There's the Twenty Percent

I interviewed a person who started his own clothing store. The stores sells name bran items like Southern Proper, Lilly Pulitzer, and Vineyard Vines. His clientele ranges from 13 year olds to 60 year old men and women who typically fall into the upper middle class. The store is located in a trendy and walkable side of town in a very nice area. The shop owners goal is to provide names brands in a sector of town that does not have a lot of clothing options.

The customers I interviewed pretty much lined up with what the shop owner described. They were all from a nice side of town and fit into the age groups suggested. They preferred to shop in the boutiques because it offered something different than the mall.

There's my Half-way Reflection

First off, I highly recommend taking this class! It has been the most beneficial class I have taken so far, and I have learned tangible skills. One skill that has growth throughout this course, is time management skills. There have been a few moments when I forgot that an assignment was due. This class has lots of projects that are due at weird times and a lot are unfortunately due on a Sunday. Because of this, I have needed to improve on writing things down in my planner, and planing ahead so that they projects would be completed  on time.
There was one day when I had to take my best friend to the ER because she sliced her hand opened. She was told to see a hand surgeon because the cut was so deep and she could have sliced a tendon. This of course happened on a Sunday and I had not completed my assignments and was not able to submit them. I felt like giving up and was very frustrated that I was not allowed an extended period of time because of my emergency. But there is extra credit and this situation inspired me to work ahead in the class so that I would be prepared for another emergency or adventure that would come along when I needed to submit assignments.
So some tips to leave with you about a tenacious skills are:
1) write down assignments times
2) set reminders for big due dates
3)work ahead as much as possible
Some more tips about a tenacious attitude are:
1) keep going and do the extra credit
2) don't be afraid to approach people in the video assignments
3) bring a friend along because it make it more fun and they can help you film while you talk

Enjoy the course!

PS Here is a picture of one of my friends happily helping me in the rain!

There's a Reading Reflection Week 8

I was really surprised by the number of banks that operate out of the US. The book says that there were 7,000 banks in 2008 and that there will only be 4,000 by the end of the decade. This is mainly due to the economic downturn, but these still really surprised me.
I was only surprised that the author said that it is a necessity for all new ventures to be debt financed. I really disagree and I am very against debt, especially when it can be avoided. I understand that most new ventures need it, but I would like to have my family as investors so that I would be able to avoid the type of debt.
The concept of "factoring" confused me. I didn't fully understand this concept and I would like to ask the author more about it. I would also like to ask him how this process originated, especially since it only applies to certain industries.

Free Money

In an effort the give away five $1 bills, I am going to walk up to people outside my apartment building. I live on a street where a lot of students walk by, so I know I will have many opportunities to talk to people. I will try to approach people that look really nice. I have also noticed that I’m more likely to approach women then men, probably because I’m less intimidated by women. To get people’s attention, I will probably just say, “ Excuse me. Can I give you a $1?”. I’m sure this will stop people. I am pretty sure I will be able to give away at least four of the five.

This exercise was very uncomfortable for me and to be honest, I really didn’t like it. I don’t like doing things while recording people, because I know if someone tried to record me I wouldn’t be a big fan of it. I also didn’t like that I almost had to lie to the people to complete this project.

Most people responded how I expected which was that they were caught off guard and thought I was weird. But in the end four people took the dollar which is what I thought.

I ended up giving away some dollars in a friends house to her roommates who also were very confused. I would be very confused if some girl I didn’t know tried to give me money.

There's My Elevator Pitch No. 2

The majority of the feedback I received on my first elevator pitch was very positive. The only two negatives I received was the concern about high prices since it is a boutique and that I used too many filler words in my pitch. In this elevator pitch, I addressed that my prices would be low even though it's a boutique. I also tried to use less filler words in my pitch.

There's my Idea Napkin No. 1

I am creative, witty, and particular. I love adventures, even if that just means going to Walmart at 2:00am or singing to Ben Rector in the car with my friends. I love things that are precious and thought provoking. Meaningful conversations are my favorite. Reading a Southern Living magazine with coffee in hand is simply the best. I love things that are beautiful, even if they don't have much of a purpose. I also love brownies and swing dancing. I love twirling in the kitchen, and the feeling you get when you catch someone's gaze on you. It really doesn't take much y'all. All that being said, I want to create a store (and mostly an environment) that encompasses these things, at least indirectly. I want people to feel welcomed and girly while shopping at Sweet Caroline's. I want them to find things they love and things that are beautiful, even if it doesn't have much of a purpose. This store has the potential to house all the things I love. I want to invest a lot of time, creativity, and energy into it.

