29A - Venture Concept No. 2

1.) Venture Concept

Opportunity.

As a University student myself, it is easier to identify and to tune into certain needs that exist on campus and in a student’s day-to-day life. There has been a need that I have noticed is shared by many University students, and this need became apparent to me over the course of my 3 years as a student here. Listening to the complaints of others and relating to these complaints myself has helped me to realize that there is a need for more space on campus- specifically in the libraries. Since the market is comprised mostly of university students, the demographics are in line with the population of UF students. This includes both males and females from a wide range of races and backgrounds; primarily ages between 18-22.

There is a large window of opportunity currently open, and it will remain open until the need is satisfied. Currently, however, there is nothing being done to satisfy this issue, and it is being resolved by students as students search for other places to study. Students also try to come during less popular hours, however these solutions are often times inconvenient and sometimes not even helpful.

Innovation.

            The current innovation I have is a business that is designed to help tackle problems like this. The company I have in mind would be paid to plan and carry out projects that can help optimize space and enhance campuses. The main project that would set out to satisfy the current need would be to create a new library at the University. In order to do this, it would require an allocation of the current budget as well as payment for our third party company to plan and carry out the entire project. With the creation of a new project, many things would be accomplished. To begin with, it would eliminate need that is currently felt by many University students of not being able to ever find space. As a result of this, students would be able to study easier and focus better, which would enhance the overall studious environment of the university as a whole. Finally, this project would attract people that are interested in coming to UF in the future, as it is a great attraction for potential students.

Venture Concept.  

The idea that I started out with began as a simple plan to build a new library. However, throughout the course of the class, I noticed many more opportunities that could possibly be addressed in the same line of work. There are many different locations in need of more space and many different ways to enhance parts of the Universities. In this way, customers would be drawn to this new idea because it would have potential to add value to the campus as a whole. If I were to only focus on the library, this could enhance the campus by adding that space that is highly demanded by University students. If I chose to expand, however, and continue working on projects around campus, I can also expand the gym, parking, and other locations in need of help.

      Currently there are no competitors, which puts this business idea at an intense advantage. There is also an advantage for me to continue working with University of Florida’s campus due to my close ties with the University. This is an advantage because I am fully aware of the different locations on campus and I am also well informed about the different things to improve upon. Overall, I believe I would be selling the overall value that comes with improving the campus, which can have many more positive implications for the campus.    

The three minor elements

First, I think my most important resource will be my close ties to the University, as I mentioned previously. This is an “unfair advantage” since it is rare and inimitable. It would give me an advantage since it would allow me to have more insight into the wants and needs of the university. Second, in the future, I would plan on expanding and helping to develop other countries around the world. This was not my idea initially, however, after thinking more critically about the idea, I was inspired to take this idea further and I came up with more ways of doing so. Third, for me, I plan on continuing this idea for a few years and eventually sell it when it becomes popular and highly profitable. While I enjoy this idea, I do not see myself continuing it long term.

2) Of the feedback I received, there seemed to be one common theme: the idea of expanding the campus as a whole instead of primarily focusing on the libraries. Many of the people who responded to my idea loved that I thought out ways to continue this project years into the future. As UF students with Gator pride, I am not surprised that the idea of renovating and improving the campus stuck with my classmates, but I am really happy that they were enthusiastic about how this idea has grown.

3) From my feedback, I did not change much about the venture concept, but I instead capitalized on the idea of working to embellish the entire campus we have as a whole now. I am thrilled to think of the ways I can help to create a stunning campus that will jump even higher than a #7 ranked public school.