These little piggies went to market

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Cape_F0X
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These little piggies went to market

#1

Post by Cape_F0X »

When I was still a young fox I attended Eversdal Primary school.

I enjoyed it very much.

In my final year (Grade 7, 2006) the economics project was that all final year learners participate in the market day. Group work was allowed and encouraged to reduce the number of stalls fighting for market share. So me and my best friend teamed up and started thinking. This was a serious project! You had to fully describe your product, do market research, calculate inset costs, see what is needed to break even and what is your possible maximum net profit.

I said to my friend right off the bat that we are going to think outside the box. I was not going to be satisfied with selling food, sweets, drinks and knickknacks (worthless objects, not the chips). The other reason for this is because that's what everyone else would do so there is a lot of competition.
Having eliminated a lot of options, it was time to start the think tank that was my friend and I and both families. We learned in economics that you should list your assets and make your product as desirable as possible. My grandparents had recently moved in with us and with them came all of grandpa's tools. One of these being a compressor with sand blasting fittings. This machine set everything in motion.

We would use the learners patriotism to or advantage. A lot of shops have drinking glasses with sports teams logos adorning them, either printed or blasted and since we have a sand blaster and the print is prone to fade, the choice was obvious. We now needed a demo model to see how our product looks. My mom knew drinking glasses are cheap, especially the thick normal glasses. So we went to the Console glass shop located close by and first bought a box of 6 normal glasses and spotted some inexpensive beer mugs and snagged two of them as well.

My mom then tracked down someone who could manufacture the stencils needed to make our image (the school logo). We met a great guy who told us all about his craft. He did blasting and etching his wife was a glass blower. We were told to get the largest image of the logo we could get our hands on to make an accurate cut out pattern for the machine. Knowing that the computer teacher has all the schools media, is extremely artistic and a good friend, we got the logo from him and sent it on in no time. Test stencils were made that could be used to make a positive or negative image (we chose positive) and demo glasses in quick succession.
negative and positive.jpg

Before blasting.jpg

Glass.jpg
Mug.jpg


We did our research to see if our clients were as loyal to the school as we thought. My mother, whose cunning I have and still admire, advised us to take pre-orders to see the number of glasses needed. Armed with a glass, mug and order list, we went from class to class to advertise. One of the teachers said we had to go to the headmaster because he is a fan of all things related to the school. He was extremely impressed and ordered 6 glasses and 2 mugs (if I remember correctly). He paid upfront and gave a generous tip.

If you were wondering about pricing, the glass sold for R 7.50 and a mug was R 14.00. We knew this was a winner. So we bought a bit more than the pre-orders and the guy who did the stencils gave them for free.

At the market day learners who pre-ordered could simply pay and collect (we wrapped the glasses in newspaper). Those who didn't pre-order or spent accidentally spent their money were placed on a new list.

And that is the story of how a young fox got his first taste of the business world.
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Adagio
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Re: These little piggies went to market

#2

Post by Adagio »

oooh! I'm surprised you didn't make that logo you like so much?

But that looks pretty badass dude!!
Leeward
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Re: These little piggies went to market

#3

Post by Leeward »

Impressive! What made you think back on this now?
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Re: These little piggies went to market

#4

Post by Cape_F0X »

@ Leeward;

The test glass has been sitting on my shelf for a long while and the glass, mug and stencil glass were in the kitchen cupboard. And I know you guys like animal crafts.

This was truly a highlight in my school career.

@ Adagio;

Didn't discover the logo back then and the compressor is broken atm.
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Adagio
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Re: These little piggies went to market

#5

Post by Adagio »

I'm curious...

How many did you sell?
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Re: These little piggies went to market

#6

Post by Cape_F0X »

Did not keep the financial records. But if I remember roughly the profit my friend and I made and the profit per glass it works out to about a hundred.
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Re: These little piggies went to market

#7

Post by Galahad »

Most ingenious, sir! For a seventh-grader, such a product is very sophisticated. The only immediately-perceivable con I see is that the initial cost for the materials may be a bit steep. Nevertheless, you did make a profit, and your marketing strategies seem to be most handy. You truly thought out-of-the-box, and magic is when creativity meets talent. XP Thank you for sharing!
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Re: These little piggies went to market

#8

Post by Cape_F0X »

Thanks Azure.

I understand your concern about the startup cost. But in economics we learned that if you go to the bank with a good business pitch a they will loan you money. My parents stood in for the bank, which was great because I got a interest free loan.

It was only later that I learned the school lied to us about banks.
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