ENTREPRENEURSHIP INTERNAL ASSESSMENT

Name: Matthew Bell

Candidate Number: 1000570115

Teacher: Miss Morgan

Grade: 12 Arts

Theme: Wholesale and Retail Industry

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Firstly, I would like to thank God for allowing me to complete my research for

this IA successfully. I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to my

teacher, Ms. Morgan for having patience with me and letting me finish the study

on the Wholesale and Retail Industry and also giving me an outline of the

instructions clearly so I could do this research to the best of my ability. And

finally, I would like to say thanks to the entrepreneur I interviewed, Miss Marie

Segre, for taking time out of her busy schedule and to answer my questions

honestly.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction 4

Aims and Objectives 5

Data Collection 6-7

Review of Industry 8

Presentation of Data 9-15

Impact on Self 16-17

Conclusion 18

Bibliography 19

Appendices 20-22

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 INTRODUCTION

This Internal Assessment was conducted on how Segre’s Wholesale and

Retail has developed as a business over the years and the entrepreneurial aspects

involved in its growth. The researcher chose this industry to conduct his

research because of the example this entrepreneur has set for young

entrepreneurs to follow. The Wholesale and Retail Industry gives customers a

chance to purchase goods and services from different types of dealers. The

research has been focused on teaching the researcher process, the discipline it

takes to be an entrepreneur, the awareness needed and the temperament and

patience necessary from Miss Marie Segre, the entrepreneur of the business, to

handle the job.

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 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

Aim:

To completely understand the characteristics, entrepreneurial traits and the

sacrifices made by Miss Marie Segre to build her venture, Segre’s Wholesale

and retail.

Objectives:

1. To acquire information on Marie Segre’s path to becoming an entrepreneur

and the influences she had in deciding this is what she wanted to do.

2. To investigate the how Marie Segre’s venture has developed over the years

of its existence.

3. To investigate how Marie Segre handles her venture now from how she

handled it when she just started.

4. To find out the type of entrepreneur Miss Segre is.

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 DATA COLLECTION

For this research, my information was only gathered from a primary

source. The method that was used by the researcher to collect the data

presented was a face to face interview with the entrepreneur, this involved a set

of preorganized questions about the entrepreneur’s endeavors before and during

her time as an entrepreneur. An interview is a structured conversation where

the person conduction the interview(interviewer) asks the person being

interviewed (interviewee) a series of questions to get information on a certain

topic.

Marie Segre did not have a limit on the amount of questions to be asked,

in fact at the end of the interview she asked if that was all. There were twenty-

two questions asked to Miss Segre all in which she answered. The interview

was a bit informal to make the interviewee feel more comfortable so the

researcher could ascertain the most honest answers. Since it was a face to face

interview, the researcher could experience the emotions being expressed by the

interviewee and could understand the type of person and entrepreneur the

interviewee is better.

The method of data collection had its positives and negatives. It enabled

the researcher to obtain a large amount of information required to complete his

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research. The researcher wanted to record the interview but because of the loud

noise in the background this was not possible, so it was recorded in writing. It

was difficult to write everything the interviewee said but since it was necessary

to enhance the research the researcher made it work and is grateful for the

experience as it was his first interview as the interviewer. The interview had to

be paused a couple of times because of customers specifically asking for Miss

Segre to deal with an issue, this caused the conversation to stray from the topic

at times and also made the interview go on longer than anticipated.

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 REVIEW OF INDUSTRY

Wholesaling is the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers in large

quantities for repackaging and resale at higher prices in lower quantities. Retail

is the sale of goods or services to customers through multiple channels of

distribution in relatively small quantities for use of consumption rather than for

resale.

The wholesaler is like a transitioning channel of goods from the producer

to the retailers or consumers, the wholesalers buy goods in bulk straight from

the producers, stores the good in their warehouses, receives the orders from the

buyers and then delivers the goods.

Retailers buy their goods from the wholesales, stock the goods and sell

them to consumers. Examples of retails are supermarkets, department stores,

online merchants, door to door sellers etc. they must know what the customers’

want and what is in trend in order for their business to strive.

