Task 2 - Create a Business Plan

Students will take a copy of the business plan provided to them, and will start to fill it in with their own ideas and items specific to their chosen business. A copy of the business plan can be found here.

Task 3 - Design a Corporate Logo

Students will design a simple corporate logo for their businesses using MS Paint or Photoshop if available. This will be used for future assignments, such as a PowerPoint presentation, webpages, brochures and business cards. For this exercise, students should design more than one logo, so that they may choose their favorite for use in their projects.

Task 4 - Create Presentation to convince Investors to Invest

Students will prepare a PowerPoint Presentation including the following slides (4 - 5 classes)

1. Title slide, including your store's name and logo
2. The Mission Statement of your business (Ex: The Lowest Price is the Law - Whose Mission Statement is that?? And no, you can't use that one!)
3. Details about what your business will sell & do
4. Where your store will be located, how much this will cost (you need to make a phone call to find this out) and why this location will bring in business
5. Details about your competition in Strathmore, and how you are sure that you can do better than them
6. Marketing and advertising plans you have to bring customers into your business
7. What type of workers you are going to need to hire for your business and how much you intend to pay them
8. Description of how your store is going to look inside and outside. Include a visual image if you can... make one in PAINT.
9. Give some suggestions where you might look to find your products to sell
10. Summary of why people should give you their money. BE CONVINCING.... use more than one slide for this if you need to.

Students will present this PowerPoint to the class (investors) and the investors will make notes as to the value of each business. At the end of all presentations, investors will have the opportunity to “invest” in three businesses. Wise investments will gain them extra funds in the future for the operation of their own business.

Task 5 - Presentation to Investors

Present PowerPoint (3-4 classes likely). For the presentations, the students watching will become investors. Each student has $1,000,000.00 to invest in the business or businesses of their choosing. Each investment may not be less that $300,000.00. Students can then invest in up to three different businesses, or may give the whole sum to one business.

The investors will take notes in WORD after each presentation concludes so that when the time comes to make their investment decisions, they can refer to their notes to make the decision.

Task 6- Finances

Every student has $1,000,000.00 to invest in businesses in their own class. Minimum investment is $300,000.00. They MAY NOT INVEST in their own business.

They must give three reasons they are choosing to invest in this company. Students will fill out an investment ticket explaining which business they are investing in and for what reasons.

They will also write a cheque to the person they are investing in. They will give this cheque to the person, and it is CRUCIAL that this person not lose this cheque.

Teacher will track in Excel who invested in whom, and for how much money.

Each student has a $500,000 grant to start their business. This ensures that all students have some finances to get started. In addition to this money, they also have access to any monies that were invested in their business in assignment 7.

Students who are lacking in investment capital must make an appointment to see the “banker” (aka: the teacher) to take out a “loan” to get started.

Task 7 - Suppliers

Locate suppliers using the Internet. Excel spreadsheets will be used to record the supplier and the cost of the item. A sample of the spreadsheet can be found here. Please be sure to view both pages of the spreadsheet so that you include all the categories! The spreadsheet will be used to do the calculations.

Task 8 - Business Operations and Finances

Business Operations Spreadsheets – Keeps a record of how much money has been invested, and from whom.

Task 9 - Architectural Design and Layout of the Store

3-D Home Architect – Create a 3-D impression of what they imagine their business to look like.

Task 10 - Website Creation

Website Creation will be done using the "Page Builder" feature at Geocities. We will use Geocities as it offers free webspace. Students' webpages will need to include their store name, logo, mission statement and several categories of merchandise they are selling. Each category will link to a page containing images and prices of the items they are "selling". The main page should also contain a disclaimer stating that "This is not a real store. This is a school project. You may not purchase these items from me."