Summer 2020
Entrepreneur ILLUSTRATED PREMIER ISSUE
GR
HIC AP
B Y HP
PARK
Vol. 1 , Issue 1
EDITOR’S NOTE
Entrepreneur Illustrated Editor-in-chief: Alex Du ‘21 Chris Lin ‘21 Elton Zheng ‘22 Richard Chen ‘22
Dear Readers, Welcome to the premier edition of Entrepreneur Illustrated magazine, a Choate Publication under DECA club. We often are so focused on great ideas and their potential that when we want to make these ideas a reality, we don’t even know where to start. In our consumer age, we are surrounded by successful products and companies everywhere we go, but it is rarely apparent what it actually takes to create such a business. Successful entrepreneurship appears to be much more accessible than it actually is. As a result, the vast majority of businesses fail, and we are left feeling discouraged and hopeless. With knowledge, we can understand what it takes for the execution of an idea. Knowledge is also vital for the execution itself. With Entrepreneur Illustrated, our goal is to provide a glimpse of this knowledge about the world around us to hopefully inspire, educate, and entertain you. Sincerely, The Entrepreneur Illustrated Masthead and Choate DECA
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Entrepreneur Illustrated
Copy editors: Paul Montrone ‘22 Harry Chen ‘22 Max Zhang ‘22 Varun Ramamurthi ‘22 Graphics/layout editors: H.P. Park
Choate DECA Executive Officers President: Chris Lin ‘21 Allen Zheng ‘21 Charlie Dillion ‘21 Vice President: Alex Du ‘21
Table of Contents
3
Not so easy after all: The Hip Hop Music Production Scene | Feature
5
The Story of Theranos: A Bloody Failure | Society
7
Oversaturated or Viable? Inside the World of Dropshipping | Feature
9
Lessons from the Co-Founder of Tadpole Tutoring: A Reflection | Spotlight
11
Sneaker Resale: A Viable Way to Make Money? | Feature
15
Telecommuting: The Entrepreneur’s New Best Friend | Society
17
McDonald’s Place in Our Society | Society
19
References
Summer 2020
2
Not so easy after all: The Hip Hop Music Production Scene Written by Varun Ramamurthi ‘22
I
t’s no secret that today’s music industry is noto-
ously one wants to take their music production, the cost
riously difficult to break into. Out of every aspir-
of acquiring the necessary equipment, both physical and
ing rapper or singer who opens Google Docs and
digital, can run up to five thousand dollars. If one is look-
starts jotting down lyrics, an infinitesimally small
ing to simply try out a DAW, a program called Fruity Loops
percentage will ever witness their music becoming
Studio by Image-Line offers a free edition with plenty of
mainstream. The same goes for those who make
features. Unfortunately, saving your work isn’t an option.
beats; the music production scene, although less talked
With prices ranging from $100 to around $1000, various
about, is no different.
paid editions of DAWs like
Logic Pro X, Ableton Live, or
But why is this the
case? Hasn’t modern technol-
the aforementioned FL Studio
ogy made creating music easi-
are available. As the editions
er and more accessible? True, a
increase in price, the user is
singer no longer needs to train
presented with more and more
as hard to perfect their pitch-
features: some very useful,
es when autotune can correct
others... not so much. Aside
them for you. Music producers
from the DAW, other digital
also no longer require access
tools include synth plugins
to a professional studio and
like Omnisphere, ElectraX, and
years of practice with a mixing
Nexus. Essentially, these synth
console—a complex network
plugins are digital libraries full
of dials, switches, and knobs.
of pads, keyboards, bells, per-
A Digital Audio Workstation,
cussion, and more. They can
or DAW, packs all the drums, synths, and samples you’d
each cost hundreds of dollars. Outside of digital tools, pick-
ever need right into your laptop.
ing up a MIDI piano keyboard and tabletop digital piano to
play out melodies and harmonies is highly recommended. A
From the outside looking in, being a producer
might seem easier than being a singer or rapper. Writing
serviceable one can be purchased for around $100 at a place
lyrics, learning how to sing, and mastering stage pres-
like Guitar Center.
