Recognition Event

How to make your business cutting-edge

Great interactive article! Check it out.
http://bigthink.com/rewire/starting-from-scratch-how-to-reinvent-your-business-and-your-self

MBMP in Action!

 

A member of the kitchen staff at Abbott's Grill, Cynthia shows Milford High School student Emily how to measure out yeast for bread.

 Here, Emily measures out salt for the bread. The kitchen staff was preparing food for a large-scale event that evening!

 Milford High School student Dalton prepares a table at Georgia House Restaurant, where he is mentored.

 Students Dalton and Jose lay silverware as they prepare a table for potential customers at Georgia House.

Dalton and Jose ask Chef Cortez about the expenses of the restaurant and how inventory is ordered.

For the last speaker session, students heard from Jessica Carmona, Technical Assistance Coordinator at the First State Community Loan Fund. 

Jessica reviewed many of the topics we covered throughout the program to date (e.g. making a business plan, dealing with setbacks, seeking out loan opportunities) and shared her own insight into microenterprise finance.

Third speaker session with Delaware native and real estate investor Jeff Bowers, CEO of The Bowers Group. Jeff discussed the importance of a business plan with the students. While often not the most glamorous aspect of being an entrepreneur, the business plan is the backbone of every successful small business!

.

Jose

Last week at Georgia House me and my partner had an O.K day. We asked Jason if he loved his job and he answer saying "yes I do love me Job". I learned that to have a Business and make it work and grow you must Love your Job. If you don't love your job you wont go that far so its better to love your job then not because if you do you know what your doing and everything will go great. But if you don't love your job you are going to fail in your Business.

Durrell

I can't help but notice that each speaker seems to be more interesting than the previous. Mike is no exception. He instantly caught my attention with his vivacious humor and blunt honestly. I do believe that I've learned more from him than any other speaker. From the three main marketing advantages to prioritization, the most important thing that Mike taught me was that my choices not only affect me but my family as well and the reality of being an entrepreneur is that success revolves around determination, hard work, and perseverance. This meant a lot  to me because I'm  one of the many teens who've had to grow up faster than most due to my responsibilities.  I've always had to make tough choices, and my personal hope is that I keep my family close to my heart. But there will come a time that I have to think about the big picture and make a choice that could make or break me. Mike has done this by following his heart. And although he isn't as successful as he could have been, he is happy with his life and his family is happy as well. I think that the choice he made was illogical but necessary and worth the risk. In my eyes he has become more successful than any millionaire. Honestly, at the beginning of this program I was a bit hesitant to speak out. I suppose I have to get used to those around me before confidently speaking. But after getting a bit deeper into the program I was more than willing to share what was on my mind. It's so hard to believe that tomorrow is our last meeting. It's been a true honor to participate with such great people, two hours a week make a real difference. I'll make sure I thank everyone for there time and advice. when I become successful I will make sure that returning the favor and enlighten the next generation of entrepreneurs is on the top of my list.  

Rachel

In last weeks session we had a speaker come in to talk to us about "competitive advantage". He taught us the three ways that our business can have an advantage over others, there's service, quality, and price. He really knew what he was talking about and it was also very interesting to see how he came to be the entrepreneur he is today and hearing his struggles to get to where he is now.

Durrell

Last week I had the honor of meeting not only Jeff Bowers but the city manager, Richard Carmean. Jeff Bowers put many things into perspective. I've always known that a business plan was important but I had no idea of the impact that planning had on not only starting a business but maintaining one. As Jeff talked I noticed how much he stressed his failed attempts to buy his company, and I noticed that he used each failure to his advantage. the fact that he was denied repeatedly and did not fail is inspiration enough not to mention his use of criticism, which very few can use as a professional augmentation. I like that he capitalized on that fact that a smart aspiring business person can use short comings as an advantage. he also gave me the idea of utilizing auctions. this can prove to be very handy. Richard Carmean is a very respectable person, but what interested me was that he is not only good at what he does but he is the best. My goal is to not only be good at what I do but to do it better than anyone else. That is the quality that makes him stand out. and that is the quality that I will soon develop.   

Durrell

Last week I had the chance to meet Ken Anderson, his vivacious personality is quite inspirational. He seemed to demand respect with an assertive yet humorous manner. I couldn't help but notice that Bryan also has this quality. I think this is one of the most important factors that can either make or break entrepreneurs business. The three most important thing that I learned from Mr. Anderson and the other business owners are that I should make sure I am cut out to be an entrepreneur, I should never give up on my goal no matter how much I fail, and that the best thing about being about an entrepreneur is that I don't have to separate my dream and skill from my passion. I can put them together and make my life productive and enjoyable. I can tell that I have much to learn and with this program I can become more than some average business owner, I could become something great. After talking for only a few hours I have learned so much and realized just how little I know.  

