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30A – Final Reflection

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I feel like I was very nervous about my idea when I first started it, but as time passed and I worked on it more, I began to get more and more excited for seeing the possibility of my idea being a possibility, and how my improvements and expansions to my idea kept growing. It was fun seeing how simple it was, and how it kept growing and growing into something I am proud of. Only moments of dread was waiting until late at night to do the assignments. Like now for example, it is almost four in the morning, and I was going to go to sleep, but then remembered I had to do this, and want to sleep in so figured I should just do it now. I think the most formative was writing my initial venture concept, because that is where I really began to think and expand on my idea. The most joyous would be the positive feedback, which motivated me to continue and expand my idea. I do see myself as an entrepreneur with a entrepreneurial mindset, because this class showed me to think outside the box, an...
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29A – Venture Concept No. 2

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Business Name: Sucking doesn't have to Suck Inc. 1) Venture Concept: Opportunity In Gainesville, plastic straws have been banned, and restaurants have switched over to paper straws. These straws do not work as intended and create customer dissatisfaction. There are many alternatives that could be used, but are expensive when bought in smaller quantities. There are places around Florida such as St. Pete, with these regulations, but I would first start in Gainesville, which is a smaller market, before expanding into other territories. I would start geographically and demographically around Gainesville, locating smaller locally owned restaurants and coffee shops first, in order to build up a client base. I feel places such as Opus Coffee and Pascals, which are close to campus and the Downtown area would be the first to start using my products. These places that are selling small coffees for big prices to college kids are the ones who could even add say a ten-cent surcharge whic...
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28A – Your Exit Strategy

1. I would intend to sell my business in 5 years to a bigger distributer. I would keep it running until I grew big enough where I had a big majority in the sale of restaurant equipment, and expanded past straws to include things like environmentally friendly cups and utensils. A big distributor could buy my company and keep the local name and vision, so people would continue to do business, but be more profitable that I would be due to their larger network. 2. I have selected this because I feel if I grew my business enough I could get a corporate distributer to pay a good price for it, and I would be able to make a lot of money, and invest that into other start up ideas that I have. 3. It influenced my other decisions, because it showed me that I would have to build a strong company reputation, so that I will have loyal customers that would be profitable if another distributer bought me out. It also made me think about keeping my assets low, because another distributer may alread...
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27A – Reading Reflection No. 3

I read: The Art of Social Media: Power Tips for Power Users, Guy Kawasaki. 1. The general theme of this book is just a bunch of small points to better your presence on social media. It speaks about the importance of building a foundation, and gives different ways such as having a good profile picture showing that you are dynamic and friendly. Your cover photo should tell a story about yourself. He also speaks of things such as a bio being important to get your mantra out and have key search words. Besides building a foundation he also goes over amass digital assets, optimize your profile, get more followers, and integrate it into different things. 2. This book connected with what I learned in ENT 3003, because it showed how social media can be helpful if you use it correctly, but it is easy for it to blend in with others and become ineffective. This class and the book really emphasized being unique and showing your personality. 3. I would tell everyone to bring up their linked i...
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26A – Celebrating Failure

1. This semester I had to drop one of my classes. I did poorly on the first exam and had to do good on the second exam to make up for it, but then I did bad on the second exam, so I was pretty upset about it. 2. I learned to not let myself be to be stressed about it, and that it would be more productive to think about how I could improve myself and have a clear head space when I retake it next semester. I have all As in my other classes, so I realized that I can’t let the disappointment of retaking this class distract me from my studies and have it affect my other classes. 3. I think failure is important to have once in a while, because it is important to be able to put things in perspective and not get too comfortable in life. If you do not fail in life, it means that you are not taking any risks, and will never reach your full potential. I feel like this class has showed me the importance of having risk in life, and how sometimes taking on risk can have a huge payoff.
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25A – What’s Next?

   Existing Market 1. For what’s next in my business, I would continue all the business in Gainesville until I talked with all restaurants and coffee shops. I could expand by targeting stores like Walmart and other retailers to see if they would carry my product. Once all business that use straws have been approached in Gainesville, I could target other cities in Florida with similar regulations and look into expanding. 2. After interviewing three customers, they have told me that I could look into other products such as cups and lids to sell to these coffee shops. They told me as I build relationships with my customers, I can ask them how much they pay from cups and napkins and anything else they might use, and slowly begin to start offering these products to my clients. If they are happy with my customer service, they would be more likely to switch to me. 3. To grow I feel like the key would be to push customer service. I would ensure my customers are happy and getting...
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24A – Venture Concept No. 1

Business Name: Sucking doesn't have to Suck Inc. Opportunity In Gainesville, plastic straws have been banned, and restaurants have switched over to paper straws. These straws do not work as intended and create customer dissatisfaction. There are many alternatives that could be used, but are expensive when bought in smaller quantities. There are places around Florida such as St. Pete, with these regulations, but I would first start in Gainesville, which is a smaller market, before expanding into other territories. I would start geographically and demographically around Gainesville, locating smaller locally owned restaurants and coffee shops first, in order to build up a client base. I feel places such as Opus Coffee and Pascals, which are close to campus and the Downtown area would be the first to start using my products. These places that are selling small coffees for big prices to college kids are the ones who could even add say a ten-cent surcharge which would even add to th...
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