Day: November 5, 2014

I thought Professor Michael Roberto’s blog post on entrepreneurs was quite intriguing. His post was based off of an article by The Wall Street Journal that focused on analyzing the question: are entrepreneurs really different from the rest of us?

Professor Roberto pointed out that conventional wisdom says that entrepreneurs are different from everyone else. Why? Entrepreneurs are creative, daring, risk-seekers, ambitious, and are not afraid to make mistakes or fail. We make be inclined to believe that entrepreneurs are way different and better people than the average person. However, the article highlights that there is a major problem with the notion of conventional wisdom: “There is no direct evidence to support it and some solid research to suggest it isn’t true.”

Some questions Roberto raised are: Why has this conventional wisdom dominated our thinking about entrepreneurs for so long? And  why do we believe that entrepreneurs have a different make-up than the rest of us?

In Class 14 on innovation and entrepreneurship, we learned that good entrepreneurs are born with certain traits in addition to the few mentioned above. These include aggressiveness, curiosity, and intelligence. This perspective of entrepreneur characteristics is adopted by plenty, myself included. To me, entrepreneurs always seem very outgoing, lively, and definitely daring. But I disagree with the idea that all entrepreneurs are born with these traits. In contrast, I believe that these traits can be developed as one matures as a businessperson. Individuals can learn so much and develop and strengthen many qualities through training to help them become better in business. I honestly do not think that you have to be naturally gifted with these traits to be prosperous. But why do we believe that entrepreneurs have a different make-up than the rest of us? It is because society bases its ideas on what is seen. People look at the resulting success that famous entrepreneurs have, such as Bill Gates, and develop their perceptions off of them.  People just accept the end results of an entrepreneur’s success and believe that such a level of achievement is unattainable for them. Why has this conventional wisdom dominated people’s thinking about entrepreneurs for so long? I suppose it is because no one dares to question the conventional thinking anyway, even though there is no direct evidence to prove it.

So are entrepreneurs really different than us? I do not think so. Although entrepreneurship requires one to be seriously ambitious and risky, I believe any person can achieve that if they choose to. Plus, it is just our perception of entrepreneurs based on their success and disposition that seemingly places them in a spot above the average individual.

References

Cappelli, Peter, and Laura Huang. “Are Entrepreneurs Different Than the Rest of Us?” The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, 3 Nov. 2014. Web. 05 Nov. 2014. <http://online.wsj.com/articles/are-entrepreneurs-really-different-than-the-rest-of-us-1414965289>

Roberto, Michael. “Entrepreneurs: Are They Truly Different Than Others?”Professor Michael Roberto’s Blog. Blogger, 3 Nov. 2013. Web. 05 Nov. 2014. <http://michael-roberto.blogspot.ca/2014/11/entrepreneurs-are-they-truly-different.html>

Y Combinator. “Startup School 2014 Recap and Videos.” Y Combinator Posthaven. Posthaven, 14 Oct. 2014. Web. 05 Nov. 2014. <http://blog.ycombinator.com/startup-school-2014-recap-and-videos>

Images

Porat, Shawn. Entrepreneurs. Digital image. Entrepreneur Radio. Entrepreneurs Workshop, LLC, n.d. Web. 5 Nov. 2014. <http://www.entrepreneurradio.org/10-business-leaders-entrepreneurs-follow/>

Professor Michael Roberto. Digital image. Professor Michael Roberto’s Blog. Blogger, n.d. Web. 5 Nov. 2014.

I found Brian Wei Gonce’s blog post on Nike’s Appeal to Women particularly interesting because it highlighted the importance of segmenting to a certain audience and having good positioning. Nike has ventured into the female athletic-clothing industry and has witnessed an great increase in sales. According to the blog, “Nike has realized the importance of broadening their audience to…target [women].” Other companies, such as Adidas and Reebok are also following suit and are fabricating advertisements targeting women. Brian also mentioned how Lululemon’s focus on women is becoming more prevalent. What makes Lululemon position different from Nike’s is that the company started off revolving around female apparel instead of male. In contrast to Nike, I wanted to find out how Lululemon is currently appealing to the male market.

According to an article by Bloomberg, Lululemon plans to open standalone men’s stores by 2016. And as of this year, sales for menswear have increased by 5%. Although most men are not active enthusiasts of yoga, which is the physical activity the company bases its apparel, Lululemon offers running gear which has appealed to many more men than women.

I think that venturing into such a market was a good move for Lululemon. Back then, whenever I saw a man wearing Lululemon sweatpants I would make a big deal out of it because I thought it was weird. But now, understanding why men would purchase the gear because of the good quality and observing how successful sales are, Lululemon made the right choice in creating men’s clothing. When the announcement of men’s standalone stores first came out, a big challenge according to Business Insider was the brand perception. Lululemon is obviously more female inclined and the men’s section in every store is minimal relative to the women’s section. This has possibly deterred men from even entering the store and making their way to the men’s area. However, these standalone stores should appeal to men since they will be completely filled with menswear. Making the expansion can definitely strengthen Lululemon’s diversity in the market.

References

Kell, John. “Lululemon Is Striking a Stronger Pose With men.” Fortune. Time Inc., 12 Sept. 2014. Web. 05 Nov. 2014. <http://fortune.com/2014/09/12/lululemon-men-sales/>

Lutz, Ashley. “6 Reasons Men Don’t Want To Wear Lululemon.” Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc., 13 June 2013. Web. 5 Nov. 2014. <http://www.businessinsider.com/lululemon-opening-mens-stores-2013-6>

Rupp, Lindsey. “Lululemon Plans Men’s Stores by 2016 in Bid to Maintain Growth.” Bloomberg. Bloomberg L.P., 13 June 2013. Web. 05 Nov. 2014. <http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-13/lululemon-plans-men-s-stores-by-2016-in-bid-to-maintain-growth.html>

Wei Gonce, Brian. “NIKE’S APPEAL TO WOMEN.” Brian Wei Gonce’s Blog. WordPress, 27 Sept. 2014. Web. 05 Nov. 2014. <https://blogs.ubc.ca/brianweigonce/2014/09/27/nikes-appeal-to-women/>

Images

Carter, Lisa. Lululemon Athletica Inc. plans to expand its global markets in 2013 and beyond. Digital image. Medill. Medill Reports, 20 Mar. 2013. Web. 5 Nov. 2014. <http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/news.aspx?id=219239>

Villagomez, Andrew. Lululemon Menswear. Digital image. Askmen. N.p., 26 Aug. 2014. Web. 5 Nov. 2014. <http://ca.askmen.com/fashion/trends/lululemon-menswear.html>