Cynthia

The mentoring program has given me alot of information.  Last weeks speaker (Jeff Bowers) was very interesting.  How he started from just an idea, and explained how his business plan was the foundation of his whole company. how he had to beat out at least 3-4 other buyers or customers that wanted the company that he wanted. but what made Mr. Bowers stand out the most was his business plan and how he was going to move that company forward with everything. The way he is with his money how he is so conservative with his money is very good benefit and trait that he has. I need to learn that how to save and not always spend. and once we got to the shop, she explained how the idea got into her head and how she made it into what it is now. that is wasn't suppose to be this big shop but now that customers are wanting more, that now she is expanding and shes only been open a year and getting bigger.

Donique

The speaker we had last Thursday was really helpful with alot of questions I had regarding financial needs. He explained everything we needed to do to save money, get more money, and spend money wisely. Also, what I liked about him was that I could relate him alot. He doesn't like to spend much money if it isn't required. I'm the exact same way, I'm always looking for cheaper prices. Every financial question I threw at him, he answered with an explanation suitable to my understanding. He warned us about the things that could happen if we don't spend and save money wisely. Everything that he said has processed through my brain and written down so that I may remember it when necessary. He made owning a business alot easier for us because of the information he has provided us with.

Jose

Yesterday at Georgia house was great because they showed me around. I got to see up stairs and he said that up to 60-65 people can fit their with tables set up to have a nice party up their or a special acuation. I was surprised because the room looked small, it was its office up stairs also. I learned how to fold napkins which was fun to do. I also learned how to treat the peoples when we ask for their orders. I learned that you have to always serve the ladies first then the gentlemen. The other thing I learned was that the drinking cups for sweet tea and regular tea have their own color cup. I had fun this week and hope this week coming up I learned a lot more.

Rachel

In our class last week we had a really inspiring speaker. He started with not even having the choice of college and turned into a super successful cop/rel estate agent/ business owner. He even had a business plan worth 4.2 million dollars, that's a lot of money. He really showed us how important having a business plan is to get your business up and running and how that's one of the first steps to creating your business. During the mentoring part of the day we went over how she started up her business and what her business plan was it was cool to see how she started up her business.

Jennifer

On our second session I learned about preparing our own business plan. Without a business plan, who knows how your business will go. Also, most banks will probably not give you a loan to be able to start your business up if you don’t have a well prepared business plan. When I arrived at Abbott’s Grill I asked my mentor about his business plan. He told me his whole process and how much time and effort he put into it. All this talk about business plans made me realize how my business plan I made in school was a very short version, if that’s possible. Once I start my business plan for my own business I’ll know how much more effort I need to put into it. Also, that there are guides that can help me prepare it.

Jennifer

As I was on my way to the business that I was assigned to, I did not know what to expect. Once there, the restaurant manager took us on a tour of the place. I learned that there are so many things that make up a restaurant. Also, organization plays a big key on owning your own restaurant. The hostess must jot down any reservations immediately after they are placed. The waitresses are assigned their own section and must take turns. In the back the people must organize their things so they know where it is at and will not have to be running around trying to look for things. So, on my first day I learned that it is important to know where things are at and you have to be responsible.

Donique

I just want to start off by saying that i think this experience is very beneficial for me and my future. I am super excited about the upcoming events that we will be participating in. Mr. Bryan Shupe is very helpful in giving the me the advice that I need. Even though being an entrepreneur sounds like a lot of work, he does a good job at pulling out the benefits of being an entrepreneur. I am glad that I decided to sign up for this, because it gives me a better motivation to pursue my dreams. This is really going to help me out and look forward to what is to come.

De'Ashia

When I went to Fur Baby I learned alot. My mentor is a very nice respectful lady.  I learned that my mentor was the first entrepreneur in her immediate family but her uncle owned his own restaurant. Her job is not like a regular nine to 5 job it is a constant thing she always thinks about it. I learned that you have to have a strong business plan. we basically talked about how it is to own your own business. what are the advantages and disadvantages to own your own business.owning your own business is not an easy thing to do. If you really plan on opening your own business you have to be committed and your heart has to be in it. you have to select the right location, pay rent, and look out for your competitors. Then you have the customers that are going to come in happy, sad, mad, or whatever but you are going to have to deal with them no matter what because you have to keep your customers happy. it was a very interesting. I learned alot in just one hour it went by so fast. I plan on having a wonderful time the next few weeks in this program.

Rachel

So far my experiences with this program have been great. It was a lot of fun the first day, I really enjoy talking to my mentor and she has already answered so many of my questions and its was cool to see how she got to where she is today. She started with just an idea and now she has had her business running for three years and it's going great for her, it's really an inspiration to see someone do all that and makes me think that I could do that one day also, maybe I am cut out to be an entrepreneur one day too. I am going to continue on with this program to help me find out. :)