Independent Component 2

Literal:

a) I, Aldo Rodriguez, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work. 

b) My only source to compete this independent component was Antonio Ruiz, owner of A. Ruiz Wholesale in the Los Angeles Flower District. 

c) Log

d) I completed thirty hours of work at the flower shop in Los Angeles. It is a wholesale shop where florist from all over LA county buy their flowers. I helped wrap, sell, stack, unload, and keep the place clean while i stayed to learn more about the business. 

Interpretive: 

Waking up at one in the morning to get to the flower shop at two in the morning was hard work. Being in action at the place for three to four hours was very helpful to my senior project because not only do i know how to sell flowers, i know where they come from and how much money i can really make off of them. I unloaded trucks full of greenery and lilies. I also sold to florist who have flower shops all over Los Angeles. Antonio helped me with one of the answers which is proving to be my strongest answer: know your product. In order to make a profit you need to know everything about it, so you know how much it is really worth. Thirty hours of work was logged, however, even after this component is done i will continue to visit and help the shop out, not because i was asked to, but because Antonio taught me very good administrative techniques that can help me with general business. 

Applied:

My essential question is: "What is the best way to sustain a profitable flower shop?" In order to help me answer this essential question i had to turn to my mother. She was a huge help but what made it even better is that she introduced me to Antonio Ruiz. From day one he loved the enthusiasm i had towards business. Form that moment i knew he was going to be part of my project. As i was answering the essential question i mentioned to him i was going to use "knowing your product" as one of my answers, he threw some flowers on the floor and took me on a walk through the flower district. He told me the importance of knowing a product. He pointed to a lady that had opened up a shop nearby, she was selling rose for two dollars! That was outrageous, no one would buy. Antonio sold his for about fifty cents, he was making the best business. That lady did not know her product. After, he told me that no matter the business, no matter the market, a good entrepreneur needs to know the product front ways and backwards. He is the reason why knowing the product is my best answer. 

Three Column Chart First Draft

3 Column Chart

Senior Project and ESLRs

1. Being an Effective Learner
2. Being a florist with my mother not only enhances my creativity on floral designs but my creativity in promotions and facebook ads. I have to be creative and always learning what creative image i want in order to appeal to the population. I also know i have to learn more, not just for the senior project but also for my mother and how i can be a great asset to her business to help the entire family. 
3.
https://www.facebook.com/MiasFiore (i got it up to 82. my goal is 150 by the end of the senior year)
https://www.facebook.com/IDontCurr (although it didnt really move a lot, i have one more plan that my research helped me understand to move my company forward by the end of the year? 
I also made arrangements, but we dont really document those because they are small and a little unamazing. Some of the arrangements i made are on the fb page. The most recent being the valentines ones. I also decorate halls and those examples are also on the page. 

2-Hour Meeting Answer #3

1. What is the best way to sustain a profitable flower shop?

2. In order to know how to sustain a sound business foundation, you must know what type of business it is

3. *There are various models of business:

- Sole-proprietorship

-Corporatjons

- Limited Partnerships

*Knowing the difference is key because it limits you to what you can and cant do

*The advantages of each one is crucial and how taxes are paid is the most important thing.

4. My research helped me:

Reuting, Jennifer. "Entity Types: Which One Is Best for Business?" Entity Types: Which One Is Best for Business? MyLLC, 2012. Web. 26 Oct. 2012. <http://www.myllc.com/entity-types.aspx>.

"Types of Corporations." STCIG.com. STC, 20 Mar. 2007. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. <http://www.stcsig.org/cic/onlinebook/chapter_20/c20c.htm>.

"Incorporating Your Business." Entrepreneur. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2013. <http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/77730>.

5. What i plan to research next is understanding better each entity and how the advantages work towards the little companies and why the bigger companies all have corporations.

Fourth Interview Questions

1. What is the best way to sustain a profitable flower shop?

2. What is a corporation and how does it work?

3. What makes that different than running a sole-proprietorship? What are the advantages and disadvantages?

4. Knowing your product is very important, but why?

5. How do you sell the product to a customer, in other words, how do you get the customer to buy into your product or service?

6. What is more important: the product or the customer? Why?

7. What are basic business principles any business person should know about?

8. Do you have those principles and if so which are most important?

9. What are the steps you took to start your own business?

10. How much money and time did that take away from you?

11. If there was a different way to start your business what way would it be?
12. Having your business in the Los Angeles area clearly comes with heavy competition, how do you manage to stay in the competition with so many competitors?

13. How do you know how to set up your store? (product placement) 

14. What steps do you take when there is a recession?

15. When its time to cut costs, what do you cut first? Why?

16. How do you balance your expenses? Is that the most efficient way?

17. When times like recession or the competition gets heavy, what are the best ways to cope with stress?

18. When you hire employees, what do you look for?

19. What makes you a good business person?

20. Do you have a business for necessity or for pleasure? Do you like business?

Independent Component 1

Literal

a) I, Aldo Rodriguez, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.

b) Guadalupe Avalos: (909)2827306, miasfiore@yahoo.com

c) Independent Component Hours-Log

d) During the time i was doing my mentorship, I delivered flowers, helped load and unload tables and chairs, took care of the shop and took a long time on the facebook page which is now up. 

Interpretive 

The work i have done was extensive. Random hours of the day and i was always up early. There are multiple hours i did not log due to the fact that it was maybe for an hour or two. The hours i have logged, however, show that i have been working. My mentor can also verify truthfully that i have completed the hours i have posted. One thing i was learning how to do was, how to appeal to the customers. My mother took care of the orders, but i wanted to be part of the business. I needed a place to set myself up. I decided to create a facebook page for the flower shop, which i am rather pleased with. Mia's Fiore

Applied

This Component helped me the greatest. Working with my mother not only helped me grasp the idea of how flowers work but the idea of how to run any business. I understand the importance of talking to customers. I understand the importance of a budget. My mentor, Guadalupe, started from not knowing any business skills, to having a successful floral shop that sustains a household of six. I can now, truthfully, say that i am ready to start my own business based on what i learned from her. 

2-Hour Meeting Answer #2

1. What is the best way to sustain a profitable flower shop?
2. In order to sustain a profitable flower shop, one needs to have a sound business foundation. Without one, well, the business will never get any better and or will not last.
3. What kind of business is it? A sole proprietorship or a partnership? What permits are needed? Are you being realistic with the costs and profits?
4. Virgin King by Tim. My mentor and entrepreneur.com
5. I would then focus a lot more on the foundation to start any business. Something that would apply to any field of business. Checking out a few books will allow me to see it in action.