Final Reflection

1) I think some of my best moments from this class had to be the interviews. I was able to improve my people and speaking skills greatly. Whether it was interviewing my friends or people I did not know, I did it better than I would have without the experience I gained from this class.

2) The experience I will remember for years to come is coming up with this product idea realistically. I have had this idea for a while but never thought about it to this extent. Who knows maybe i'll pursue this even further in the future.

3) I definitely think that I have way more of an entrepreneurial mindset than I did in the beginning of the semester. I am able to see my product from an entrepreneurial point of view as opposed to just a random idea I came up with in the shower.

4) My advice to students taking this course in the future I have a few snippets of advice. First of all, I would make sure you get your work done when it first gets released as opposed to last second. A lot of interviews and what not take a lot of time. Next, make sure you are getting something out of this class as opposed to just breezing by and getting the work over with. There is a lot to gain from this enjoyable class.

Your Exit Strategy

1. Identify the exit strategy you plan to make. Do you intend to sell your business in the next 5 years for a large return? Do you intend to stay with the business for several decades and retire? Do you intend to protect the venture as a family business, and pass it down to your children?

I intend to sell my business to a company like GE. However, I do not want to sell full ownership, I would still like to stay on. 

2. Why have you selected this particular exit strategy?

I chose this particular exit strategy because a company like GE already makes microwaves and has a foot in the water in that market and can just attach the revers microwave feature to their products. I would still like royalties on each one.

3. How do you think your exit strategy has influenced the other decisions you've made in your concept? For instance, has it influenced how you have identified an opportunity? Has it influenced your growth intentions or how you plan to acquire and use resources?

This has been my game plan from the planning stages of the product until now. Therefore, every decision I have made has been influenced by the exit strategy. It has made me figure out the correct size I need to grow to in order to sell it to a company like GE. It has really influenced every step of the process. 

Celebrating Failure

I don't know if this is considered failure but it was to me. I applied to about 6 different internships at the beginning of the semester and had not heard back from any of them. Then the rejections started rolling in. I got rejected from every single one. Then when all hope was lost. I got a call from my best friend that his brother works for a magazine that I would love to intern at. So I applied with a connection and it worked.

What I learned from this is never give up, always stay positive and everything happens for a reason.

You can not succeed without failure. I think this taught me a lot and it forced me to learn many valuable lessons. If I just gave up I would have never gotten an internship this summer and would be so upset thinking of what could have been. But, instead i'm working a dream job.

27A- Reading Reflection No. 3

1. In Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance, what surprised me the most was how he was willing to go completely broke because of his passion for both SpaceX and Tesla. He had a wild vision that not many other people would dare to pursue. I most admired Elon Musk's work ethic and vision. Since a young age he wanted to get people to Mars and lower our dependence of oil, and he dedicated his life to making these things happen. What
I least admire about him is his habit of working over 20 hours in a day and not dedicating time to his family. Musk definitely encountered adversity on many of his projects, especially Tesla. Numerous CEO's of major car dealerships could not see electric cars eventually replacing gas-powered cars. However, Musk's invention and success of the Model S silenced many people against him.

2. Musk was extremely competent when it comes to work ethic and management skills. He is able to motivate his workers to go up to 20 hours in one day. It is amazing how Tesla's job turnover rate is not high considering the amount of hours many of its employees work.

3. One part of the reading that was confusing to me was how Musk was so willing to go broke since he did not know what the extent of his success would be at the time. He had money to start both Tesla and SpaceX, but ran out of capital quickly in the beginning. He was very lucky to get funding from the government for SpaceX.

4. What motivated you to go on despite hearing so much negative feedback?
Would you have been able to fund Tesla and SpaceX had it not been for PayPal?

5. Elon Musk definitely believed in hard work. That is how he was able to make both Tesla and SpaceX such innovative companies in our society today. I definitely believe that it will take hard work to make anyone's dream become a reality. However, Musk's bold vision needed more work than most and he was able to pull it off.

24A- Venture Concept No.1

Opportunity: My idea to create the reverse microwave will appeal to middle class families and college students around the nation. Most people have no way of cooling down food and drinks in an efficient way. As our society continues to improve on its technology, we are finding ways to make our tasks simpler with the use of modern innovation. I feel that the ability to cool items down just as a microwave heats things up will be a breakthrough in the American household and households worldwide. My market can be located anywhere, but I will be targeting people with a demographic between 21-50 years old. This includes college students as well as individuals who have families. Customers are currently solving this issue by placing food or drinks in the refrigerator and waiting for 30 minutes or longer for these items to fully cool. All of these customers own a refrigerator and is a necessity in any household. This is a huge opportunity that can be located in houses worldwide just as microwaves are in the household now. This window of opportunity will be open for as long as individuals need items cooled down and have appliances in their household.

