7A- Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

Opportunity: clothing brand that deals with only "basics" for women ages 18-30. With good quality products for reasonable price.
Background: I find it challenging to find good quality basics in one place without it being overpriced. I end up looking at a bunch of websites and getting my pieces from different places.

The who: women in the United States between 18-30 year old who are looking to buy 'basic' essential clothing pieces
The what: one-stop shop for clothing that focuses on quality 'basics' for reasonable prices
The why: difficult to find a brand that specializes in quality essential 'basics' for medium reasonable price.

Testing the who: another demographic that might also have this problem is men , and women older than 30.
Testing the what: boundaries are style, not everyone in the targeted demographic will like the style of brand. Also, not everyone in demographic will likely be able to afford the pieces or will prefer to spend more on clothing.
Testing the why: not everyone will thinks it's challenging to find good quality 'basics' for a good price.

• Interview #1: Elizabeth is a 19 year old female who buys most of her clothes online through various stores. She describes her style as very neutral-toned and simple. She thinks finding good 'basics' can be hard at times mostly because the stores that she trusts for great quality clothes are the ones that are out of her price range and she only buys from them once in a while to treat herself. Also, she said that she sees 'basic' pieces as an investment because she knows that she will use them a lot. She thought my idea was great and wished there was a brand like that.

• Interview #2: Maria is a 25 year old female who buys her clothes both in-store and online depending on the category. She describes her style as casual and often wears athleisure. When asked about how easy/hard it is to find good 'basic' pieces she said she doesn't have a particular brand that comes to mind, but it also ins't very hard. She says she does't mind spending a bit more on clothes because they make her feel good. She thought my idea sounded interesting.

• Interview #3: Gianna is a 19 year old female who buys her clothes mostly in-store. She describes her style as edgy. She mentioned how finding 'basics' isn't too hard, but the quality often reflects the price she paid. She said she liked my idea, but the only concern she had was the price range of the brand.

• Interview #4: Kelsey is a 21 year old female who buys her clothes mostly online but also occasionally in store. She describes her style as classy. She said she gets most of her basics from Zara, H&M, and Topshop. She doesn't find it hard to find good basics but still likes my idea and can see it doing well. 

• Interview #5: Rafaella is a 23 year old female who buys most of her clothes in store. She describes her style as boho. She said that she doesn't find it troubling to find basics but she also doesn't give much attention to clothes. She likes my idea but would't necessarily see herself as a customer. 

Summary: after the interviews I feel more secure with my proposed opportunity because everyone liked my idea. It also showed me differences in how people shop, their styles, and opinions on basics. It also showed me that not everyone would be a potential customer, or interested in the idea which is expected because it's impossible to satisfy everyone. Overall, I think this is a strong opportunity.

6A- Identifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends

Questions:
(a)where you found it ?
(b)what leads you to believe that this information suggests an opportunity might exist
(c)who do you think is most likely to be the customer with the opportunity (i.e., the prototypical customer)
(d)is the opportunity relatively easy or relatively difficult to exploit, and why do you think so?
(e)Is there something in your experience, work history, emotions, attitudes, and desires that helped you find this opportunity?

Economic Trend #1- rise in unemployment rate
(a) https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf
(b) although unemployment is a horrible thing, it can create opportunities for those looking to buy property. As seen in the past, dramatic rises in unemployment causes consumers to have less spending money and therefore prompting a recession. Current unemployment rates just in the month of April increased to 14.7%.
(c) financially well off people regardless of current situation, as well as investors who are looking to buy houses
(d) This opportunity is relatively easy to exploit because if you have the means to buy a home you will be benefitted by the current and projected future decrease in house prices (specially in certain areas).
(e) I noticed this opportunity due to the amounts of friends and family that I see becoming unemployed or being put on furlough. I made the connection between unemployment and recession due to previous knowledge.

Economic Trend #2- stock market prices 
(a) https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/stock-market
(b) although the stock market is recovering from its steep fall during March-April, it still is a good time to buy stocks given that some companies stock prices have decreased due to the corona virus.
(c) people that invest in stocks
(d) this opportunity is relatively easy depending how knowledgeable you are about the stock market and investing in it.
(e) I noticed this opportunity because of previous knowledge I have of how stock markets work.