ence does appear more difficult than sitting in front of a
computer and dragging drum patterns across a screen.
required to make a good beat. This is what truly separates
A hit song with what sounds like a very basic beat might
an average beat from a great one. Some of these skills, no-
convince one that they too can learn to produce music and
tably mixing, can be developed through experience. Mixing
crank out hits with ease. This is simply untrue. Like almost
is the crucial process of blending recorded or created tracks
everything that seems too easy, there’s always a catch. In
together through various techniques. These include EQing,
the case of music production, there are several.
which describes raising or lowering certain frequencies in
The second catch is developing the musical skills
order to make space for other instruments in those same The first catch is the price tag. Depending on how seri-
3
Entrepreneur Illustrated | Feature
frequencies, while also leveling or adjusting the volumes
of each track and adding effects, like delay and reverb. A mixed beat will sound much more crisp and professional than an unmixed beat. Instrument selection also comes with experience. For example, one might decide that pianos with pads create a nice ambient vibe, or that bells don’t really go well with tambourines. A choice between using a thin-sounding violin vs. a robust flute as the melody can make or break the beat. However, not everything can be learned through experience—namely, traditional music theory. This umbrella term includes ideas like harmonization, chord progressions, and part leading. All of these are very important, yet difficult and time-consuming to learn. This is why most producers, knowing they need to learn these skills, turn in desperation to 10-minute “all you need to know about music theory” videos on Youtube. All these skills, both those that can be learned through experience and those that cannot, will take a huge amount of time and effort to master. What about all the equipment? That’s going to take a long time to prepare as well. For amateur producers, especially if they don’t play the piano, that’s another hurdle in their way. To make matters worse, both DAWs and any synth libraries purchased will take hours upon hours to learn.
Long story short, if you’re looking to take music
production seriously, make sure you know exactly what you’re signing up for. Being great at making beats, let alone making it into mainstream music, will take time, effort, and persistence, just like anything else. You’ll have to invest in your equipment—both digital and physical. Once you have your tools, you must master them. Be prepared to spend hours alone looking up how to use niche plugins and
Graphic by Elton Zheng
other functionalities that could give your music the edge over everyone else’s. In conclusion, chase your dreams, but remember that the road to being a successful music producer will be long and treacherous.
Summer 2020
4
The Story of Theranos: A Bloody Failure Written by Max Zhang ‘22
I
magine the classic story of a Silicon Valley
which was to test the machine on patients with cancer,
startup. An aspiring student, set on an idea for
with full knowledge that her machines did not work.
a product that could change the world, drops
Despite this, the company barreled forward, eventual-
out of college to start their own company. As
ly making deals with Walgreens and Safeway to place
this idea grows, they gain traction and receive
Theranos testers in their pharmacies.
funding from investors in order to grow their
Up to this point, Holmes had been able to pres-
company to massive proportions, making millions in
ent Theranos as a viable company through a combina-
the process. This seemed to be the path that Theranos,
tion of half-truths and mild deceit; however, Holmes
a biomedical technology company founded in 2008, was
eventually began having to flat-out lie to keep Thera-
bound to follow. Theranos developed a family of prod-
nos afloat. She presented her investors with financial
ucts designed to conduct blood tests at home. The com-
reports that predicted profits ten times more than what
pany was indeed founded by a college student, named
documents inside the company predicted. Theranos
Elizabeth Holmes, who dropped out of Stanford to start
even presented lists of hundreds of tests to Walgreens
her own business. The company did indeed receive mil-
that they said could be run on their machines, when
lions from investors and grow to make million-dollar
in reality, none of those tests could be run with any
deals with the likes of Walgreens and Safeway. However,
measure of reliability. Eventually, the sheer number
looking back, Theranos is regarded as one of the worst
of lies that Holmes produced gave way to the fact that
disasters in the history of Silicon Valley.