Innovation: My innovation is to create a product that looks exactly like a regular microwave in the average household. However, instead of heating up food this appliance will cool down the food or drink of your choice. This product could help you un-melt ice cream, make ice quickly, or cool down something that is extremely hot. The opportunities are endless! This item will work just like a normal microwave and will cost about $120. This is what people would normally pay for any average microwave.

Venture Concept: Customers would love to buy this product because I am solving an unmet need in a way that no other company has ever seen. When any item is placed into the Reverse Microwave, there will be different settings for if you want something either cooled or frozen. Also, you will be able to set the timer like a normal microwave to determine how cool you want your item. Customers would buy this product because there is no other product on the market that will cool items like the Reverse Microwave. It will be easy for customers to switch since there isn’t even an item like this in the first place. Competitors could potentially be companies like GE and Samsung, who currently only produce regular microwaves. They have a major disadvantage, however, since I will be specializing in the Reverse Microwave and am dedicated to reaching this new market. Distribution and packaging will be extremely important when it comes to the exposure of my product. I will need to get this product to appliance stores around the nation such as Best Buy or Sears and the packaging will be important for customers to notice the product. I would organize my business by starting with a team involved in Research and Development. This would ensure that I have the proper technology and that my product works effectively. There would be about 15 employees to work on this project and I will create more departments for my business once the product is built.

Minor Elements: My most important resource will definitely be my creative thinking. By creating this new market and coming up with innovative ways to advertise, this project has the potential to be a huge success. Anyone can be creative, but coming up with new ideas that are effective is extremely difficult. I feel that this project will increase my personal skills as well as change the average kitchen across the globe.

              The next opportunity that I would like to tackle with the Reverse Microwave is introducing it to countries across the world. If my product is a huge success in the United States, I could definitely see it changing the world. I will have to work extremely hard for this to happen, but this could be accomplished in the future.

              In 5 years, I would like my product to be in appliance stores across the nation. I want to make deals with stores such as Best Buy to reach my target market. As in entrepreneur in 10 years, I want to improve on my creative thinking and management skills. I will learn how to successfully run a business and come up with more ideas to help change our society. This first venture will be great hand-on experience with a product I truly believe. This could be the start to a successful career in entrepreneurship.

What's Next?

What I think is next:

I think that the next big step for the reverse microwave is creating and selling food kits and meal packages designed for reverse microwave use. There are a few setbacks for creating this new product line, including safety-related issues as well as marketing problems. I see these cooking and meal kits as a positive step for the reverse microwave’s business.

Existing Market Interviews:

1)   Alex Levy, 516-776-7970

2)   Jamie Samuel, 631-871-0022

3)   Jacob Smith, 407-252-4774

Reflection:

Overall, I think that the interviews went well, and I see a lot of potential for growth in the short-term and long-term future. Although I received mixed reviews/opinions regarding our new product, I think it is important to get criticism from every aspect of the general consumer. My first interviewee thought that it would be a smart idea, for both products are used together, and go hand-in-hand. Besides from the selling aspect, he liked the hands-on feature of the kits and thinks people will appreciate that.

My second interview was not as enjoyable. I interviewed a woman with children and she did not think this would be safe within the kitchen. I had not even thought of this before interviewing, but quickly assured her that it would be child-safe.

Lastly, I had good feedback from the food kits in my third interview. This interviewee liked my idea because it adds value to the original product, which he was on the fence about.

New Market:

I think that a new market for my new product could be within the military/space sciences. These food kits are at room temperature, and turn out to be cold/frozen and delicious. For the military/space, it would be ideal to have non-perishable foods that don’t have to also be eaten at room temperature. I think it would be beneficial to these agencies, for it is new and it will really work.

New Market Interviews:

1)   Philip Barofsky, 561-306-7894

2)   Michael Duell, 305-726-8593

Within these new markets interviews complete, I feel a little cautious in terms of entering this new potential market. From two of the interviews, it seemed that government contracts and these private agencies have long-lasting deals set up for things like this, as well as being rather conservative on things like this.

My last interview sparked a thought in my head. He had mentioned potentially going down a step and potentially marketing towards hiking/outdoors consumers. This was a great idea.