Regulatory Trend #1- California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)
(a) http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displayText.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&division=3.&title=1.81.5.&part=4.&chapter=&article=
(b) the CCPA "creates new consumer rights relating to the access to, deletion of, and sharing of personal information that is collected by businesses." (https://oag.ca.gov/privacy/ccpa) This can provide opportunities for the state of California and lawyers who can earn money from this.
(c) state of  California and lawyers
(d) this opportunity is relatively difficult to exploit because the reinforcement of such laws are difficult.
(e) I noticed this opportunity because I was seeking to find an opportunity out of this, which made me more aware of what could be taken out of this situation.

Regulatory Trend #2- 2020-2021 proposal to Open Eight National Wildlife Refuges (NWR) for hunting and Sport Fishing
(a) https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=FWS-HQ-NWRS-2020-0013-0001
(b) if passed, this proposed regulation can provide opportunities in the hunting/fishing gear market, specially in the locations near these NWR locations.
(c) people who hunt and fish
(d) i think this opportunity is relatively easy to exploit because there's room to expand on technologies related to hunting and fishing.
(e) I noticed this opportunity because I used to live by a Bass Pro Shop so this reminded of how lucrative the industry is.

5A- Identifying Local Opportunities

Gainesville man arrested after reportedly stealing landscaping equipment from hardware store

https://www.firstcoastnews.com/article/news/crime/gainesville-man-arrested-after-reportedly-stealing-landscaping-equipment-from-hardware-store/77-bbcf70de-df23-4d92-a9dc-c0f3a21ff48a

• Summary: Man was arrested after stealing landscape equipment from Ace Hardware store in a spam of two days and fleeing from officers later on. He stole various plants, mulch, soil, water infiltrators and more which he later would resell from $100 to $120. He was arrested and is being held in a $75,000 bond.

• Problem: security surveillance at store was lacking effectiveness since they didn't notice the theft the moment it occurred.

• Who: Stores of any kind that lack effective equipment or surveillance can have this problem.

VA reports increase in number of appointments at North Florida/South Georgia VA HCS health facility in Gainesville (573QD) in February

https://flbusinessdaily.com/stories/534559321-va-reports-increase-in-number-of-appointments-at-north-florida-south-georgia-va-hcs-health-facility-in-gainesville-573qd-in-february

• Summary: New patients under the Veteran's Affair Health Care System may wait up to 70 days for an appointment when they first enroll for benefits. 97.3% of appointments made in February had a wait time of 30 days or less and 2.7% were scheduled more than 30 days out. The VA says that the wait time is due to the fact that when veterans apply for benefits they are assigned to one of eight priority groups and appointments are placed accordingly. 

• Problem: wait time for patients are long and system is ineffective. 

• Who: patients under the VA HCS

Gas prices begin to rise again in Florida

https://www.wcjb.com/content/news/Gas-prices-begin-to-rise-again-in-Florida-570762651.html

• Summary: Gas prices are rising again, after the memorial day holiday gasoline costs 11 cents more than a week ago across Florida. Gainesville has the second-highest prices in the state at $1.95 a gallon. 

• Problem: with the increase in gas prices along with the environmental situation of Covid consumer's discretionary spending goes down, and many people drive less.

• Who: stores that specialize in non essential products can be affected by having less customers. 

LifeSouth in need of blood donors

https://www.wcjb.com/content/news/LifeSouth-in-need-of-blood-donors-570788311.html

• Summary: local blood bank has seen a big drop in blood donations during the pandemic. LifeSouth asks for donors of any blood type, anyone who donates will receive a free COVID-19 antibody test to help those ill from the virus.

• Problem: significant decrease in blood donations

• Who: patients who are sick and in need of blood

Betsy DeVos releases new Title IX regulations for college campuses

https://www.alligator.org/news/campus/betsy-devos-releases-new-title-ix-regulations-for-college-campuses/article_abeb5ad4-9e04-11ea-81f6-ab0b0be0b2de.html

• Summary: new Title IX regulations were passed for college campuses and will be effective on August 14, 2020. It redefines sexual harassment as "conduct that is so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it effectively denies a person equal access to education". This new definition is more specific and excludes many previous nature of allegations. If allegations don't fit the new definition the school can dismiss the complaint entirely. The changes to the regulation is causing talk between those who support it and others who don't.

• Problem: new regulation is more narrow and can cause dismissing of cases that don't fit the "severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive" meaning if it's not all three components such as if a case is "severe but not pervasive" it can be dismissed. 

