Idea Napkin No. 2

1) You. Who you are. What your talents are. What your skills and experiences are. Also: what are your aspirations? Specifically regarding your business concept, how do you see this business (if you were to start it) playing a role in your life?

I am currently a Human Resources Specialist with a long background in the Marine Corps in vehicle maintenance.  I am also a great cook who loves to cook “Low Country Boils.”  The later ties into my business concept of cooking food at festivals around the state.  The local festivals are a great place to serve seafood as there is an almost captive audience. I have considered the aspects of cost, and judging by the average attendance at festivals, and the frequency at which festivals occur in close proximity, that the market is strong.

2) What are you offering to customers? Describe the product or service (in other words, how you'll solve customers' unmet needs). 

The needs of my target customers arise from attending festivals.  Festivals limit customer’s choices of where they can eat.  This also tends to make the choices expensive.  My business model is to limit my menu to one item, “Low Country Boil” (this is shrimp, corn, sausage, and potatoes all boiled together) and charge a lower price for quality food.  All of my thoughts on this are core of the business, really, really good food.

3) Who are you offering it to? Describe, in as much detail as possible, the demographic and psychographic characteristics of your customers. Think especially of this question: what do your customers all have in common?

My customers are people attending local festivals.  These people are in the mood to come out and spend money on local and small businesses.  They are also a captive audience, meaning there are limited places for someone to eat.  Some people even go to festivals just for the food. Reading the feedback, this is a sound plan.

4) Why do they care? Your solution is only valuable insofar as customers believe its valuable to them. Here, explain why customers will actually pay you money to use your product or service. 

People will care because they want great food at a reasonable price. People are tired of their choices serving food at a premium price.  This is a sound concept that if managed well, will make a profit.

5) What are your core competencies? What sets you apart from everyone else? Also: what do you have that nobody else has? 

I have experience in the restaurant business, and I am a good cook.  I also know how to make the product very well in large quantities.  I also have the management abilities I learned with my extensive time in the Marine Corps. All of these elements combined make for a situation that will be successful.

 

I think that these elements do mesh well with a few exceptions.  My current position in HR is very demanding.  This takes a lot of my time and does not allow me to focus on putting a business together.  This is especially true while I am a student. Other than my lack of time, all of the other elements are a good match. I would have to dedicate a lot of time to this business which would have to be worked out.

 

In addition to these five elements, please spend a paragraph evaluating whether you believe these elements fit together or whether there are aspects of your business concept that are weaker / out-of-joint with the others. 

I believe all of the elements of my start-up ideas are very compatible.  Festivals put people in a mood to spend, they become a captivated audience and are willing to pay for food.  As described, some people really come to try the food.

For the "feedback memo" -- please summarize five main points that you took away from the feedback you received. Also, please describe how you incorporated the feedback into this idea napkin. 

The biggest criticism I received was whether the customer base would cover costs of the business.  That  could possibly be true, which caused me to change my business model.  The change is a focus on the frequency and availability of festivals to attend.  This would be a key point as the more attendance at festivals the more profit that can be made.