Molly thinks she wants to work as a small business owner selling soap. She loves Europe and other countries, enjoying the people and different places. She knows that you are currently enrolled in International Business and thinks that maybe you can help her put her interest in soap and different countries together.
Having read Chapter 12 already (yea, read it!) and having learned about how careers in the US can be taken elsewhere what steps would you give her to start a business? Where does she look for a job? How does she meet the right people? What does documentation does she need? How does she figure out if she really wants to sell soap? You are close friends with her and want to help her the best way that you can.
So...what do you tell her....
(at least 3 paragraphs please...you like to talk remember...)
11 comments:
Because Molly wants to start a business selling soap, I would tell her to start out taking small steps. I'm going to make the assumption that Molly is planning on making the soap that she wants to sell. Because of this, I have two main suggestions that will help to spark her international business. Molly should check out etsy.com and craftster.org. ETSY is an online store that sells only handmade objects. Crafty entreprenurial people can get an ETSY account and make their own online store. ETSY uses PayPal, so it's safe to buy from, and they have a nice format. So Molly can start out by starting her own online shop selling her soaps. She should then check out craftster.org. CRAFTSTER is a website where people post craft projects and pictures of their completed endeavors. It's a great way to showcase the work you've done and is basically free advertising. Molly could post pictures of her soaps and have a link in her posts to her ETSY shop. Then she could gain a following of people from both CRAFTSTER and ETSY that would buy her soaps. After she has established that her soaps fare well online - which is important so that she doesn't immediately start a business that is doomed to fail - then she can take the next step.
Molly should, after starting an online shop and gaining popularity on the internet for her products, start selling her soaps in a small boutique or shop that someone else has already created. She could ask around at salons and gift shops and see if she could sell her products in their stores. On her product labeling she can include her ETSY shop web address so that more people can buy the product directly from her. Basically, by starting an online shop and selling her products in small boutiques and salons, Molly is establishing a need for her product and networking. These are like pre-tests. She gets to see the effectiveness of her selling strategy and see if people like her product, without all of the risk of starting up a business without any experience.
If these endeavors fare well, then Molly should consider starting her own shop or a joint business with one of the contacts she has made. Possibly she has met someone who makes candles, or jewelry, or a hairdresser that wants to start her own salon. By now, Molly will have already started making money off of her product and has already established customers. If she feels prepared enough and thinks that the risk is worth it, then she should start her own business.
If Molly would like a business selling soap internationally, there are many things that would need to be done to ensure that. Firstly, she would need to gather some research on the country she would like to open her business in. She needs to find out things about the economy and the demographics. If people in this country rarely used soap (ew, yes), having a business selling soap would be a very bad idea.
If she has a business now for selling soap and its going really good and its something she highly enjoys doing, a business in soap would be something for her to consider doing. She will need a passport to another country before she can go, and a work visa from that country stating her purpose for going over there.
To meet the right people she should browse online for international soap businesses and just talk to them about how things work and the demands and if business is slow or if there is a lot of money involved.
When you are looking where to start your career determine your personal goals and abilities. do you want to work with people and do you want to work in an office or go out and sell your soap.Evaluate the job market. In the country you will work in do they take showers often because in India they take the clean smell we like offensivley. Thrid Identify and apply for specific job opportunites. Sell yourself to people so you can sell soap. Fourth Plan for personal career development. See if selling soap has a future. The internet will be the best choice to look for a job. You can meet the people by going to like club or organization meetings. Network with people. Maybe even some friends know people. Just ask around and find out. In order to travel and work outside of the United States you will need a passport, which you can purchase and the post office. Also you will need a visa so you can enter the country and you will need a working visa to work in that country. To see if you want to sell soap for a living just figure out who you are. See what kind of personality you have see if you can really make it.
Molly you should first think about if you really want to sell soap as a career. Do you do well with communicating with people? You will most likely need an eduction, so you will need to think on what you want to major in.
I understand that you like Europe, but does Europe have a demand for soap? Would you be able to move to Europe and take a risk with the culture shock. If you import your goods will may have to be near seaports and rivers. So before you take off to Europe and sell your soap you need to think about all of these things i have discussed with you.