Theranos was in reality, an ailing company with no
viable product. Following an article published in the
In order to understand more about how Ther-
anos came to be regarded as the worst failure in the
Wall Street Journal, those lies came back to bite her.
history of startups, it is important to understand the
Hundreds of millions were lost by both Holmes and the
central figure around its downfall, Elizabeth Holmes.
company as investors, patients, and companies sued.
Theranos was started in 2002, when Holmes, motivated
The important question to ask here is what to learn
by an idea for a wearable blood tester, dropped out of
from this. It seems there were two factors on Homes’
Stanford in order to start her own company. Eventually,
part that led to the eventual downfall of the company.
Elizabeth pivoted to the idea of an at-home blood tester
The first factor seems to be a lack of experience. The
that could carry out a suite of tests, tests which tradi-
fields that Theranos worked in, medicine and chem-
tionally would require machines the size of a printer to
istry, stand in stark contrast to the field of computer
carry out. Armed with this idea, Holmes used her own
science that traditional software or technology start-
personal connections to gain a sizable seed investment.
ups work in. These days, even teenagers can begin to
Eventually, a prototype was created that could run a
grasp the elements of coding and software engineering;
small number of tests with dubious results. This was
however, medicine is a field that is only really delved
when Elizabeth made her first morally questionable act,
into deeply at colleges and universities. Since Holmes
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Entrepreneur Illustrated | Society
Elizabeth Holmes. Image from Consequence of Sound. https://consequenceofsound.net/2019/03/film-review-the-inventor-hbo/
only spent a few semesters at Stanford, she possessed little real knowledge and it was because of this that she couldn’t realize the impracticality of Theranos. She wanted a miracle machine that modern technology simply wasn’t capable of creating. However, many startups are based on ideas that are not yet practical, so the real reason Theranos ended so disastrously was because of Holmes’ deceitful tendencies. It was only because of her dishonesty that the company was able to grow so large and die so spectacularly. In the end, maybe we should learn from our childhood and acknowledge that our lies come back to bite us.
Theranos Device. Image from Wired. https://www.wired.com/tag/theranos/
Summer 2020
6
Oversaturated or Viable? Inside The World of Dropshipping Written by Harry Chen ‘22
W
ith the advent of the inter-
a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 28.8% from
net and the popularization of
2019 to 2025. The market seems to be largely untapped,
smartphones, commerce has
and with the perceived ease and flexibility of dropship-
been completely revolution-
ping, many have turned to dropshipping as a get-rich-
ized. While brick-and-mortar
quick scheme on the side. The idea that anyone can
businesses still have a place in
start an online store for no cost and quickly be making
today’s economy, the rise of Big-Tech companies such
enough in passive income to pay the rent is intriguing
as Amazon and eBay are a testament to the profitability
indeed, but does this idea have some truth to it? Well,
and power of e-commerce. Consumers can now make
the answer is yes… but no.
purchases worldwide in a matter of seconds, without
Dropshipping can be highly lucrative—that is
ever stepping foot in
true. But is it easy? Not
a store or physically
necessarily. For starters,
making a transaction.
while the potential for
The unprecedented ac-
dropshipping seems to
cessibility and sky-high
be limitless, in reality,
ceiling for e-commerce
the market often feels
have led many to turn
crowded and oversatu-
to dropshipping. Drop-
rated. It can be hard to
shipping is a popular
find a profitable niche
business model for
to capitalize on because
e-commerce that allows
of the sheer number of
businesses to sell prod-
people looking at drop
ucts without keeping
shipping as a quick and
inventory or worrying
easy source of passive
about order fulfillment. For example, say you’ve
income. Furthermore, SZIHL Warehouse. Image from SZIHL. https://www.szihl.com/en/business/logistic_service.php
like every other business
found a supplier for an intriguing product. The product
model, dropshipping has its advantages and disadvan-
costs $50. You build an online store to sell it at a price
tages.
of $60. With every order, you would receive $60, $50 of
which you would give to the supplier, who handles the
strengths is the low upfront cost associated with start-
distribution and the backend of orders. The drop ship-
ing your business. While traditional brick-and-mor-
per, thus, is simply a middle man.
tar businesses require substantial amounts of upfront
capital investment, dropshipping is less demanding.
