"If Josh Holmes has his way, shoppers will eventually find his “Got Books?” line of T-shirts and apparel at bookstores and libraries across the U.S., or even the world. Not a bad goal for a 16-year-old. Holmes is one of several young adults who spent the past week at a business boot camp for young entrepreneurs. The Napa Valley College Small Business Development Center ran the five-day course, held at Napa Valley College." These people are making their own trail in life, in our present economy you have to know how to make your OWN money...more after the teleport:Developed for the 14- to 27-year-old crowd, organizers targeted the week-long Napa Youth Enterprise Academy seminar towards young adults who want hands-on training of how to start, organize and run a small business.
Provided through a grant from the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office and sponsored by Napa Community Bank and NVC, the course featured instruction on how to write a business plan, mission/vision statements, start-up strategies, understanding budgets and finances, using the Internet, analyzing competition, marketing a business and more.
Josh Holmes came to camp from Apple Valley, Ca., near Los Angeles. The 11th grader heard of the seminar from his father, who works in the junior college system. Holmes said he would like to develop a clothing line that promotes literacy.
Josh Holmes came to camp from Apple Valley, Ca., near Los Angeles. The 11th grader heard of the seminar from his father, who works in the junior college system. Holmes said he would like to develop a clothing line that promotes literacy.
“This is a great program,” said Holmes. “I thought it’d be like going back to high school but it’s actually fun.”
Instructors helped him refine his first attempts at writing business goals and objectives, said Holmes. “I was too vague at first,” he said.
“Mr. Monahan showed me that I had to be more specific,” as well as the importance of a business plan to sell his line of T-shirts and hopefully other clothing items such as hats, backpacks or shoes.
“Without a business plan, I’d most likely fail,” he said.
Charlie Monahan of the Small Business Development Center is one of the seminar coordinators. By the end of the week each student should have a rough draft of a business plan, said Monahan. Even if their concept changes in the future, “If you can learn to write a business plan about one thing, you can write a business plan about anything,” he said.
Near Holmes, Kelsey Monahan, 18, and Theo Shaheen-McConnell, 19, worked on an idea to open a café, restaurant or grill.
“I’m trying to decide on my major and I think I want to be a small business owner,” possibly in the restaurant industry, said Kelsey, who is Charlie Monahan’s daughter and attends San Francisco State University.
“I want to have a better idea of what it takes to be a small business owner,” said Shaheen-McConnell.
“To know what it really takes,” added Monahan.
They’ve already learned a thing or two.
“It’s a lot more expensive than I thought it’d be,” said Shaheen-McConnell, mentioning leases, finances and insurance.
Compared to her fellow students, Doris Garcia, 53, might not be considered young but she certainly is an entrepreneur. Because the boot camp was not filled to capacity, Garcia was able to sign up. It’s been worth it, even as she had to get time off from work to attend, she said.
“I’ve been interested in opening my own business but I didn’t have any idea how,” Garcia said. “I had to start from the beginning.”
Garcia, a licensed vocational nurse who lives in Vallejo, said she wants to open her own nursing home for disabled children.
“I want to learn everything I need to know,” she said. “It’s a beginning for me, and I know I’m on the right track with these classes.”
Joel Mosebach, 19, is a student at Santa Rosa Junior College. Mosebach said he was interested in starting a residential cleaning service.
“I’ve always had the idea to start my own business but had no idea where to start,” he said. “This class is helpful. It helps focus ideas.”
The hardest part?
“Being concise with writing a mission statement,” he said. “You don’t want it to be too wordy or vague.”
Monahan said working with this age group has its own rewards and challenges. At first, “you’re not sure if you are reaching them.”
At the start of the week, students didn’t understand concepts such as cost of goods, expenses, taxes, depreciation and projections, he said.
“Today, they can talk about why those are important,” he said.
“They’re getting exactly what I had hoped out of it.”
For more information about Business Boot Camp for Young Entrepreneurs and the Napa Youth Enterprise Academy, contact the Napa Valley College SBDC at 253-3210.
Instructors helped him refine his first attempts at writing business goals and objectives, said Holmes. “I was too vague at first,” he said.
“Mr. Monahan showed me that I had to be more specific,” as well as the importance of a business plan to sell his line of T-shirts and hopefully other clothing items such as hats, backpacks or shoes.
“Without a business plan, I’d most likely fail,” he said.
Charlie Monahan of the Small Business Development Center is one of the seminar coordinators. By the end of the week each student should have a rough draft of a business plan, said Monahan. Even if their concept changes in the future, “If you can learn to write a business plan about one thing, you can write a business plan about anything,” he said.
Near Holmes, Kelsey Monahan, 18, and Theo Shaheen-McConnell, 19, worked on an idea to open a café, restaurant or grill.
“I’m trying to decide on my major and I think I want to be a small business owner,” possibly in the restaurant industry, said Kelsey, who is Charlie Monahan’s daughter and attends San Francisco State University.
“I want to have a better idea of what it takes to be a small business owner,” said Shaheen-McConnell.
“To know what it really takes,” added Monahan.
They’ve already learned a thing or two.
“It’s a lot more expensive than I thought it’d be,” said Shaheen-McConnell, mentioning leases, finances and insurance.
Compared to her fellow students, Doris Garcia, 53, might not be considered young but she certainly is an entrepreneur. Because the boot camp was not filled to capacity, Garcia was able to sign up. It’s been worth it, even as she had to get time off from work to attend, she said.
“I’ve been interested in opening my own business but I didn’t have any idea how,” Garcia said. “I had to start from the beginning.”
Garcia, a licensed vocational nurse who lives in Vallejo, said she wants to open her own nursing home for disabled children.
“I want to learn everything I need to know,” she said. “It’s a beginning for me, and I know I’m on the right track with these classes.”
Joel Mosebach, 19, is a student at Santa Rosa Junior College. Mosebach said he was interested in starting a residential cleaning service.
“I’ve always had the idea to start my own business but had no idea where to start,” he said. “This class is helpful. It helps focus ideas.”
The hardest part?
“Being concise with writing a mission statement,” he said. “You don’t want it to be too wordy or vague.”
Monahan said working with this age group has its own rewards and challenges. At first, “you’re not sure if you are reaching them.”
At the start of the week, students didn’t understand concepts such as cost of goods, expenses, taxes, depreciation and projections, he said.
“Today, they can talk about why those are important,” he said.
“They’re getting exactly what I had hoped out of it.”
For more information about Business Boot Camp for Young Entrepreneurs and the Napa Youth Enterprise Academy, contact the Napa Valley College SBDC at 253-3210.
No comments:
Post a Comment