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 PRESENTATION OF DATA

Name and Description of the Venture:

The venture that was researched by the researcher for his IA is Segre’s

Wholesale and Retail. This venture is owned and operated by an experienced

entrepreneur by the name of Marie “Peaches” Segre. It is located in the

community if Gutters, Old Harbour and is highly respected by residents of the

area. This venture is 30 years old and has not moved since its opening. Its aim

is to provide the people of the community with the best household products for

the most affordable prices.

Miss Segre identified her venture as a Liquor, Meat and Grocery store.

Her products range from cleaning equipment to cooking oil, everything you

would see in a wholesale and retail and more. She started this venture because

she needed money to provide for her family and her place of work was shutting

down, so she needed to do something urgently. Segre’s Wholesale and Retail

currently has 4 employees, but there have been many young people who have

worked there briefly in order to pay for their education. The venture really

impacted the community in the way Miss Segre wanted it to.

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Background of Entrepreneur prior to starting the Business:

Marie M. Segre attended Seaforth High School and later moved on to

Durham Business college which is in North Carolina, USA. In college she

studied Business but then landed a job at a law firm she could not turn down.

Even while working at the law firm she knew she wanted to become an

entrepreneur and start her own business one day. When the law firm she

worked for was shutting down because of unfortunate circumstances, she

decided it was time to follow her dreams and start a business. She then started

Segre’s Wholesale and Retail and at 51+ years of age it is safe to say she has

mastered the art of being a small business owner.

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Characteristics of the Entrepreneur:

After the interview with Miss Segre, these are some of the characteristics she

possesses:

1. Self-motivation

2. Passionate

3. Risk taking

4. Hardworking

5. Problem Solver

6. Social Skills

7. Planning

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Origin for the Venture:

To start the business, Marie had to get a loan and pay it off over time as

the business excelled. She got into the Wholesale and Retail business because

there were less competitors in the type of venture in the area so her business

would start attracting a lot of customers instantly and so it did. Since she did

business in school it was an easy transition for her when she became an

entrepreneur.

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Industry and Market Description:

In the Wholesale and Retail Industry, the entrepreneur thinks she is above

her competitors. The reason for this is because of the relationship she has with

the customers and the loyalty they have to her because of how long she has been

serving them. She has stated that being an entrepreneur has become harder over

the years because of the constantly changing and addition of demands of the

customers. She also said there has been more competitors and the area has

become more developed and this adds to the difficulty of transitioning

throughout the years as an entrepreneur. To find out her customers’ opinions or

needs, she has interviews with them in order to satisfy them better. She also has

a suggestion box which the customers use frequently to help improve her

business. The products she sells can be used on toddlers as well as elders for

her to maximize profit and attention from all age groups. This affects the

business positively.

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Key Historical Events in the start and existence of the Venture:

One of the challenges Miss Segre faced when starting her business was

getting an institution to loan her the capital to start her business. Not all loaning

institutions were confident enough in her business plan to make enough money

to pay them back. Another challenge she faced was getting land to build the

venture on as most land owners did not want to sell. Some mistakes she made

early out in business was not having the proper security measures in place,

which resulted in theft and she corrected this by installing cameras in the

venture. Since the start of her career as an entrepreneur, she has accomplished a

lot as a parent and as a business woman. One of her biggest achievements is

being financially able to send her daughter through medical school at The

University of the West Indies and sending her son through high school at

Kingston College. As a business woman she is proud of being a wholesale and

retail that customers trust and she is extremely happy with the relationship she

has with residents in the computer. She also mentioned having real estate as

one of her biggest milestones.

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Major Present and Future Challenges and Emerging Opportunities:

As one of her major challenges she mentioned “knowing who to trust” as

one of them. This meaning that in the community several persons look for jobs

to survive but some of those persons are thieves. Because of the kindness she

has, in her early days people misused her kindness and stole from her business.

Another challenge is that competition grows every day, so she has to keep

updating her products to stay at the top of the market. An emerging opportunity

is spreading the name of Segre’s Wholesale and Retail to other parts of the

country. She is still deciding whether she wants to have another branch or not.