I want customers to love to shop here. A fun, engaging store in hard to come by, and I think it is because ambiance and customer service don't always equal profit. But I don't care. I want my shoppers to get the feeling they get when reading their favorite magazine when they walk through my door. Just as if they were transported to their favorite place. This is an unmet need to shoppers. Shopping can often be draining and frustrating when you can't find what you want and things don't fit. I want to leave everyone better off after leaving the store than when they came in.

My customers will be people just like me. They will be 14-45ish year old women who are looking for beautiful things and who want an experience while shopping. They will also be a little bit more price conscious than the average boutique shopper.

Customers are going to love this store because it is a completely untapped group and idea combination. A few stores offer a few of the things we will to a similar group, but none of them do it all. We will combine the boutique style of store, with lower prices, a very uncommon concept. We will also sell make-up, clothes, seasonal items, accessories, and home items which is also an uncommon array of products in a boutique. It is rare that makeup is sold in clothing stores, but it is something that our buyers will love, and will therefore purchase more because of convenience.

I feel that my store will be a success because I am the customer. I have found this lack in the market, and I know what I want. People like me are our target market, so who better to cater to you than you right? Most stores for women are run by men, so how can they know exactly what we want? I am also a member of the community I want to put my store in, so I know what this community is needing.

I believe that these elements fit together perfectly. Sweet Caroline's plays to my strengths and the things that I find joy from. I believe that this passion will help the success of the store. I know what people want and I have the drive to make this dream happen.

There's Interviewing Customers No. 2

After going through my first round of interviews, I have decided that I am really liking my idea and opportunity! The people I interviewed the first time liked my concept, and gave me good incite on what potential customers would want.
Last time I randomly only interviewed women, and I think that turned out well. Since my store would be for women, they are my potential customers. I decided to only interview women for this second interview as well.
The first interview, I focused on very general questions about the shopping experience that moment want. This time, I focused more one "would you rather questions" that help me decide between two different routes or ideas.
I think that after conducting ten interviews, I have a better grasp for what customers want. I know that women prefer to shop in stores with a fun atmosphere, this means making my store a women's only store. I also know that price point is a big deal for this segment in the market.
After completing my interviews, I have a few tips:
        1. Write your questions down. If you write your questions down you will be less nervous, and       you will be able to focus on the person you're interviewing more, rather than yourself
        2. Don't walk up to people if they look like they are in a hurry. This doesn't work out well for you or them. They will often reject interviewing and therefore you will feel rejected. Reach out to people who look like they are waiting for someone or walking slowly.
        3. Give the person you are interviewing a mini elevator pitch. I felt like I got better answers when the person knew what my goal was and why I was asking them a random question.

There's my Week 5 Reading Reflection

One thing that really stood out to me in Chapter nine was the infographic on how to obtain a patent. Obtaining a patent is something that I have never really thought about before. But I see how crucial it is to knowing how to do in the entrepreneurial world. I also didn't realize how many steps were involved in it.
This part of the reading was still confusing to me however. I understand more of the steps to getting a patent, but I don't understand where you go? how you make an appointment? do you present your idea/invention to people? do you write a report and hope it gets approved? These are things that the book did not explicitly say, but would probably be things I learn through doing.
I would like to ask the author if he ever had difficulties with patents or copyrights. I would like to know if they are difficult to get approved, how long they last for different things, and how much they cost.
There really wasn't anything I disagreed with in this chapter. The only thing that took me off guard was the "Minimizing Legal Charges" section. The author wrote about how you can negotiate prices with your lawyer and to use a less expensive attorney for small transactions. I had never thought of this and it surprised me being in a textbook.

There's my Elevator Pitch No. 1

My opportunity is to build a small boutique in the town of Winderemere, Florida right outside of Orlando. Windermere is about 35 minutes away from a mall, and lacks a small town boutique. The town is very suburban and full of families so it has the means to support a store. The store will have clothes, accessories, candles, and holiday items, perfect for shopping and gift giving!