(FORTUNE Magazine) – POP QUIZ: George Bush is to the Texas Rangers what John Kerry is to ________.

Well, duh: A cookie shop, of course. In an effort to align himself with business types, Kerry has lately taken to mentioning his own adventures in capitalism. In 1976, back when he was first discovering life as a lawyer to be "very boring," Kerry founded a small Boston cookie shop, Kilvert & Forbes, with a friend, K. Dun Gifford. They named the store after their mothers. While in charge, Kerry managed about 35 part-time employees. He was elected lieutenant governor in 1980 and sold out in 1988 for "a small profit" to a former law client.

Today Kerry often uses the experience to make points about changes in the tax and pension laws that would benefit small businesses. He has also said that his business experience "stood me in great good stead with the [Senate] Small Business Committee" and "I loved doing the brownies."

The shop is still in business today, in Boston's Faneuil Hall. In fact, sales are up 18% since the Iowa primary, and the new owners, Carol Troxell and Sara Youngelson, have applied for the title of Official Cookie of the Democratic National Convention. (Should they get the nod, they plan to commandeer the pretzel shop next door to help.) Little else has changed since 1976: Kerry's mom's chocolate-chip recipe still accounts for more than half of all sales. Staunch Kerry supporters, the new owners are quick to defend the candidate's resume: "You have to manage and do the banking, and it's a lot of work," Troxell says. "After being in the cookie business you can definitely call yourself a small-business expert."

Hey, it's not hobnobbing with CEOs at Rangers' games. But it's a start. --Grainger David