• Who: future sexual harassment victims that are college students 

4A- Forming An Opportunity Belief

The opportunity:
I believe an opportunity exists in the non-invasive cosmetic procedures market. People, more prominently those who identify as female, have an increasing concern with how they look. They have the need to look younger and attractive. Although not a basic human need, society's increasing pressure to have a picture-perfect life and image (which can be credited to social media) increases the demand for physical appearance augmentation and aesthetic cosmetic procedures. Many can argue this is a want and not a need, but the way i interpret it in this scenario is that it depends on how the individual sees it (as a want or need) since it deals with their appearance and many functions of society are impacted by appearance. This has always existed but is an increasing market. To meet this need people resort to injectables (botox, fillers..), skin rejuvenation procedures (chemical peels, laser skin resurfacing...), and many other non-invasive treatments. I believe that there's an opportunity for an app that will be a one-stop search catalog for consumers interested in getting any of those procedures done, with information on clinics that provide these treatments, they will be able to compare places. It will facilitate the process of finding the best place to meet their needs. I am 90% sure this opportunity exists.

 Interview #1: a friend ( 19 yr old, female)

• Have you gotten, or considered getting any non-invasive cosmetic procedures?

• "I feel insecure about my lip shape and have considered getting some lip fillers in the future"

• How long have you wanted this?

•   "I have been thinking about getting fillers for about 2-3 years now. I have been insecure about my lips for longer, but before that time I didn't think about what could be done about it."

• How do you currently conduct research to meet this need, if any? Meaning how do you find places to get your need satisfied? 

• "yeah so I have looked for clinics in my hometown and also known areas in the state like Miami just out of curiosity. I would just start by googling places, and then check their websites out, and then search for like peoples experience's on youtube." 

• How satisfied are you with the solutions to this problem?

• "I think its okay, it is a bit time consuming to find the best place for what you're looking for. Especially having to compare clinics and prices."

Interview #2: a family friend (40 yr old, female)

• Have you gotten, or considered getting any non-invasive cosmetic procedures?

• "yes, I have had laser hair removal in the past"

• How long did you want this?

• "previous to getting it, I thought about it for a couple of years"

• How did you conduct research to meet this need, if any? Meaning how did you find places to get your need satisfied? 

• "when looking for a place to get it done I went by word of mouth from people that I knew first. Then I would search the locations and see the reviews and price. "

• How satisfied are you with the solutions to this problem?

• "for me, the research process wasn't bad because I knew many people who had gotten laser hair removal before so their indications definitely cut me some time and made the process smoother"

Interview #3: a friend (20 yr old, female)

• Have you gotten, or considered getting any non-invasive cosmetic procedures?

• "Yes, I consider getting fillers on my nose because I have always been insecure about how it's not straight. I considered getting a rhinoplasty, but it's not for me because I don't have much pain tolerance."

• How long have you wanted this?

• "I have wanted to do something about my nose for a while, like 5 years"

• How do you currently conduct research to meet this need, if any? Meaning how do you find places to get your need satisfied? 

• "Now that I can afford the procedure I have been looking more in-depth into where I could go. I google places near me and look at the reviews. Then, I will scan their webpages and take notes on the different places."

• How satisfied are you with the solutions to this problem?

• "Searching for a place, especially for something that isn't so light since it's going into your body is quite a process. I find myself going back and forth between places ... I think the main factor I look at is reviews."

Reflection: 

What I learned from the interviews about my opportunity is that research related to non-invasive cosmetic procedures does tend to be time-consuming and there seems to be lacking a place where you can get all the information needed and having a comparing tool option.

Summary:

• How much of your original opportunity is still there?

• My original opportunity stayed pretty much the same 

• Do you believe that your new opportunity is more accurate than when you started?

• It is more accurate in the aspect that I now know what consumers think and therefore I can use that to improve the idea.

• How much do you think entrepreneurs should 'adapt' their opportunities based on customer feedback? (In other words, is there a trade-off between adapting and staying firm?)

• I believe good entrepreneurs should adapt their opportunities to customer feedback because ultimately that's who they are serving.

3A- Your Entrepreneurship Story

Hey! 