The first thing that I would tell Molly to do is to make sure she really wants to sell her soap in a different country. She needs to sit down and discuss with someone the pros and cons of soap and how she would deal with a foreign environment. The next thing that she needs to do is find out where her soap would sell. If she wants to work in Europe, she needs to make sure there is a market for her soap. She needs to see what restrictions exist for foreign business, what Europeans think of certain types of soap, ect. She needs to calculate how many Euro/Dollars she needs, find out what living costs are in different places in Europe, and see if she can support herself via soap. After she has done this, and if it turns out positively, she needs to go ahead and establish her business, doing what she determined to be appropriate. She would have to apply for a visa in the country she wants to work in, she would have to get a passport, fill out all the appropriate paperwork, rent a location, ect. After she has established her business, she needs to work on making it successful and making it grow.
A good idea for her to get started is to research where and who the soap is going to be sold to. If there is no reason for people to buy the soap then nobody will buy it. Also, there has to be something about it that is different, otherwise it still may not sell. Researching countries is a good idea as to which region of Europe needs soap the most.
When looking for a job then talking to major soap companies would be a good start. Find out what it takes to mass produce soap and sell it. Documents needed would be work visas, permits for buildings, vehicles, and passports.
Figuring out if selling soap is what she wants to really do is something she needs to figure out before too much of her own money is put into this business. She needs to ask herself "Why do I want to sell soap?" and "Is this something I can do without getting board and quitting?"
If and when Molly wants to sell soap she needs to think about starting out with maybe a local business and work her way up. She should start out by seeing how the company (locally) will do selling soap. After that, start thinking about starting a joint venture or asking certain businesses to sell your product at there store to get a better "well-known" name. As she starts branching her soap out to other countries and other states around the United States research where the soap will give you the most business. Find out about the countries economy, is it in need of soap? Sadly, some countries don't use soap and have more important needs to be met them bathing themselves.
As Gabby stated, now adays they make the internet and you can find many websites where you can create your own company inside of it, not a bad idea. Advertising in other countries may also help you gain fame. As we have learned before different advertising techniques are used all around the world, some things here in the United States we don't find offense, another country may find offense so be sure and research the particular country (or countries) in which you are planning to sell soap. As far as going to Europe Molly, I think you would be better off researching before you take off anywhere, start locally and get a "well-known" name. Technogoly has grown tremendiously so check your options. Best of luck Molly!
First i think that she should first figure out if she really wants to sell soap as a career. Then if indeed she does she needs to figure out what school and what degree she need to major in and how many years she need to go for. Then when the time comes, sit down with someone and figure out what country she wants to set a business in. After that see how much the costs are as far as acually setting your business up. Also need to figure out what kind of industries are in other countries and if other people like the soap that you are making and selling.
First i think that she should first figure out if she really wants to sell soap as a carreer. Then if indeed she does she needs to figure out what school and what degree she need to major in and how many years she need to go for. Then when the time comes, sit down with someone and figure out what country she wants to set a business in. After that see how much the costs are as far as acually setting your business up. Also need to figure out what kind of industires are in other countries and if other people like the soap that you are making and selling.
First i think that she should first figure out if she really wants to sell soap as a career. Then if indeed she does she needs to figure out what school and what degree she need to major in and how many years she need to go for. Then when the time comes, sit down with someone and figure out what country she wants to set a business in. After that see how much the costs are as far as actually setting your business up. Also need to figure out what kind of industries are in other countries and if other people like the soap that you are making and selling.
Molly first needs to make a business plan if she wants to own a small business sell soap. A business plan of five steps: 1) Determine Your Personal Goals and Abilities 2) Evaluate the Job Market 3) Identify and Apply for Specific Job Opportunities 4) Accept the Most Desirable Job Offer 5) Plan for Personal Career Development. Molly also needs to expolore her career. See what is avaliable and what consumer wants and needs are. Molly needs to also consider the factors affecting her career choice.
Molly also needs to understand her future in her small business in selling soap: 1) Training Opportunities 2) Career Advancement 3) Changing Careers 4) Understand Yourself 5) Strengthen Your Foundational Skills 6) Enhance Your Language Skills 7) Develop Relevant Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes 8) Gain International Experience 9) Network!
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