5A – Identifying Local Opportunities

Newspaper: Miami Herald

January 8th

‘Have you lost your damned minds?' Twitter freaks out over H&M hoodie

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/1694E931581C2A38?p=WORLDNEWS

The clothing retailer H&M has come under fire for an add that showed a young black boy wearing a hoodie that said “Coolest Monkey in the Jungle”. Many social media users have expressed their outrage with the hoodie, describing it as being racist for putting the black boy in the “Monkey” hoodie, insinuating that H&M is likening black people to monkeys.

The problem (from a business perspective) is one that affects H&M, with the company now being seen as racist. They are losing money, and have even had stores vandalized in South Africa.

January 9^th

Tour boat carrying cruisers sinks in Mexico. It's the second accident in recent weeks. - A boat carrying 10 tourists from Royal Caribbean Cruises ships sank off the coast of Cozumel last week, marking the second accident in less than a month involving American cruise passengers on excursion.

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/16956457763522E0?p=WORLDNEWS

This article was about the second instance in recent weeks that a boat cruisers traveling with Royal Caribbean Cruises has sank. The problem in this article is for Royal Caribbean Cruises, as well as for the people who buy cruise packages from them. Royal Caribbean Cruises will now have to deal with how that looks for their public image, with the last accident having involved people winding up dead.

January 11^th

Those aren't cookies in the cookie package - so they've been recalled

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/16960F598ABBAE40?p=WORLDNEWS

This article is about a packaging error with a brand of Iced Oatmeal Cookies sold at Dollar General stores around the country. The company who makes the cookies for Dollar General accidentally put coconut macaroons in the package, which contain milk and tree allergens that are not in the cookies. This is potentially deadly to people with severe allergies.

The problem in this situation was the packaging error, and it is a problem for the people who bought the cookies, as well as for Dollar General.

January 12^th

Family suing cruise line after accused steward found not guilty of assaulting their daughter, 12

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/16966254B2D828B8?p=WORLDNEWS

This article details the current legal situation of a family who is suing Norwegian Cruise Line after a steward who sexually assaulted their 12-year-old daughter was found not guilty in court.

They are suing Norwegian Cruise Line for approximately 75,000 dollars. In this situation, the problem is for both the family and the cruise line. The family has to deal with this horrible thing that happened to their daughter, and the cruise line has to deal with the awfully negative publicity that they will receive on behalf of one of their crew members.

January 18th

Burnie's hijinks lead to another lawsuit against Miami Heat

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/16985D14515B5430?p=WORLDNEWS

This article explains the reasoning behind a lawsuit that is being filed against the Miami Heat after their mascot Burnie ran into and injured an American Airlines Arena worker. The plaintiff is suing for negligence and negligent supervision. The problem in this article is for the Miami Heat, having to go to court for this accident that occurred on their behalf and possibly having to shell out money for a settlement, as well as a problem for the woman who was injured and now has to go to court.

4A – Forming An Opportunity Belief

4A

I believe there is an opportunity to improve on earbuds, specifically by making a type of earbud that guarantees durability, for something like at least a year.

Like most people I know, especially younger people from the ages of about 13-30, I am almost always listen to music with my earbuds. They have been a very important part of my day-to-day life for about 10 years now, and when they break, it can aggravate me for days, up until I get a replacement pair. There are companies out there who make “durable” earbuds, but none who produce earbuds that are durable enough to last more than a few months for someone who lives even a moderately active lifestyle.

I am about 60% sure this opportunity exists

Here are what the prototypical customers I spoke to said:

Customer 1: I also have this problem! I constantly have to replace them and it’s frustrating! They break because the because they get tangled and the wires are often poorly made in regards to durability. This has been a problem for me for as long as I have been using earbuds! My current way of dealing with it is just to not use my earbuds as often in order to extend their longevity.

Customer 2: I would love it if earbuds were more durable. I’m always breaking them somehow, mostly because I’m sitting or stepping on them. It has been an issue from when I first started using them, and my current solution is to just buy cheap headphones as replacements because I know they’re going to break anyway.

Customer 3: I have also had the same issue, ever since I’ve started using them. I have to buy headphones in bulk and store them in a safe place because I know I’m going to go through them rather quickly. I also try my best to keep them untangled. A headphone company that was able to market the fact that they’re headphones were significant more durable than others would corner the market!

Reflection:

At first, I wasn’t very confident in this opportunity being something that others would resonate with so highly. I was thinking that maybe it was just an issue that I faced because I am “bad” with headphones, but as it turns out, there are plenty of other people who face the same issue.

I believe that my original opportunity is still all the way there, and I am actually more confident in it now after having spoken to others about it.

