Savannah Hayes - Defining & Designing Your Dream Job

     The Women's Center for Entrepreneurship hosted an amazing speaker, Savannah Hayes, on February 9th.  This speaker event was free for Chatham students and open to the public.  The idea of the event was to learn about making your dream job a reality.  To build up to this, Ms. Hayes talked about her life and background.  She primarily talked about how her internships under strong women led her on her motivated track of following her passion.  She then realized she didn't want to work for other people for the rest of her life, she wanted to work on her own schedule.  After realizing that her passion was in the textile industry, and her heart was in designing, she started the Savannah Hayes studio, where she designs textiles for the making of fabric, pillows, blankets, etc.  Check out her Instagram @savannahhayesstudio, or her website to learn more about what she does.
 
    During her talk, she mentioned a lot about playing to your strengths, something that is also outlined in Managing Oneself  (Drucker, 2016).  She talks about her success came from her becoming good at things she could (ie. picking up photography pretty easily), that she had strengths in, and delegating tasks she wasn't so good at (or just didn't want to do, like accounting) to outside people who specialize in that task.  This allows her to focus on and do better at the things she enjoys and is good at.  She has been able to excel by harnessing her best work points to something she loves doing.

     Something I learned from this, that is also mentioned in the book, is that there a lot of benefits to starting your own business as a sole proprietorship.  Ms. Hayes makes her own work schedule, which allows her to have the flexibility of raising her daughter.  While her daughter is young, she is able to minimize her work hours so she can be at home as much as possible.  When her daughter goes to school, she will be able to easily ramp up her work hours schedule to be closer to full time, or even more, if she wanted.  She runs on her own time, and doesn't have to answer to anybody.  She also is free to design and make whatever she desires.  She does not have to bounce her ideas off of someone else before sending them to production.  By naming the company after herself, she was able to acquire the business name for free.  In the end, Savannah Hayes gets her dream job, and her family, too.




Sources

Drucker, P. F., Kanter, R. M., & Kantrow, A. (2016, October 17). Managing Oneself. Retrieved from        https://hbr.org/2005/01/managing-oneself

Company Me - Slow Your Roll: A Sustainable Fashion Store

Personal business plan

Slow Your Roll is committed to promoting slower fashion.  Due to the toxic effects of the fast fashion industry, we aim to promote buying secondhand, fixing clothes you already have, swapping with friends, and upcycling fabrics that are still viable.  We will buy unwanted clothes, hold periodic sewing workshops, make custom clothes from old ones brought in; lessons included, and host clothing swaps for the local community to bring their clothes they are ready to give up in exchange for others.  

Business Environment

This business will be competing in the retail industry.  The retail industry has been showing steady growth trends form 2006-206, and is expected to continue this growth through 2026 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2017).  Minimum wage, raw material cost of textiles, and the unemployment rate all effect the supply and demand opportunities in this industry.  Everyone needs to be clothed, but the money in people’s pockets determine what they spend on clothes.  The design of this company is that it is affordable, even when the economy is not booming.  It will help people to buy clothes for less, or fix what they already have, at the fraction of the cost of buying new clothing. 

Entrepreneurship and strategy

I feel the first hurdles with promoting and selling is having enough startup capital to do initial marketing.  To sell, I would first have to get my name out there, which usually requires an investment of capital. 

Funding would be sought out through places like Honeycomb Credit, and competitions in Alpha Lab and Awesome Pittsburgh.  These resources are often utilized by startups to get their feet off the ground in Pittsburgh. 

Management

Managing myself in this business would be similar to how I manage myself in everyday life – playing to my strengths while understanding my weaknesses.  I must not strive to be the best at everything, as that is impossible, but be the best at what I know I can excel at.  Following the guidelines of Managing Oneself (Drucker et al., 2016), I will be motivated by knowing that I enjoy making a difference in people’s lives and for the planet.  I will also be moved to work harder because I love networking and socializing, so spreading the word about my new business will be seen as fun, not work.  I realize everything will not happen as I have planned it, but I will be prepared to adapt to any obstacles thrown my way. 