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 IMPACT ON SELF

The name of the business investigated by the researcher is Segre’s

Wholesale and Retail. It has been owned and operated for 30 years by Marie

“Peaches” Segre. This is a Liquor, Meat and Grocery Store that sells the best

products at the most affordable prices for the people who live in Gutters, Old

Harbour.

During this investigation, the researcher developed a deeper appreciation

for small business owners and got to understand what it is like to be an

entrepreneur to a deeper extent. He has realized the influential factors that can

really give persons that drive to become an entrepreneur. The interviewee

explained how passion and love can motivate you to be anything you want to be

and with dedication and hard work you can be successful in any career path you

choose. He learns that to be an entrepreneur you must possess certain qualities

and traits and without these you cannot be a good leader.

The researcher was educated on the Wholesale and Retail industry and

that to be successful in that type of industry you must listen to customer wants

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because this is an extremely competitive industry. Also, the location of your

venture is incredibly influential in its success. The researcher learned that you

must be able to adapt quickly to survive in this type of industry and stay ahead

of the competitors.

Having a successful venture will take time, so the researcher must be

patient but still goal-oriented if starting his own business. Making meaningful

connections is also a key factor, the interviewee built her venture in the

community she grew up in so it was easier for her to have good relationships

with the customers because she knew most of them from she was growing up.

It is important to take risks as an entrepreneur but calculated risks, do not throw

all your resources into a deal that has a high possibility of not being profitable

for you. But in order to become a top entrepreneur you must be open to taking

risks.

This Internal Assessment has taught the researcher how to be a successful

entrepreneur and it has showed what characteristics he will need to be at the top

of the competition. It has showed me that there will be many challenges and at

some points it will be hard to continue but with determination, self-motivation

and drive it is possible to be anything you want to be in life. In the future, the

researcher will definitely use what he has learnt while conducting this

investigation to drive his venture to the top of the business world.

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 CONCLUSION

This research paper was focused on the entrepreneurial process behind

starting Segre’s Wholesale and Retail by the experienced entrepreneur known as

Marie Segre. The researcher targeted his research in finding out how the

business was started and what inspired the start of the business.

The entrepreneur has to compete with other entrepreneurs in the area and

has to constantly stay on her toes for new products to sell in her venture. She

consistently introduces different types of products like recently added cooking

gas to stay ahead of her competitors. This displays her creativity and adapting

skills which she has gained from 30 years of running her own business.

Since the beginning of her venture, it has really grown and impacted the

community in extraordinary ways. The people of Gutters, Old Harbour see her

as a role model and there are young entrepreneurs following in her footsteps.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Person interviewed: Miss Marie Segre

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 APPENDIX 1

Questions used in the interview:

a) Name and Description of Venture

1. What is the name of your venture?

2. What type of venture is this?
3. Why did you start this venture?
4. How long have you been running this venture?
5. How many employees do you have?

b) Background of Entrepreneur prior to starting the Venture

6. What is your full name?

7. What range does your age fall in?
I. 18-30 years
II. 31-40 years
III. 41-50 years
IV. 50+ years
8. Where did you get your education?
9. What was your job before you became an entrepreneur?
10. Why did you become an entrepreneur?

c) Characteristics of the Entrepreneur

11. What are some of your characteristics as an entrepreneur?

d) Origin of the Venture

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 12. What inspired you to start you own business?
13. How did you begin your business?

e) Industry and Market Description

14. Where do you think you will be placed in the market when compared to
your competitors?
I. Above them
II. Below them
III. Equal
15. Since you have started your business has there been any impactful
changes?
16. What are some of the methods you use to find out your customers’ need
and opinions?
17. Has being an entrepreneur become easier or harder over the years? Why?

f) Key Historical Events in the start and existence of the Venture

18. What are some of the challenges you faced in starting your business?
19. What are some of the mistakes you made and how did you fix them?
20. Was there ever a time when you almost gave up on being an
entrepreneur?
21. What are some of your biggest accomplishments since you became an
entrepreneur?

g) Major present and future challenges and emerging opportunities

22. What are some major challenges both past and present and what are
some emerging opportunities for your business?

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 APPENDIX 2

Picture of Miss Marie Segre working at her business:

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