I believe that entrepreneurs should definitely take into account customer feedback, because there is no use in trying to offer a product that no one is going to want. (There is, however, the possibility to create a demand.)

Entrepreneurship in My Life

I haven't necessarily been exposed to entrepreneurship in the traditional way of someone creating a product to try and sell, but rather as a musician, trying to learn to perfect my product and then learn how to market it to people in the most effective way. I am currently trying all different methods of putting my music out into the world, and UF is actually my sort of experimental ground, as well as my main source of networking aside from the internet. Over the past year and a half that I have been here, I have learned how difficult promoting yourself as an artist of any kind is, but I have also grown and gotten smarter with how I choose to go about things.

I am taking this class to hopefully take the principles I learn here and apply them to my career goals. I also want to learn to have a more business-centered, goal-oriented mindset, so that I can learn to make the most of every opportunity that comes in front of me.

MY BUG LIST

1.     After 9PM, I have a huge amount of trouble finding a parking spot at my apartment complex.

WHY IT EXISTS: There aren’t enough parking spaces here and there are too many people who don’t live here taking up spaces.

2.     UF has traffic lanes that are too small for cars to pass through, and we also don’t have enough lanes.

WHY IT EXISTS: The traffic system at UF wasn’t designed to accommodate its ever-increasing traffic flow.

3.     With the growing population of vegans in America, it is annoying that it is still very hard to find vegan food options.

WHY IT EXISTS: Our society is still very reluctant to accept or accommodate vegan options because it is “too difficult” to switch to or they simply don’t believe in it.

4.     Gainesville does not have enough street lights, often leaving many places for potential attackers to hide.

WHY IT EXISTS: The Gainesville government does not have enough money to put into funding to get more street lights put up.

5.     It is annoying that there isn’t a way to get notified of all events that are happening at UF.

WHY IT EXISTS: Simply because no one has come up with a way to get all the notifications in one place.

6.     There should be more than one bike lane at UF.

WHY IT EXISTS: The school hasn’t decided to put funding toward making more lanes.

7.     I wish that more public restrooms had the auto-flushing seat covers.

WHY IT EXISTS: Companies just have not decided to put them in.

8.     The roads on 62^nd Street in North Miami, FL are horribly paved, and can damage your car if you go too fast.

WHY IT EXISTS: The government often leaves construction jobs in the inner-city half done or in bad condition.

9.     I don’t have healthcare even though Medicare gets taken out of my paycheck every two weeks.

WHY IT EXISTS: The American government does not ensure that healthcare is affordable and accessible.

10.  My steering wheel is nearly frozen on cold days.

WHY IT EXISTS: There is not sort of heating pad for steering wheels.

11.  Too many students jaywalk at UF, and often run in the middle of the street.

WHY IT EXISTS: Students are often in a rush for class because they only have 15 minutes in between them, and sometimes have to go from one side of the campus to the other.

12.  Even though we dispose of trash, it really just goes into massive liter piles called landfills.

WHY IT EXISTS: There is not a better alternative to dispose of garbage, and recycling is underused.

13.  H&M T-shirts always shrink on the first wash.

WHY IT EXISTS: This is because the material is cheap.

14.  Phones are much easier to break now than they used to be. (compare the durability of an iPhone to a Nokia)

WHY IT EXISTS: Cell phone developers have not been able to make a phone that is very durable without having to sacrifice its capabilities and aesthetic appeal.

15.  Vegetarian food options are almost always more expensive than the other options on a food menu.

WHY IT EXISTS: It is an inconvenience for many food places to accommodate vegetarians. There are also higher taxes on vegetarian/vegan food companies.

16.  Whenever you order a large drink at a restaurant (be it fast-food or otherwise), they always give you way too much ice and not enough drink.

WHY IT EXISTS: I feel like companies are trying to rip us off and are instructed to do this.

17.  WIFI at my apartment complex gets bad after 8PM.

WHY IT EXISTS: There is heavy traffic on the complex WIFI at night.

18.  When you buy a video on Study Edge, it closes after a few hours and you have to repurchase it.

WHY IT EXISTS: They are trying to make more money from students.

19.  There should be designated lanes for mopeds in Gainesville. There are a lot of them and they impede the flow of traffic.

WHY IT EXISTS: It would be very difficult and expensive to redo the roads.

20.  There should be more parking spots for scooters and motorcycles throughout Gainesville, as they take up whole spaces and waste a lot of the space.

WHY IT EXISTS: There just generally isn’t much parking for other modes of transportation outside of the University.


I actually found it very difficult to make this list. I felt it was difficult because I usually don't actually ever think about what bugs me and why, and I think that to be able to consciously assess what bugs you and what can be fixed is a skill that you have to cultivate within yourself.