In 2018, the global dropshipping industry was
valued at 102.2 billion USD, and it is expected to register
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Entrepreneur Illustrated | Feature
Perhaps one of the dropshipping’s greatest
Compared to traditional business expenses, the cost of
running an e-commerce store is low. And with plat-
that is hard to match as a drop shipper, especially when
forms such as Shopify, Wix, and Squarespace, anyone
you’re just starting out.
can set up a store in a matter of minutes for little to no
cost. Even as you scale your business, your expenses will
willing to spend the time to build up a brand and find a
mostly consist of advertising costs. Another advantage
specific, profitable niche to target, it is. Dropshipping is
of dropshipping is simply the amount of freedom that it
still an untapped industry. But, if you’re here for a good
grants. Because a third-party supplier manages or-
time not a long time, dropshipping may not be the get-
der fulfillment and inventory, you can focus simply on
rich-quick scheme you’re looking for.
So, is dropshipping viable? Well, if you’re
customer acquisition and finding a selling product. In the age of Aliexpress, this is made a lot easier. However, many of dropshipping’s greatest strengths are also its greatest weaknesses.
While dropshipping grants an unprecedented
amount of freedom to sellers, this freedom comes at a cost: you are very dependent on your distributor. You have no control over inventory or shipping times, but your brand image is always on the line—just one bad review can ruin your business. Customer service is vitally important in e-commerce, but frequently you feel like a sitting duck. And thanks to Amazon Prime, consumers now expect lightning-fast delivery—something
Graphic by Elton Zheng
Summer 2020
8
Lessons from the CoFounder of Tadpole Tutoring: A Reflection Written by Andrew Shenouda ‘21, Co-Founder of Tadpole Tutoring
T
he conscious mind
qualified tutors who have the skill
they evaluate their ultimate vision,
is dictated by the
and know-how to help out. Our orga-
check out their competition and, in
complex (and often
nization not only enables parents to
a rush of good-hearted enthusiasm,
fickle) relationship
have hundreds of tutors of varying
attempt to bring to life every feature,
between the limita-
strengths at their disposal but also
service, bell, and whistle in their first
tions of memory and
provides an opportunity for high
go—effectively holding functionality
the captivations of desire. This is to
school and college-aged students to
paramount at the expense of true
say that the human experience is
earn money. It’s cool stuff, and we
quality. This is what is embodied by
often grounded in subjectivity and,
have been fortunate enough to obtain
a minimum viable product. Consider
as a result, can be pandered to in a
a considerable degree of success
a situation in which someone tries to
manner intended to achieve a certain
(something, for the record, that did
create an iteration of a website that
desired effect. This principle, among
not come on our first try). Perhaps
offers online cooking lessons. They
other things, is what this article will
most interestingly, we make it easy
work to include a scheduling system
venture to explore in greater detail. Readers, in this maiden issue of Entrepreneur Illustrated, I ask you to humor me as I reflect upon some of my humble experiences from running an online tutoring service, Tadpole Tutoring. Here’s to a decent read.
Much of our good fortune can be attributed to our adherence to one main principle: our commitment to creating a minimum lovable product as opposed to a minimum viable
product.
First and foremost, I
to reserve spots for classes, a chat system to enable communication between students and teachers, a review system to upvote and downvote different offerings, a social networking system to allow people to get to know each other, a recommendation system to get others to join the site, and… well,
suppose it makes sense to give a brief
for tutors to payout funds they made
you get the gist. While a compelling
overview of our vision for Tadpole.
tutoring from their dashboard to
argument can be made for the neces-
Along with several other individu-
charities of their choice.
sity of each of these features, more
als, my team and I are working to
Much of our good fortune can
often than not they’ll be implement-
synthesize a service marketplace
be attributed to our adherence to one
ed at a substandard quality. An indi-
that connects students and tutors
main principle: our commitment to
vidual has a finite reserve of resourc-
from across the globe. Our goal is to
creating a minimum lovable prod-
es in the form of time and capital.
provide an intuitive, user-friendly
uct as opposed to a minimum viable
When you spread yourself too thin,
interface that allows individuals to
product. Oftentimes, when individ-
things such as reliability, usability,
set up online tutoring sessions with
uals endeavor to start up a business,
and design fall to the wayside.