Marketing

Promotion would be based around the idea of slower fashion.  Advertising would be targeted at eco-conscious groups and groups that look for fashion trends, but at lower prices.  These would include college students, progressive neighborhoods, people who attend museums and cultural events, local coffee shop regulars, and those who search for other forms of making their lives more sustainable. 

The product would mostly come from what people bring in to sell/fix/recreate.  The price would be determined by how comparable products are sold for on the market, and be sold 50%-70% of that cost.  We would pay people 10%-20% of what we would buy them for.  The place that this would all happen in would be a store in the Strip District of Pittsburgh.  There would also be features that could be bought online, as well as a place to request services online.  Promoting would happen through flyers at local restaurants and coffee shops, and social media postings.  This marketing mix would help Slow Your Roll get off the ground as a start up and start benefitting the people of the local community. 

Accounting and finance

Assets: Cash = $500, Inventory-Clothes (purchased from customers) = $500

Liabilities: Rent + building expenses = $500, Money paid for inventory = $50

Owner’s Equity: Earnings = $200

As we are investing in clothes primarily, they will be modeled on mannequins and placed on the website and in the store front as soon as possible.  This will be a long and continuous investment process as the cycle of clothes in and out of the store should be constant.  I would plan to have monthly checks of inventory, and see what really hasn’t moved and base workshops and sales off of older inventory to make room for the new. 

Information systems and operations

Google Analytics would play a key role in figuring out what kind of people look at our website, and how to better cater to their interests.  This would also help to track our sales, to find trends of when business is good and not so good, and times of day we are most popular.  Social media will also be used, as a way of gauging interest in particular events and when they should be held. 

Sources

Drucker, P. F., Kanter, R. M., & Kantrow, A. (2016, October 17). Managing Oneself. Retrieved      from https://hbr.org/2005/01/managing-oneself

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2017, October 24). Employment by major industry sector.           Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/emp/ep_table_201.htm

A lecture by Rebecca Harris

Rebecca Harris is the current Executive Director for the Center of Women’s Entrepreneurship at Chatham University, and has been for the past 9 years.  Before which, she was the Founder and President of Harris consulting, Director of Marketing at WGTE Public Media, Interim Director of Marketing and Development at the University of Toledo College of Law, Co-Founder and Co-Publisher of Toledo Area Parent News, and the Founder and Executive Vice President of Nettle Not Company.  She completed her Bachelor’s degree in communications at Northwestern University, her MBA at Temple University, and was part of the 27^th class of Leadership Pittsburgh.  To learn more about Rebecca Harris, view her LinkedIn profile here.

 Her extensive background and diverse experiences is why Ms. Harris was brought in as a guest lecturer to talk about entrepreneurship.

One of the concepts from the lecture by Mrs. Harris is her experience with starting a business under different forms of ownership, particularly sole proprietorship and partnership.  She talked about the pros and cons of each, and how she would choose her ownership form in the future.  Shem mentioned wanting to be the sole proprietor, or shareholder with the most stake, but be surrounded by people she trusts with different responsibilities according to their strengths.  The obstacles that come with starting a business were also discussed.  We talked about how she had to get creative when it came to finding funding and sponsorship for starting the parent magazine she was once a co-founder of.  Product design was a topic we covered, when she came up with a way to allow people to swim in the bay without getting stung by jellyfish, but someone else simultaneously come up with a similar design; this competitor took her out of business when his design for storage was more efficient.

A lot of articles I have been reading recently relate to women entrepreneurs, and women emerging in economic development.  Mrs. Harris’s lecture was not only related to women being more prominent in the business world, but also empowering.  It is motivational that she has had so much experience with trial and error in the entrepreneurial world, and now focuses on “intrapreneurship” - being an entrepreneur for ideas within an existing organization.

I really enjoy how this article talks about women emerging in the social innovation sector.  It specifies India, but the themes are applicable worldwide.  SSIR mentions how the workforce demographic of India is changing, and how this transition challenges, “traditional understandings of the meaning and value of ‘women’s work’.”  It is shown in the reading how social enterprise is appealing to women as it offers more variety in types of jobs.  It would make sense to presume that from this survey-based opinion, entrepreneurship is also becoming more prominent I women, because starting your own business means it can be whatever you want to make it. 