I think moving forward with new markets, it is important to properly do research and fully understand both your product and the consumer. Feedback helps your product grow and adapt as well.  

Your Venture’s Unfair Advantage

1.     Social media: I am very familiar with current trends and the ways to intrigue other users

·      Valuable- this is an essential tool in the modern technologically driven times

·      Rare- most people use social media, but only a handful know how to stand out

·      Inimitable- not the most inimitable, but very handy

·      Non-substitutable- marketing makes it a bit less non-substitutable, but still very important piece

2.     Social capital: I am in UF Greek life and involved in large on campus organizations

·      Valuable- knowing people and having a close proximity of friends helps spread idea

·      Rare- not everyone has access to such a common and powerful network

·      Inimitable- This resource can be replicated with other student organizations

·      Non-substitutable: Knowing people in sororities and fraternities and having those relationships cannot be substituted

3.     Marketing capabilities: Many of my friends work at a local start-up company hub known as The Selling Factory, and they specialize in marketing and sales for emerging products

·      Valuable- An affordable and friendly team of interns to help me grow my customer base quickly and efficiently

·      Rare- no other school in the country has this resource at such close proximity to college

·      Inimitable- can be replicated, but it takes time to build a Selling Factory with the right people

·      Non-substitutable- in this college town, the Selling Factory cannot be substituted

4.     Large network of friends in many large markets: I have a vast network of business minded friends across the country in New York, Houston, and Los Angeles that would rally support

·      Valuable- Many big markets to immediately penetrate and draw widespread interest

·      Rare- This is not unheard of, but knowing people in different places helps

·      Inimitable- I am not the only person who has friends in many places, and anyone can get on the phone and see if a New Yorker likes the product by looking at it online

·      Non-substitutable- knowing the opinions of different people with varying personalities can greatly help me decide if my ideas and resources are likable in a public setting

5.     Public speaking experience: I have spoken in front of my fraternity of over 160 people on numerous occasions

·      Valuable- being able to speak and represent what I believe in is crucial

·      Rare- some people get stage fright and cannot speak in front of a crowd

·      Inimitable- many people are good speakers, but I greatly enjoy drawing in a crowd and convincing them that my product and ideas are superior

·      Non-substitutable- this is a polished skill of mine that makes up for other areas that I am not as strong in

6.     Creative thinker

·      Valuable- trusting my ideas and my way of thinking is my most valuable asset

·      Rare- some people hire people to think for them, not everyone can be decisive and creative

·      Inimitable- There are many smart business people and there are certainly other creative thinkers

·      Non-substitutable- being able to save money by thinking and creating on your own would significantly help from a financial position

7.     Publicity- this is a groundbreaking idea that will be very popular amongst the impatient generation of millennials

·      Valuable- media is very valuable and is a quick way to spread the reverse microwave

·      Rare- new products don’t get a ton of publicity unless they completely shatter the traditional way of thinking, which I think the reverse microwave does

·      Inimitable- many people can attract media attention, but not everyone can sustain that type of coverage like I can

·      Non-substitutable- publicity and social media are increasingly merging into the same thing, especially with Twitter and Facebook

8.     Uniqueness of the idea: A reverse microwave has never been produced, and would revolutionize the way people consume food

·      Valuable- An idea to take scorching hot food and instantly reduce it to perfect eating temperature

·      Rare- this has never been done before

·      Inimitable- typically putting scorching hot food into the fridge to cool takes at least 5-10 minutes, and now it can be instant

·      Non-substitutable- if you have patience, this can be substituted by waiting for the fridge to cool your food

9.     Fundraising experience: As a supporter of Dance Marathon, I know how to convince people to donate to a worthy cause

·      Valuable- getting funding and donations to build and market my product will be important to making money

·      Rare- not so rare, because it involves asking other people for money

·      Inimitable- it can be replicated, but my style of going about fundraising will bring in a lot of financial assistance

·      Non-substitutable- this can be substituted by hiring a team of people to make donation and investing calls

10.  Social Capital- contacts within the market

·      Valuable- will be very helpful to have connections already in the market to combine ideas and assist with distribution

·      Rare- not completely rare, but a “foot in the door” helps

·      Inimitable- This will give me much more knowledge before I completely get in to this new market

·      Non-substitutable- this cannot be substituted because it gives you a step up on lesser known business owners.

After doing the VRIN analysis, I would say that the resource of being a creative thinker will help me the most. I believe in myself and my idea of the Reverse Microwave, and with all of my thoughts and methods to advertise and spread awareness of my product, I am confident that this natural born tool will take me very far!