9
Entrepreneur Illustrated | Entrepreneurial Spotlight
Minumum Loveable Product. Image from tinytracker. https://tinytracker.co/blog/minimum-viable-product-vs-minimum-lovable-product
March 2020
$5000
When Tadpole Tutoring was founded
This leads to my discussion
$1000
Amount of money directly donated to charity
Fund dedicated to providing students in need with free tutoring
functionality, paramount.
know your market inside out, and
of what a minimum lovable product
create something that plays into the
is and how it entails to the different
cle, I wish to discuss what it means to
true identity of your customer base.
stages of launch. More properly, rath-
build a product of high quality. As per
er than attempting to obtain wide-
the implications of the introduction,
present before you are lessons as old
spread functionality through devel-
it is critical to tailor the creation and
as time itself. Personally, however,
oping a parade of different features,
placement of your product in a man-
I never understood the true magni-
the MLP mindset encourages target-
ner that is consistent with the nature
tude of their applications until going
ed work on a select few set of fea-
of the human psyche. For the most
through the process of creating a
tures—this results in the production
part, very little of the string of expe-
business. If you ever venture into
of a website that, in its early stages,
riences that define life are committed
the exhilarating world of business,
can do less. That said, the services it
to memory. As such, a central part of
I suggest you take these strategies
does provide are of supreme quality,
creating a high-quality consumer ex-
and principles to heart. Truly con-
ensuring that the user has a positive,
perience is ensuring that your prod-
sider who you are trying to sell to, be
dare I say lovable, experience. Upon
uct and/or service is memorable—
thoughtful about your growth strate-
culminating a base of committed
that it possesses the capacity to win
gy, and work with sincerity of pur-
users, only then is it appropriate to
the bitter bidding war between all of
pose. Success will come.
take the next step and issue a new it-
life’s distractions for real estate with-
eration of the website with even more
in an individual’s head. Additionally,
to love. Keeping in common with our
it is essential that your organization
initial example of a website for cook-
push a product that is just as useful
ing lessons, an advocate of the MLP
as it is memorable. It should, in some
would stick to just developing the
manner, address a primal need that
scheduling and chat system—holding
is an integral concern of your target
customer satisfaction, as opposed to
audience. When designing your MLP,
Prior to concluding this arti-
Much of these conclusions I
Sign up to be a tutor at tadpoletutoring.org.
Tutoring is perhaps the most gratifying way to earn cash on the side as a busy student. We donate much of our profits to charity. If you know anyone who needs a tutor, send them to us as well!
Summer 2020
10
Sneaker Resale: A Viable Way to Make Money? Written by Elton Zheng ‘22
T
wenty years ago, the digital marketplace was just beginning to emerge. At the time, the only method of buying shoes online was browsing dubious online forums and message boards. By 2010, sneaker e-commerce had drastically improved, mostly taking place over eBay. However, eBay was notorious for counterfeit sneakers, and it still is today. Finally, five years ago, digital com-
panies such as StockX, Grailed, and Goat became mainstream, and the internet became the main place to trade sneakers, largely replacing traditional storefronts like Stadium Goods. Last July, StockX was valued at over $1 billion. Sneaker resale is currently estimated to be a $2 billion market and is projected to reach $6 billion by 2025. Clearly, there is a lot of money to be made.
Today, sneaker resale can indeed be very profitable, and there are two
major ways to begin making money. Buying and selling sneakers, also known as “flipping”, is the more well-known method. The second approach requires more knowledge and connections but offers a significantly safer business model: knowledgeable sneaker entrepreneurs distribute their advice to traders, and the traders pay monthly fees. These advisors and their clients are known as “cook groups”, exchanging information on how to “cook”, which is their term for trading sneakers.
