ClassE April 22 - April 26, 2013

Greetings!

Thank you to the investors and volunteers who will be listening to business pitches from 7:30 - 9 am on Monday, April 22nd (at EIU Renewable Energy Center) and on Tuesday, April 23rd (at the Lifespan Center).

Monday, April 22th - Business Plan Pitch

EIU Renewable Energy Center, 2110 18th St Charleston

Tuesday, April 23rd - Business Plan Pitch

Lifespan Center at 11021 E. Co. Rd. 800N Charleston

Wednesday, April 24th - Trade Show Coordination

EIU Renewable Energy Center

Thursday, April 25th - Doudna Sound Tour

with Mark Rubel, owner of Pogo Studiio

Doudna Fine Arts Center. EIU

Friday, April 26th - Final Business Plan Due/Trade Show Prep

at the EIU Renewable Energy Center, 2110 18th St Charleston

ClassE Trade Show/Millennial Entrepreneurs Presentation

Tuesday, May 7th, 5-7 pm Lifespan Center

with Jack Schultz and Craig Lindvahl

Franchising and EIU Entrepreneur Minor

with Dr. Marko Grunhagen

Monday, we met at the EIU Renewable Energy Center, where Dr. Marko Grunhagen came in and taught the class about franchising. One of the questions asked was whether or not the franchisee is an entrepreneur, his answer was yes and no. Marko said that the franchisor owns the name, the product, or what ever type of specialized equipment it is and the franchisee has to pay the franchisor an entry fee, royalties, and other fees, such as supplies purchased from the franchisor. The class learned how it is more common for a franchisee to own multiple franchises.

Trade Show Preparation

with Bob Jones, Marketing by Jones

Tuesday, we met with Eric at the Lifespan Center to diagram the layout for the trade show. Once we were finished, we met with Bob Jones, who gave the students some advice on how to present their themselves at the May 7th Tradeshow. He said to treat all potential clients the same way as you would treat your friends and family, never sit down or eat at your booth and there is nothing wrong with asking "How do you feel about my product?". After speaking with the class, Bob did some roleplaying with a few of the students, acting like a potential customer at the show.

Refresh Leadership Simulcast

with the Effingham CEO class

We took a road trip to listen to a simulcast with Guy Kawasaki and Terry Bradshaw who discussed sales, leadership and management techniques during the Express Refresh Leadership Conference at the Effingham Performance Theater.

Then we did some debriefing and teambuilding with the Effingham County CEO class at the One-Eighty Teen Center. Thanks for hosting us!

Charleston Walmart Tour

with Randy Rock and Rooney Blumtsal

Wednesday, we met at Charleston's Walmart and were given a tour by Assistant Manager, Blumtsal Rooney, and later met up with General Manager, Randy Rock. While on the tour, Rooney explained to the students that August is the busiest month because that is when the college students return. He said that when they leave in the spring they loose 15 to 20% of their business. We learned that the online website has helped Walmart grow exponentially and that the online sales can even go to the store where the item is picked up.

Randy Rock told us how they are involved in the community and they donated a couple thousand dollars to buy a refrigerated truck to help ship donated meat to food kitchens in our community.

Business Promotion Presentations

Friday, the class brought in and presented their promotional pieces such as business cards, flyers, brochures and social media advertisements. After the students presented their marketing pieces they started working on their annual report for the class, which has a short description of the following; what their business is, their future plans, interests, and what they had learned through this class.