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Entrepreneurship @ Lamar University |
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| "Houston Chronicle" 5/16/2008 | |
| "What it Takes to be Stocked by Walmart" | |
Question: Is it possible for a small company to sell its products at Wal-Mart, or does Wal-Mart only carry name-brand merchandise from big companies? I have a line of environmentally friendly cleaning supplies and would love to see them selling in Wal-Mart. Answer: According to Lupe Castellano, store manager of the Wal-Mart on Sawdust Road in The Woodlands, WalMart is interested in products from small businesses and is particularly interested in products that are good for the environment. Full Story | |
| "Houston Chronicle" 3/23/2008 | |
| Successful Marketing Gets Results | |
Question: I often see stories about small businesses in the paper, and I wonder how those businesses got to be in the spotlight. I'd like some publicity for my business, too, but don't even know where to start. Any advice? Full Story | |
| "Lamar University SBDC Newsletter" 3/1/2008 | |
| "Critical Success Factors in Business" | |
Over the past few years many articles have been penned identifying the importance of Critical Success Factors (CSF) in management. The writer of one recent article posted on the Internet at http://rapidbi.com/created/criticalsuccessfactors.html identified industry, strategy, environment and temporal as types of CSF and further defined a CSF as an element of an organization’s activity which is central to its future. Full Story | |
| "Houston Chronicle" 2/10/2008 | |
| "Be Ready if Downturn Hits Economy" | |
Question: I own a small business that has been doing pretty well, but I am getting concerned about a possible recession. What can I do in case the economy slows down? Answer: First, ramp up your marketing efforts, starting with your current customers. Call them just to see if you can do anything for them, send them special offers, develop a loyalty program to encourage repeat business, and do everything you can to make sure each customer's experience is a good one from start to finish. Full Story | |
| "SBA Disaster News Press Release" 10/23/2007 | |
| "SBA Disaster Loan Assistance Tops $25 Million for Texas Tornado, Storms and Flooding Victims" | |
| Joseph O. Montes, Regional Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), announced today that SBA has approved over $25 million in disaster loans to homeowners, renters and busnesses damaged by severe storms, tornadoes and flooding that occurred June 16 through August 3. Full Story | |
| "Houston Chronicle" 7/15/2007 | |
| "Making a Living Off eBay Takes a Camera and a Computer" | |
Question: Is it possible to make a living selling on eBay? How would I get started? Answer: Today, there are more than 1.3 million sellers making a part-time or full-time living selling on eBay, the online auction-style marketplace launched in 1995. To become one of them, you don't need much more than a digital camera, an e-mail account and something to sell. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 6/1/2007 | |
| "TOP 5 Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make Raising Capital" | |
| If you are considering starting your own business, chances are you are going to have to raise capital. Back in 1999 and 2000, young entrepreneurs were taking their dot.com business plans to hungry venture capitalists and many, if not most, were walking out with millions. In 2000, venture investments in emerging businesses reached $103 billion, a record level and almost 75% more than 1999’s total of $59.4 billion. The last six or seven years have been very different. While new venture investments are gaining momentum, the market is evolving rapidly and investors are still more cautious than ever. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 5/1/2007 | |
| "A Little Money Goes a Long Way" | |
| Through consulting at the SBDC at Lamar University, teaching and bringing entrepreneurs to campus through the Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, and running my own business for five years that helped young businesses with their finances, I have definitely learned that money is a critical component to success in a new business. Certainly, the most significant role that the SBDC plays in this region is helping businesses secure funding to start, grow and prosper. Securing money for a start-up venture is no easy task. Only 1 out of 10 is actually willing to do the necessary work required to obtain that funding. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 4/1/2007 | |
| “Economics 101 – What makes a region grow?” | |
| One of the missions of Entrepreneurship at Lamar (SBDC & IES) is to stimulate economic development in our region through new business creation. To make progress in such an undertaking, I have had to gather information from a variety of sources – articles, books, colleagues, fellow business people and entrepreneurs. One such source was an article recently given to me by a friend. I felt the information in it was worthy of sharing. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 3/1/2007 | |
| “Managing Perception or Practicing Deception” | |
| In my Seminar on Entrepreneurship class, my students and I had a heated discussion about an article that I assigned them to read in preparation for two lectures on ethics and social responsibility in entrepreneurship. I really enjoy this part of the course because it forces the students to make difficult choices, take stands on issues that are not black and white, and struggle with what they would do in a real-world situation. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 2/1/2007 | |
| “One of the Best Kept Secrets” | |
| Long before I began as the Director of the Small Business Development Center at Lamar University in October 2005, this branch of the national SBDC Network was performing an invaluable service to businesses in Southeast Texas. For 25 years, a dedicated staff of business experts, trainers, consultants and business educators have helped countless clients in our community start and grow businesses. I believe it has been one of the best kept secrets in the region. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 1/1/2007 | |
| "Social Entrepreneur Wins Nobel Peace Prize" | |