While flipping sneakers may be the easier option, or at least seem like it,
making a profit is harder than it looks. To make money, a sneaker flipper needs to
11 Entrepreneur Illustrated | Feature
Graphic
by Elton
Zheng
Summer 2020
12
Five pairs of Travis Scott Air Jordans, worth $1,000 each. Image from StashedSNKRS. https://stashedsnkrs.com/products/sneakers-reselling-guide
buy sneakers at a lower price than what is available to
sive returns, sometimes within a relatively short time.
the public, and to do this, they must first have special
However, in many ways, it is riskier than running a cook
access that the average person does not. Generally, they
group, which can provide a relatively stable income.
look at highly coveted sneakers, such as some releas-
For $50 a month, you can join a cook group. Over a mes-
es of the Air Jordan 1 that tend to sell out instantly, or
senger platform, such as Discord, you will gain access
rare items, like the Nike Mag, which was featured in
to all of the group’s services, which include pre-pro-
the movie Back to the Future which has sold for over
grammed sneaker-buying bots, raffles from all over the
$10,000.
internet, insider updates, hard-to-get partnerships,
digital services, and most importantly, exclusive advice.
“Source the unsourceable”, explains Joe Frank-
lin, who has sold shoes worth tens of thousands of
Some cook groups even provide clients with 24/7 sup-
dollars—each. In the past, a flipper could have a more
port. Aaron Maresky, at 19 years old, operates one such
than ample head start by waiting a few hours outside
cook group called AMNotify. His story began at 15 when
a sneaker store before a sale. These days, acquiring
he borrowed $350 from his father to buy a pair of OVO
sneakers has become much more competitive, and doz-
x Jordan 12s. Shrewdly, he immediately sold them for
ens of buyers will bring lawn chairs or sleeping bags to a
$750, and with his $400 profit, he then bought a pair of
store location and camp there for days before the actual
Adidas Yeezys, which he also sold as well. From rigging
sale. As a result, buying sneakers this way has become
sweepstakes to giving away hundreds of pizzas, he was
unrealistic. But, the digital age provides hope. One way
creative and effective in building his business. Mare-
a flipper can get a head start is by building connections
sky and his company AMNotify gained connections to
with smaller retail companies, sometimes by buying
many major sneaker retailers. Today, he has more than
lots of merchandise or meeting with the company staff
a thousand clients who pay $60 a month to be a part of
in person. Knowing the date that a particular item will
AMNotify. The value of a cook group depends heavily
go for sale just a few days ahead of the competition can
on its reputation due to the risk involved in the sneak-
be a game-changer, because, by the time the actual sale
er resale industry, but Maresky has plenty of proof of
happens, it is too late. Flipping can bring you mas-
AMNotify’s value: in one statement, he claimed that of
13 Entrepreneur Illustrated | Feature
the 500 Post Malone Crocs initially released, AMNoti-
cased a balanced blue leather color pattern, also known
fy members own 450 of them. Some customers spend
as a colorway. It retailed for $165. This May, Nike
$2,500 for a lifetime membership, and many would
released the Air Jordan 1 Retro High Royal Toe, which
make their money back within just a week. Running a
was patterned with an almost identical colorway, but
cook group can provide a steady income once success-
not quite as balanced, retailing for $170. Currently, the
ful, but not without first building a reputation for your
Fragment sneakers resell for almost $4,000, while the
services.
Royal Toe resells around $300. Many sneaker enthusi-
asts suspect that Nike intentionally designed an inferior
Over the past two decades, the sneaker re-
sale industry has evolved dramatically, and without a
colorway to keep the demand high for its Air Jordan
doubt, it will continue to change. Fashion resale is based
Fragment sneakers. Strategies like these drive the resale
heavily on artificial scarcity, and so far, this business
market, ultimately benefiting both the sneaker entre-
model has generally been largely successful all around.
preneurs and retailers like Nike. Nevertheless, as physi-
In 2018, Burberry controversially burned more than
cal retail declines, the sneaker industry will undoubted-
ÂŁ28 million, equivalent to $35 million, worth of unsold
ly grow, and from it, resale opportunities will continue
clothes, as a way to maintain their artificial scarcity.
to arise. However, obtaining these opportunities, from
That year, its total revenue was over $3 billion. Much of
building a cook group to flipping Yeezys, will require
the sneaker industry operates on the same principals,
risk, connections, and most importantly, knowledge.
at least for the models that manufacturers such as Nike and Adidas intend for the resale market. In 2014, Nike released its Air Jordan 1 Retro Fragment, which show-
Royal Toe vs Fragment Sneakers.
