Raspa Stand Empire 1

Raspa Stand Empire

Miguel Cerda Jr.

South Texas College

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Raspa Stand Empire

The Raspa Stand is a Rio Grande Valley staple. The delicious treat that can be

customized in millions of different ways from the simple fruit flavors like Strawberry and

Watermelon to the delicious combinations like pica dilly’s the Raspa business is not a new

concept most stands are local mom and pop shops that become staples of their communities.

Stands like Margo’s and Panther’s Den in Weslaco, TX. These stands have been open since

before I can remember, but they haven’t grown or expanded. This made me think what if the

classic Raspa/Snow Cone stand was modernized with the business knowledge that we know

today. To grow and expand this business I would implement the 4 basic functions of

management (Planning, Organizing, Leading and Controlling), implement strategic and tactical

plans and apply the Open systems theory to my Raspa business the Weslaco Raspa business

Margo’s.

Implementing the four basic functions of management would be the most important thing

that I would do because it would be the foundation for everything that I would be doing.

Implementing this system to an existing business would cause some challenges because these

business are old and they have been successful for years and they’ve been running in a specific

way for a long time. Some arguments against implementing this system would be that the

business has been successful for so long why are you going to change everything up. If it’s not

broken don’t fix it. And to that type of thinking I would try to explain that I’m not really

changing things up that much I’m just changing the terminology and possibly thinking bigger

than previous leadership. To expand and grow we have to treat the business like a business and

not a stand.
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Another concept that I would use would be to get make the goals of the organization

known to all employees. Implementing Strategic and Tactical plans would be a major thing that I

would definitely try to incorporate into the business right away an example of this would be

things like having the strategic plan to open a second stand before the end of the second year of

operation. Including employees in these plans would create an incentive for them to work harder

and example of this would be that the opening of a second stand would lead to the promotion of

someone to help run the other stand so that I’m not stretched too thin.

Another concept that I would incorporate into the Raspa stand would be Open Systems

Theory which says that organizations influence their area and community and their community

and area influences them. By incorporating this idea, I would adapt the stand to include things

that the community wants. These type of things would be to include healthier and more natural

options. Maybe we would change up the syrups we serve to give the people what they want.

Most stands use the same syrups anyways and including more natural and healthy options that

still taste great but won’t give you diabetes. It’s a win-win situation because we would be

addressing a real problem in our community. The Rio Grande Valley has a high rate of obesity

and diabetes and although we do sell sugary sweets we could make money while we help.

Last but not least I would like to make sure that my organizations manager/managers

would incorporate the idea that a good manager is also a good leader. Yes, we need to make sure

we’re doing our jobs as managers but also I need my managers to lead. This is a people business

we deal with people not robots. Efficiency is important but so are your coworkers. Businesses

live and die by their employees and their ability to do their job. By being a good manager and

leader I mean that the managers in my organization would influence and inspire the other

employees to do their jobs as efficiently as possible because they generally like working there.
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People work hard for people they like and I want to create an environment where people like

going to work and they enjoy their job.

Plan of Action

My plan of action for the Margo’s Raspa stand in Weslaco would be to ultimately open

up another stand in Weslaco and eventually throughout the Rio Grande Valley and then to

eventually expand my business into catering events like parties, social events, weddings. Raspas

aren’t generally a part of these events and if they are the quality and consistency is not on par

with our Raspas.

To make these goals happen Margo’s would have to invest in new machines and

eventually something like a small trailer that would allow us to reach our goals for expansion.

The trailer could serve a dual purpose in the beginning as a second stand that is also towed to

special catered events. By implementing the 4 basic concepts management the organization

would be able to be more organized and we would be able to run the business and reach our

goals more efficiently for example if sales are down I can take control and implement something

us to help us reach our goals for expansion. The structure of the organization would involve me

at the top as the owner and manager and I would have one assistant manager on staff in the

beginning and as the business expands so do the number of managers. The rest of the staff would

be made up of employees that who’s general duties would be to make the Raspas and take

peoples orders. As of right now at the beginning of the expansion I would only have one assistant

manager and they would be in charge of the business if I need to be somewhere else for some

other reason.

The strategic plan for the organization would be the expansion and growth of the business

overall. The tactical plans that would help out the organization would include things like to make
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sure we sales meet a certain amount each month so that we can invest the profit back into the

business to buy things like a new machine and a trailer and things that would help us

ultimately reach our goals. Implementing these type of goals and making sure that employees

are aware are things that will ultimately allow the business to grow. An incentive program could

be implemented where the employee that sells or shows real initiative will receive a bonus which

could be things like gift cards or cash or being able to pick your schedule for the week.

Implementing little incentives can bring up morale and make people happier at work and make

them work harder.

By implementing the Open Systems Theory Margo’s could start to offer different options

that our competitors don’t these things can be things for example healthier options like starting to

use syrups that aren’t as artificial as the stuff that we already use. We can start off by offering a

small amount of healthier options and depending on how they do we can either expand or pull

back. By implementing the open systems theory we’re acknowledging our community and

listening to the people who matter the most the customer. The healthier options can help us start

a marketing campaign where we could even have a special that promotes the new flavors and

incorporates awareness or a charity that is dedicated to healthier living. By participating in our

community we’re not only helping people we’re also expanding our brand. People like to do

business with people they know. We need to participate more in our community to expand.

Implementing these ideas can help Margo’s grow from a Weslaco staple to a Rio Grande

Valley staple in a matter of years.

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References

Cheverie, J. (2016, March 21). Managers and Leaders: Are They the Same or Different?

Retrieved from https://er.educause.edu/blogs/2016/3/managers-and-leaders-are-they-the-

same-or-different.

How Much Does It Cost to Open & Operate a Shaved Ice Stand?: FTE Episode 104. (2017,

January 14). Retrieved from https://foodtruckempire.com/shaved-ice/open-operate/.

What's the Annual Profitability and Costs of a Shaved Ice or Snow Cone Stand? (2016,

December 2). Retrieved from https://foodtruckempire.com/shaved-ice/profitability/.

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Appendix A

Raspa Stand Three Year Growth

80000
70000 $75,000.00
60000
50000
$50,000.00
40000
30000
20000 $25,000.00
10000
0
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