| As a supporter of entrepreneurship and the director of a team who helps individuals secure capital to start businesses, the story of Muhammad Yunus had a profound impact on me. It reminds me that the $11.5 million the SBDC at Lamar University helped clients obtain last year was no small feat. Full Story | |
| "Southest Texas Business Monthly" 11/1/2006 | |
| "The Intersection of Leadership, Intelligence and Entrepreneurship" | |
| Every semester at Lamar University, IES hosts a prominent entrepreneur to share his or her story with students, faculty, staff, and the community at large. This fall's Entrepreneurship Lecture Series hosted Dr. Jack M. Gill, technology entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and prominent entrepreneurship educator at some of the best science and engineering schools in the country. Full Story | |
| "Southest Texas Business Monthly" 10/1/2006 | |
| "Dispelling a Myth of Entrepreneurship" | |
| The cover of the August 14th, 2006 Business Week proved how short the memory is of the journalistic team at that magazine. For the cover, they chose a picture of a young, unshaven, 29 year-old Silicon Valley entrepreneur. With his Puma hat spun around backwards and a pair of headphones on, he was giving the camera two thumbs up with a look reminiscent of the Dell "Dude" from the computer manufacturer's national ad campaign of a few years ago. The headline read "How This Kid Made $60 Million In 18 Months." Full Story | |
| "Southest Texas Business Monthly" 9/1/2006 | |
| "Resources Still Exist for Businesses Affected by RITA" | |
| It is hard to believe we are approaching the one year anniversary of Rita's devastation of our area. By the same token, the last twelve months have felt a bit like twelve years in some ways. An event such as a hurricane raging through your hometown fundamentally affects the way in which you see things. I am confident that every resident and business owner in Southeast Texas is still addressing some issue or challenge related to the hurricane that hit in September of last year. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 8/1/2006 | |
| "On the Verge of an Energy Revolution" | |
| At the turn of the last century, Southeast Texas gave birth to one of the most entrepreneurial events in the history of our country, just a few blocks from my office at Lamar University. In 1901, the Lucas Gusher transformed this region into a boomtown and sparked an industrial revolution, the likes of which the world had never known. Few could argue the economic impact Spindletop and the subsequent oil industry had on the development of this still young country over 100 years ago. For many similar reasons, I believe we are on the verge of a sequel to Spindletop right now, at the turn of this century. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 7/1/2006 | |
| "Marketing and (Hyper)Growing Your Business" | |
| There is arguably no single more important strategy in the success of a business than marketing. Yet for most entrepreneurs and small business owners, there is no more frustrating and misunderstood task. Part of this reason rests in the fact that words like reach, frequency, and impressions can be confusing and misleading when crafting a marketing strategy. The time is always right to review the essentials of marketing as well as introduce a new book that can serve as a powerful tool for growing businesses. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 6/1/2006 | |
| "Time is the Most Precious Commodity" | |
| A few weeks ago, a good friend asked me to do him a favor. He was headed out of town on business and needed me to run an early season baseball practice for the team of nine and ten-year-old little leaguers he drafted, one of which was my son. I instantly agreed Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 5/1/2006 | |
| "Do the Next Right Thing" | |
| Every semester at Lamar University, IES hosts a prominent entrepreneur to share his or her story with students, faculty, staff, and the community at large. This spring's Entrepreneurship Lecture Series was graced by Cheryl Thompson-Draper, past Chairman and CEO of Warren Electric Group, LTD. During Cheryl's tenure, Warren was the largest woman-owned business in Houston and the fourth largest in Texas. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 4/1/2006 | |
| "Calling All MOMtrepreneurs" | |
At a recent dinner with friends, the subject of the number of young mothers who have ventured out to start a new business became a topic of discussion. A friend in Houston recently began a franchise marketed towards young mothers to combine fitness and motherhood. Another had just launched a specialty foods business out of her home. Still another had just given birth to her 3rd child only a year after she gave birth to a local upscale maternity clothing store. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 3/1/2006 | |
| "The Role of a University in Entrepreneurship" | |
| I had the distinct pleasure of judging a competition a few weeks ago at Texas A&M University. Entitled the MBA Tech Transfer Challenge, it pitted teams of Aggie MBA students against one another competing to see who could most effectively evaluate technology generated at Texas A&M for its commercial viability. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 2/1/2006 | |
| "Keep a Close Eye on the Cash" | |
| In this age of specialization and outsourcing, it is becoming common place to remove functions normally performed in-house, and place them in the hands of competent independent contractors. Financial help for small businesses certainly falls into this category. Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 1/1/2006 | |
| "Model Entrepreneurs for Children" | |
| My wife has been obsessed with her new business lately. She and a friend have started a line of upscale t-shirts (they call them "wardrobe components") with small affirmations printed a few inches below the neckline. The shirts represent an opportunity for each customer to start the day with Full Story | |
| "Southeast Texas Business Monthly" 12/1/2005 | |
| "Re-thinking Disaster Planning" | |
| In the wake of one of the most devastating storms in our region's history, we have had an opportunity to talk to hundreds of entrepreneurs and business owners in Southeast Texas. Most, if not all, of them wished they were better prepared for a storm such as the one that made landfall on September 24th, 2005. Full Story | |
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