Aaron Maresky, founder of AMNotify. Image from GQ. https://www.gq.com/story/how-to-get-rich-quick-sneakers
Footlocker in Manhattan.
Summer 2020
14
Telecommuting: The Entrepreneur’s New Best Friend Written by Tigo Ponce de Leon ‘22
W
ith the COVID-19 pandem-
ma, which in the physical sense of the workplace was
ic having ravaged the globe,
unsolvable, is now non-existent thanks to the spread
white-collar workers in all
of video conferencing platforms. Ian Siegel, the CEO of
hemispheres have now been
ZipRecruiter, sums it up nicely: “Already, employers
confined to their small living
are finding themselves offering [flexibility] as a benefit,
spaces, wrestling with the ques-
that flexibility of remote work, [where you can] set your
tion: will this situation last? Today, video conferenc-
own work hours and location.”
ing services are the non-essential worker’s equivalent
of the brick-and-mortar office—that is, without the
about many things, but most importantly, they care
mindless hours of commuting, the constant overwatch
about profitability. Put bluntly, 9 out of 10 startups fail.
of coworkers, and the deflating small talk. Pre-pan-
When there is a chance to reduce costs, business own-
demic, only a slight 15% of Americans worked from
ers make sure to take advantage of it. Now that busi-
home full-time; post-pandemic, the figure is now up
nesses have abandoned their physical workspaces, its
to an astonishing 50%. Although many employees miss
importance is being heavily questioned. In fact, some
the simple beauties of face-to-face interactions, pro-
companies are already making changes; Aetna, a large
ductivity levels for businesses are around 35-40% higher online, leading many to assume that this virtual world, whether employees like it or not, is here to last. As the very essence of how a company can manifest itself progresses into this new e-frontier, entrepreneurs are
When it comes to business, entrepreneurs care
Most importantly, Entrepreneurs care about profitability. Put bluntly, 9 out of 10 startups fail. When there is a chance to reduce costs, business owners make sure to take advantage of it.
insurance company, has transitioned around half of their workforce online, thereby saving $78 million in real estate costs. With the exception of essential services, everything that can be done physically can also be done online, not to mention at a lower cost. Especially in the initial stages of
beginning to learn that online, anything is possible.
a business, where budgets may run thin, entrepreneurs
must save every dollar they can.
The bane of many emerging businesses is the
extreme difficulty of finding talented and gritty pro-
spective employees. According to CB Insights, 23% of
businesses will capitalize on its many advantages to
failed startups can be attributed to an ill-qualified team.
ultimately experience more success. With lower costs,
To find a vast network of hiring options, entrepreneurs
higher productivity, and more convenience, virtual
must spend large sums of money to operate their busi-
working is not just a temporary solution to the current
nesses in dense cities. On the other hand, more afford-
pandemic; it is the gateway to the future. As more and
able and less dense areas are cheaper, but the hiring
more businesses shift online, the entire premise of work
talent pool is also considerably smaller. This dilem-
will forever change.
