic reality programming," says Drachkovitch, noting that California, where the show was entirely focused the first season, is one of the five worst states for small businesses. "(Ishkhans) has a sort of holistic outlook on living. We noticed it in his salon, how he designed the interior, the space, how it brought people together. We decided to develop a show around him."

"Peter Perfect" has indeed struck a nerve; nothing else on the cable market really addresses survival tactics for the small businesses that provide the bulk of jobs in the U.S. economy. Style Network says the show has reached a cumulative audience of more than 14.3 million viewers since its debut in April 2008. Premiere episodes have seen year-over-year increases, growing more than 10 percent from the first to the second season among the network's core audience of women aged 18 to 49.

Drachkovitch, a veteran of prime-time reality programs including "The Bachelor" and "Who Wants To Be a Millionaire," says much of the appeal of "Peter Perfect" revolves around Ishkhans' sincerity. Beyond the designer suits and cheeky British persona, he has developed a reputation as a caring figure that stays in touch with the show's subjects after production, following through with phone calls and emails. Nary a business has failed.

"The person you see on the show is Peter," says Drachkovitch.

TEARS AND HUGS

During an episode's weeklong production schedule, Ishkhans leads the business owners through some dramatic transformations, including personal style makeovers at his salon. There are moments of tough love, tears, hugs and fearful apprehension, as the entrepreneurs turn their future over to Ishkhans' and his team of designers.

They don't see the results of the pricey final makeover of their retail space -- all underwritten by the show -- until the last day of shooting when the changes are revealed, often to a large crowd that includes family and friends.

Comedic catharsis is an essential element for Ishkhans, who grew up in London as the son of a psychiatrist. At a hair salon in an up-and-coming L.A. neighborhood, he makes the two young owners and their assistant haul out bags of products that clutter the shelves. He convinces Donahue, the bakery owner, about why her fussy pink dˆ©cor must take a powder; soon she is seen dragging her favorite chairs into the parking lot.

"I get to know their business, who their customer is, and then... come away with an image and a brand they're going to be able to go away and run with," says Ishkhans. "We come in and break the place down, which is really an amazing process because they're packing away their best effort and it's not worked."

Ishkhans gets at least 20 emails a day from companies looking to be on the show. Those that make the final cut say they wouldn't trade the experience - complete with its moments of difficult self-reflection - for anything.

"Once we got the store redone, I loved it," says candy maker Pauline Marasek, the owner of Pauline's Handmade Brittle in Burbank, California. "Peter's concept was to make it a year-round treat."