My name is Isabella and my major is Business Administration. I have been exposed to entrepreneurship, at the time I wouldn't call it that, in 8th grade when I went door-to-door to sell chocolate bars to raise money for my schools' end-of-year trip. I don't quite remember the numbers, but it worked that for every X amount of chocolate boxes you sold a Y amount of money would be taken off for your trip expenses. I wasn't completely comfortable going door-to-door because I was shy but I still wanted to go on the trip, so I decided to get a friend who lived in the same community as me to go along with me. We both made a deal to sell boxes together so that if I sold my first box the next one would be hers. This worked out well and was more efficient because it's more persuasive having two little girls asking for you to buy chocolate than one, and in the end, we sold 4 boxes all together. It felt nice making transactions and counting the money at the end of the day, and being able to help out a bit with the expenses so that my parents didn't have to pay full price.

I am taking ENT3003 because I want to minor in entrepreneurship. The reason why entrepreneurship sounds interesting to me is that my ultimate career goal is to have my own business and be my own boss. I hope this class will teach me something to help me reach that goal.

2A- Bug List

1. How cars don't come with a built-in trash compartment.

Why: maybe it would be a safety issue or car designers haven't thought about it. 

2. When I step to open the diaper dispenser the smell comes out.

Why: the opening of the device doesn't have sufficient insulation when the top opens.

3. During rush hour (in between class periods) the on-campus Starbuck's lines move very slow. 

Why: not enough staff, or not enough experienced staff, or the fact that baristas have to manually write the order on cups which takes time, or the fact that online orders also increase during that time.

4. How you can't redeem points at on-campus Aramark stores (Chick-Fil-a, Starbucks...)

Why: maybe they don't have the compatible software that allows the gain of points, or it's a financial decision they make to save more money.

5. My phone's battery life is bad, and I have to charge it multiple times a day.

Why: I have an apple phone and they are said to start acting up after a couple of years of use to force the customer to buy another one. Also, it is significantly hard to change an apple battery so it makes more sense to buy another phone.

6. When I can't find my keys in my purse.

Why: this is a common problem amongst any bag-owner because there's usually no practical compartment or divisions in bags.

7. When I go to work and my computer takes forever to turn on.

Why: I am not computer savvy but I think it's because the computer is old and the system runs slower. 

8. When I greet someone that I know and they don't reply with the same energy (act like they don't know you well).

Why: some people are just influenced by who they hang with and maybe that's why they don't greet you, or in some cases, they simply don't remember you at the moment.

9. When people don't clean up after themselves in a restaurant and leave trash at the tables.

Why: they have no manners and don't think of those that work there and will have to clean up.

10. When you make plans with friends and they cancel on you last minute.

Why: sometimes it's for a reasonable cause like something urgent happened; however, most times it's because they didn't really feel like hanging in the first place. 

11. When a professor or TA grades very slowly and you as a student don't know where you stand in the class until the last weeks. 

Why: it can be because they have a lot on their plate in their personal lives, or that they are unorganized and procrastinate. 

12. How most student housings have a small fridge given the number of people that share the fridge, and don't have an equal amount of compartments for the number of residents.

Why: it was cheaper for he/she (owner) to get this specific style of appliance, or he/she (owner) didn't think about this detail.

13. How some classes require (expensive) textbooks that you don't even end up using.

Why: it's policy or some sort of requirement for the professor to report that textbook in the syllabus, maybe the university has a form of contract with textbook companies.

14. When my phone screen automatically adjusts the brightness.

Why: it's setup that way in the settings of the phone.

15. When it's hot outside but super cold inside buildings. 

Why: there's air conditioning inside buildings and that makes a significant change between internal and external temperature.

16. When there's unnecessary packaging for products ordered online.

Why: companies don't think of their environmental impact or don't act on it.

17. When you can only find large bags of produce (lettuce, spinach, mixed leaves..) and half goes to waste because produce tends to go bad quickly.

Why: maybe it's more cost-effective for brands to offer bigger portions, or they target consumers in  bigger households.

18. When the expiration dates for Walmart bakery bread is always like in 2-3 days.

Why: shelf life is naturally short because ingredients expire quicker.

19. How expensive female hygiene products are.

Why: could be because supplies and labor cost more so companies mark the price accordingly, or because they want a bigger profit margin and increase the price.

20. How buses are like >40 mins apart after around 7 pm.

Why: since the volume of passengers decreases after 6 pm, fewer buses run per line.

Refection: coming up with this list was harder than I expected. I did it in two days because I was completely stuck after coming up with the first seven on the first day and decided to continue on the following day. This exercise was challenging because I don't really think about things that bother me, or I just get accustomed to these things.  

Week 1- Setting Up Post

This post is for the purpose of testing...