15 Entrepreneur Illustrated | Society
With the rise of video conferencing, emerging
Cloud Video Conferencing, Infographic. Image from Zoom Blog. https://blog.zoom.us/rise-of-cloud-video-conferencing-in-financial-services/finserv-infographic/
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McDonald’s Place in Our Society Written by Paul Montrone ‘22 cDonald’s, the prominent fast-
image of McDonald’s had led the company to suffer a
food giant and staple of American
steady decline in sales in the following years. But, as
culture, has been serving customers
with most forms of mass media, information can be
for over sixty-five years. Through-
misleading.
out those years, McDonald’s has
gained widespread popularity and
after USDA scientist Gerald Zirnstein publicly criticized
The term “pink slime” surfaced around 2012
become a symbol of American influence worldwide,
the practice of treating lean beef trimmings with am-
but its relationship with society has somewhat been
monia gas to kill bacteria, and many lawsuits over LFTB
that of a roller coaster, both good and bad. With over
were filed. Still, the USDA has maintained that these
thirty-seven thousand restaurants found in over one
lawsuits were “without merit”, and so LFTB remains
hundred twenty countries, McDonald’s is certainly one
approved for consumption to this day. Nevertheless,
of the most recognizable fast-food chains in the world.
McDonald’s has not used LFTB for over seven years.
However, despite its ubiquity and popularity to many,
McDonald’s still possesses a notorious reputation of
as the name suggested, but it was not actually used in
serving non-nutritious and cheap food. Even more, the
only McDonald’s products. Once the term “pink slime”
social norm of eating at McDonald’s has become taboo.
emerged, McDonald’s, as well as major supermarkets,
Is this stigma actually deserved?
restaurants, and other fast-food chains, including
Burger King and Taco Bell, all publicly announced to
One of the main reasons for McDonald’s tainted
Not only was “pink slime” not nearly as bad
reputation for causing obesity and making low-quali-
stop using LFTB. Yet, likely because of McDonald’s
ty food stem from the 2004 documentary, “Super Size
ubiquity, this image stuck with only McDonald’s.
Me”, which points blame at McDonald’s for being a
Thankfully, its reputation has improved somewhat over
major contributor to America’s obesity epidemic. The movie was shocking to the general public, who had never before questioned where they were getting their food,
Look after the customers and the business will take care of itself. -Ray Kroc, McDonald’s Business Tycoon
and taught an entire gener-
the past few years, especially as customers began using food delivery services like Uber Eats and DoorDash.
McDonald’s is a cultur-
al staple. According to Gallup, ninety-six percent of Ameri-
ation of millennials that McDonald’s food was poison.
cans eat fast food at least once per year. Very few other
In 2014, another exposé revealed how McDonald’s used
places, including gyms, libraries, or even religious in-
“ammonia-treated lean beef trimmings”, also known
stitutions, are this ubiquitous. With America becoming
as LFTB (lean finely textured beef), but better known as
increasingly divided these days, fast food restaurants
its less disingenuous name “pink slime”, to make their
are one of the few places where truly everyone is wel-
chicken nuggets. These revelations among a plethora
come.
of others branded McDonald’s as an “evil” company
that prioritized making a cheap buck rather than caring
reputation, McDonald’s has made a concerted effort
about the content or quality of its food. This marred
to become a more healthy and transparent fast food
17 Entrepreneur Illustrated | Society
Despite being unfairly branded by its tarnished
McDonald’s in Manhattan.
restaurant. In 2013, McDonald’s began working together with the nonprofit company Alliance for a Healthier Generation to devise a 20-year plan to add healthier options to the McDonald’s menu. Since then, McDonald’s has completely transformed the kid’s “Happy Meal”, making several changes such as adding apple slices, shrinking serving sizes of fries, and removing cheeseburgers.
Still, today McDonald’s is making a continuous
effort to provide simplistic ingredients and to add more nutrients to the menu. By 2022, in accordance with its new Global Happy Meal Nutrition Criteria, McDonald’s aims to still continue making its food healthier. They also plan to reduce antibiotics use in over 85% of their beef. Already, McDonald’s has begun to be looked upon more favorably. Ray Kroc famously explained that in any industry, “Look after the customers and the business will take care of itself.”
So, has McDonald’s done enough to shake its
tainted reputation? McDonald’s. Image from Fortune. https://fortune.com/2017/06/20/mcdonalds-sandwich-fastfood/
Summer 2020
18
References
19 Entrepreneur Illustrated | References
References
Summer 2020
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Interested in writing, creating graphics, or doing layout? Email ezheng22@choate.edu
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