Year 10 Small Business Management: Market Day 2017
Term 2 in Small Business Management (SBM), the girls have been focusing on preparing for Market Day, which involves creating a partnership, then devising, marketing and producing their own product which is then sold to the students of Iona in a small market environment.
On Thursday 15 June, the College Sports Centre was turned into a buzzing market place where all the products were creatively on display for potential customers to buy. For this task, students formed groups of two to four to essentially create their very own Small Business. Their task was to create an idea for a unique and new product with the aim of making the most profit possible - all of which goes directly to the Missions. This process involved students developing a full business plan which included a professional partnership agreement, a detailed product description, a target market analysis, a financial, marketing and pricing plan as well as their own goals, vision and mission for the partnership.
After all this planning, students were able to then create their final product. All of the groups this year, produced items that were creative, innovative and unique. Some products included pot plants, lip balm, macramé hanging pots, dream catchers, cosmetic products, terrariums, scrunchies, scented candles, jewellery and much more. The Sports Centre was absolutely BUZZING and packed with students and staff wanting to purchase the items on offer. Most, if not all groups, sold out of their product well before the second half of lunch started. Some groups even sold out within five minutes of being open!!
This year we are proud to announce that the 2017 Market Day made a combined profit of $3,500. This year the students in consultation with Sister Mary have decided to send portions of the profit to a number of local organisations: Vincent's Collection for the Homeless (12 year old Sacred Heart student), Orange Sky Laundry and also the Presentation Missions. The Small Business Classes are very proud that they could make a contribution and a difference to the lives of those less fortunate. We know that Sister Mary and the Presentation Sisters are going to be ecstatic with this outcome.
It was really exciting to see students realise that they had created their own business and produced their own products for Iona's 2017 Market Day. This is something that not many 15-year-old girls can say they have done!
A number of students have elected BEAT (Business Enterprise and Technology) since Year 8 and have really enjoyed the practical nature of the tasks on offer. In particular, most students love studying Business because they get to do realistic business projects that help them to learn skills such as budgeting, financial literacy, event planning, business development, marketing, innovation and even develop their entrepreneurship skills. In this subject, students are able to express themselves through assignment work. This subject area also allows students to put their own ideas and interests into task work, enabling them to be creative and inventive.
SBM and BEAT allow girls to develop skills and gain experiences that will greatly assist their future after high school. This subject provides students with knowledge and practical skills that they can use later in life, such as time management, effective planning, organisation skills, budgeting and team work.
A massive thank you to Mr Justin Farley and the entire HASS Department for their support and help on Market Day, to the Maintenance team for helping with the set up of the Sports Centre, and also to Mrs Pitos for allowing this subject to run and for giving us this fantastic opportunity.
Well done to all the Year 10 SBM students for their outstanding efforts!
Miss Gemma Beekink
BEAT/SBM Teacher