I originally wrote this article, “Small enterprises” in October 2003
CASE STUDY : BURT’S BEES
An opportunity is defined as consisting of an idea and other components. The following enterprise case study allows comparison with other companies in the industry and shows little investment, small market share, low wages and low productivity for Burt’s Bees. It is explained that the company's success is due to it's uniqueness, Roxanne's qualities, her family, marketing and resource management. The company should keep to it's plan of producing in North Carolina to allow the value of the company to continue to grow, prior to harvesting. According to Timmons and Spinelli (2003:106):
“Roxanne Quimby sat in the president's office of Burt's Bees newly relocated manufacturing facility in Raleigh, North Carolina. She was surrounded by unpacked boxes and silence from the unmoving machines with no one there to operate them. Quimby looked around and asked herself, "Why did I do this?" She felt lonely and missed Maine, Burt's Bees' previous home. Quimby had founded and built Burt's Bees, a manufacturer of beeswax-based personal care products and handmade crafts, in central Maine and wasn’t convinced she shouldn't move it back there. She explained:
“When we got to North Carolina, we were totally alone. I realized how much of the business existed in the minds of the Maine employees. There, everyone had their mark on the process. That was all lost when we left Maine in 1994. I just kept thinking 'Why did I move Burt's Bees?' I thought I would pick the company up and move it and everything would be the same. Nothing was the same except that I was still working 20-hour days.”
Quimby had profound doubts about this move to North Carolina and was seriously considering moving back to Maine. She needed to make a decision quickly because Burt's Bees was in the process of hiring new employees and purchasing a great deal of manufacturing equipment. If she pulled out now, losses could be minimized and she could hire back each of the 44 employees she had left back in Maine, since none of them had found new jobs yet. On the other hand, it would be hard to ignore all the reasons she had decided to leave Maine in the first place. If she moved Burt's Bees back, she would face the same problems that inspired this move. In Maine, Burt's Bees would probably never grow over $3 million in sales, and Quimby felt it had potential for much more.”
The difference between an idea and an opportunity
An opportunity consists of a market, timing, resources, networks and an idea. An idea is a component, or part, of an opportunity. An idea is of academic interest only when, judged in isolation and is inert, until combined with the other factors to create an opportunity.
Idea creation is the entrepreneur’s first step to realizing a favourable opportunity. An idea needn't be owned by the entrepreneur and could be regarded as a tool. It could be licensed from another company or establishment. An idea must interact with other components to create an opportunity, but many ideas need to assessed till the right one is chosen to become part of an opportunity. It might be a great innovation or may simply be a more effective way of doing something. Insight or exploration may generate an idea or it may be accidentally stumbled upon.
Opportunity construction is the next step in the entrepreneurial process where the idea is positioned in the real
CASE STUDY : BURT’S BEES
An opportunity is defined as consisting of an idea and other components. The following enterprise case study allows comparison with other companies in the industry and shows little investment, small market share, low wages and low productivity for Burt’s Bees. It is explained that the company's success is due to it's uniqueness, Roxanne's qualities, her family, marketing and resource management. The company should keep to it's plan of producing in North Carolina to allow the value of the company to continue to grow, prior to harvesting. According to Timmons and Spinelli (2003:106):
“Roxanne Quimby sat in the president's office of Burt's Bees newly relocated manufacturing facility in Raleigh, North Carolina. She was surrounded by unpacked boxes and silence from the unmoving machines with no one there to operate them. Quimby looked around and asked herself, "Why did I do this?" She felt lonely and missed Maine, Burt's Bees' previous home. Quimby had founded and built Burt's Bees, a manufacturer of beeswax-based personal care products and handmade crafts, in central Maine and wasn’t convinced she shouldn't move it back there. She explained:
“When we got to North Carolina, we were totally alone. I realized how much of the business existed in the minds of the Maine employees. There, everyone had their mark on the process. That was all lost when we left Maine in 1994. I just kept thinking 'Why did I move Burt's Bees?' I thought I would pick the company up and move it and everything would be the same. Nothing was the same except that I was still working 20-hour days.”
Quimby had profound doubts about this move to North Carolina and was seriously considering moving back to Maine. She needed to make a decision quickly because Burt's Bees was in the process of hiring new employees and purchasing a great deal of manufacturing equipment. If she pulled out now, losses could be minimized and she could hire back each of the 44 employees she had left back in Maine, since none of them had found new jobs yet. On the other hand, it would be hard to ignore all the reasons she had decided to leave Maine in the first place. If she moved Burt's Bees back, she would face the same problems that inspired this move. In Maine, Burt's Bees would probably never grow over $3 million in sales, and Quimby felt it had potential for much more.”
The difference between an idea and an opportunity
An opportunity consists of a market, timing, resources, networks and an idea. An idea is a component, or part, of an opportunity. An idea is of academic interest only when, judged in isolation and is inert, until combined with the other factors to create an opportunity.
Idea creation is the entrepreneur’s first step to realizing a favourable opportunity. An idea needn't be owned by the entrepreneur and could be regarded as a tool. It could be licensed from another company or establishment. An idea must interact with other components to create an opportunity, but many ideas need to assessed till the right one is chosen to become part of an opportunity. It might be a great innovation or may simply be a more effective way of doing something. Insight or exploration may generate an idea or it may be accidentally stumbled upon.
Opportunity construction is the next step in the entrepreneurial process where the idea is positioned in the real