My Role Model: Caitlin Fadgen

Caitlin Fadgen joined the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership (PDP) in August 2017 as the Economic Development manager. She is responsible for the implementation of the PDP’s economic development strategies, including research and data analysis, business outreach, and efforts to enhance the public realm through management and place making. She is also responsible for managing the Paris to Pittsburgh building façade and sidewalk activation grant program.  Prior to joining the PDP, Caitlin worked for the Sports and Exhibition Authority of the City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County (SEA) as a Sustainability Analyst. While working at the SEA, she served as a LEED Project Administrator for the LEED for Existing Buildings O+M Platinum certified David L. Lawrence Convention Center re-certification. She also worked for PPG Industries in research and development prior to earning her MBA and Master of Sustainability from Chatham University.  Ms. Fadgen earned a B.A. from Washington & Jefferson College and is also a LEED Green Associate.

When asked about her studying skills that she picked up over her years of school, she had some good advice:

“Every person is different when it comes to choosing their preferred study environment, but I have always found that I study best when I am by myself in a comfortable and quiet place with access to lots of caffeine. I need total silence in order to concentrate or read anything effectively. I have found that I always retain information best when I write/type it out, especially when prepping for essay-based exams. For presentations, I typically write everything out that I want to say in a word document and then read it several times over (sometimes out loud) so by the time I need to present, I have it all memorized and I don’t need any notes!”

           

Ms. Fadgen had several tips on building a good resume.  She stressed  that a large part of it has to do with what profession you are pursuing.  Finding a job that will help build your resume with skills for your desired profession will get you far:

“My resume always changes based on the job for which I am applying. It is important to tailor your resume based on the position that you want to pursue so that you can highlight certain skills that are in the job description.

I think that it is important to note that once you have a job, even if it’s not where you see yourself in 10 years, it is possible to seek out opportunities within your current role that will help you gain experience for when you are looking for your next job title. Opportunities for building your resume might not always be apparent or present themselves in your job, so it is on you to look for those opportunities  either at work or through a professional networking group – there are so many of these groups in Pittsburgh across a wide variety of industries!”

           

Caitlin had some interesting insights on getting the most out of campus events.  She emphasized her go to way of getting the most out of your networking efforts:

“The number one thing is to have business cards with you on hand to pass out to the connections that you make. If you give away your business card, the person who you are talking with is likely to give you theirs in return. Once you have their card, it is always a good idea to follow up with an email after the event to say that it was nice meeting them and if you want, ask them to grab coffee.

 A thing to note about having your own business cards when you are a student – even though you don’t have a job yet, get some cards printed with your name, major, and your graduation date/year, you can include a Chatham logo or just make something simple with a pop of color. Having your own business cards goes a long way.

Don’t be afraid to drink at networking events."

 When talking about internships, she reiterated something I hear a lot, “Start looking early.”  This is sound advice, along with:

“Landing an internship as a college student is a daunting task and sometimes it can be hard to find one that fits your interests (and that is paid, too!). I have found the most success in this area by using Chatham’s network of professionals to land an internship and through contacts that I’ve made in previous jobs. I believe that the best way to find an internship is through other people. There are also a variety of local newsletters that will have job postings and internship opportunities in them - my favorites are Next Pittsburgh and the Green Building Alliance’s newsletter.”

Being my former co-president of Chatham’s chapter of a business and sustainability organization on campus, Caitlin may have been a little bit biased when asked how to get involved on campus in a meaningful way and to build skills… her answer was “Net Impact!” of course.  She also added:

“I have developed strong skills by asking for feedback and incorporating it into my work. I also always make sure someone else reads over things that I do before I submit it even if that someone is my mother, it’s always best to have more than one pair of eyes to inspect your work.”

I compared this interview with the Chatham Insight article, “Not Your Average Orientation: Sustaining Students’ Momentum”.  This article is relevant to Ms. Fadgen as she was in the dual degree program advertised here.  In talking with Ms. Fadgen more, she expressed the importance of applying sustainability to business practices.  The article also talks about acclimating students to their environment and learning about the resources available to them.  It’s orientation sessions like these that helped Ms. Fadgen get to where she is today.