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Business Foundations I Mercy Corps PDX
March 19, 2020 @ 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Is Business Ownership for You?
Business Foundations 1 takes you along the small business journey from idea to owner. You will discover what it takes to start your operation and explore the potential of your idea.
Starting a business can be a great way to bring in extra cash or to make a living doing something you enjoy. Mercy Corps Northwest makes it easier to learn the basics of starting and operating a small business through our business foundations I class.
The six-session series provides discussion, tools and guidance on the following topics:
- Week 1 – Introduction to Business: Learn about the different business structures, how to register your business, how to create an elevator speech for your business, and how to track your spending.
- Week 2 – Start – Up Cost and Credit : Develop your Unique Value Proposition, determine the start up cost for your business, and learn about credit.
- Week 3 – Overhead Cost and Focus Groups: Define what a focus group is, complete an overhead cost sheet for your business, and conduct a competition analysis.
- Week 4 – Market Analysis: Understanding market research, your target market & competition, pricing strategy & free market research tools
- Week 5 – Marketing and Product Pricing: Continue to understand market research, your target market & competition, and pricing strategy. In this class you will begin incorporating aspects of the business plan to put into practice.
- Week 6 – Profit & Loss and Developing a Business Plan: Learn how to develop and business plan and discuss the importance of the Profit & Loss Statement.
By the end of week 6 all students should have a better understanding of:
- How to decide if a business idea will work
- How to get the word out and attract customers
- Figuring out how much money you’ll need to start it, and to keep it going from one month to the next
- The steps for registering your business with the state
- Learning how you can best use your valuable time and resources
- Tell a clear and compelling story when people ask, “What do you do?”
Who is this for?
Business Foundations I is for people with limited time and money, and great ideas. No prior business experience or education is necessary, and the class is designed to help you determine if you’re ready to start a business.
Details
Times: The course consists of six three-hour sessions. Class is held on Thursdays from 5:00pm-8:00pm on the following dates.
- March 19
- March 26
- April 2
- April 9
- April 16
- April 23
*Scholarship Option 1 – Income Based: Partial scholarships are available from Mercy Corps Northwest to low-income individuals with proper documentation. Applications must be received one week before the start of class to be considered. Link to Online Application.
*Scholarship Option 2 – Designated for People of Color: In partnership with the City of Portland , we are thrilled to be able to offer people of color scholarships to any training activity. Eligible clients need to have a home or business address within the city of Portland. Our goal is to make business education accessible to everyone in our community. Link to Online Application.
PLEASE DO NOT REGISTER FOR A TRAINING ACTIVITY IF YOU PLAN ON APPLYING FOR A SCHOLARSHIP – wait until your scholarship application has been approved or denied and then proceed with registration. You will be contacted via phone or email by Mercy Corps Northwest after we receive your application. Questions? Email training.mcnw@mercycorps.org
REFUND POLICY: Refunds are available up to one week prior to the start of the class. If you are unable to continue attending class we do our best to accommodate your situation. Registration is not complete without payment.
What can you expect?
People who have taken Business Foundations discover that it’s a fun, easy way to learn about business ownership and a great way to find support right here in our entrepreneurial community. Here’s what other aspiring entrepreneurs had to say after completing the class:
“Hearing others and sharing helped give me the confidence I needed to move forward”
“I really liked having a plan–having the combination of the course book, homework, and class was perfect–it made an overwhelming prospect much more manageable. I was able to mull things over and be prepared for class—which always address questions that came up for me–even if I wasn’t the one asking. The whole format and instruction was incredibly valuable”
“This class was so supportive and empowering!”