Galinat

Name: Sarah Galinat

Guiding Question: Would I like to own my own small business when I am older?

(optional) Use this space to list possible activities, tasks, experiences. Remember everything you do should help you answer your Guiding Question.

(Required) This plan is a “best guess” as to what you and your mentor think you will be doing. It is not meant to be a hard and fast schedule for your Exploration. The plan should illustrate how you intend to complete a minimum of 80 hours.


 * = Date ||= Location/Activity ||= Number of Hours ||
 * = 5/5- 5/8 ||= Frolic! Shadowing my mentor, working with customers, stocking shelves, doing inventory, learning about the start-up process, learning about the finances involved, completing projects created by my mentor. ||= 15.5 ||
 * = 5/20- 6/1 ||= Frolic! Shadowing my mentor, working with customers, stocking shelves, doing inventory, learning about the start-up process, learning about the finances involved, completing projects created by my mentor. ||= 62.5 ||
 * = 6/3-6/5 ||= Frolic! Shadowing my mentor, working with customers, stocking shelves, doing inventory, learning about the start-up process, learning about the finances involved, completing projects created by my mentor. ||= 15.5 ||
 * =  ||> Total Number of Hours ||= 93.5 ||
 * =  ||> Total Number of Hours ||= 93.5 ||
 * =  ||> Total Number of Hours ||= 93.5 ||
 * =  ||> Total Number of Hours ||= 93.5 ||
 * =  ||> Total Number of Hours ||= 93.5 ||

Journal: ** Journal #1 ** Throughout the start of my exploration I have been able to follow my Plan of Action rather well. I have been learning a lot about the store and all of the processes that go in to making it possible. In my time at the store I have been able to get a good sense of what it would take to own my own small business and, through my experiences, I feel that I am very close to answering my guiding question. Discussions with my mentor have been very helpful in my learning experience. She has thoroughly explained to me each process of starting the business and how to keep it up. I have learned the methods of ordering products, along with how to judge what will sell and what will not. I have also learned how to deal with customers through first hand experience, including all details that go along with that, such as ringing them up, helping them when the have questions, and preparing the dressing rooms. In my first few days at frolic! I have performed many tasks set forth by my mentor that have helped me in my learning process. These tasks include: dealing with customers, stocking shelves, running errands, dropping deposits at the bank, and setting up an email contact sheet for news letters to our customers. Overall, my experience so far has been excellent and I cannot wait to learn more. **Journal #2** My exploration has been extremely fun and enlightening. I have performed the boring, mundane and not so glamorous jobs that many do not realize they are stuck with when they are a business owner, such as sweeping, window washing and cleaning toilets. However, i have had other experiences that were much more fun. My mentor introduced me to 3 different sales reps for 3 different designers that ranged from New York to Brazil. Some reps bring their sample line into the store and the owner looks at each piece to decide which to buy and how many of each. Other reps have a van that holds the samples and the owner enters the van, which is sort of creepy, to pick out the inventory they are going to buy. Each of these experiences with the reps has been unique. Some are very gracious and easy going, while others are pushy and attempt to pressure one into buying items that would not work for their store. The whole process is extremely fun and it was good to see the behind the scenes of how the product is purchased. I have also learned the ordering process for items off the internet for those designers who do not have reps. Through conversations with my mentor I have learned that it is better to not purchase clothes online due to the inability to truly see the colors and certain details on the garment, so most online purchases are of scarves, jewelry and handbags. The later days of my exploration have also allowed me to be more independent of my mentor, meaning that I now know the processes well enough to preform them on my own and help customers without the aid of my mentor to make the sale. **Journal #3** In the final days of my exploration I used the knowledge I had learned previously in order to master certain tasks and become more comfortable on my own in a business setting. I was able to run the store by myself for short amount of time when my mentor had to run errands, as well as identify tasks that were not yet complete and preform them before my mentor had asked. Through many conversations with my mentor, when business was slow, I have been able to learn the hard, behind the scenes, work that all small business owners must complete when starting their own shop. Due to the fact that I was working in a clothing boutique I learned a lot about the processes of retail more so than any other business opportunity, however, due to the location of the store, as well as my mentor's connection with other merchants in town, I was able to talk to many other people who owned businesses of other sorts. Among the people I met were, the owner of a tea shop down the street, the manager of the paper mart next door, and a friend of Leslie's who was attempting to open an ice cream shop. Through short conversations with these various different people I was able to get a feel for the differences between the processes involved in each and learn more in depth about small business owners. One of my last days at the store was Kennet's First Friday Art Stroll, in which the first friday of every month so stores are open late and many feature local artists or designers to, essentially, create a big block party. My mentor told me that this is usually a very good day, business-wise, for her store as well as the stores in the community. First Friday was definitely the most crazy of all days I spent at frolic!, however, it was definitely the most fun.

6/6/11 POL in Library: Successfully completed. Mentor present. Copy of mentor evaluation handed in. Thank you written and hand delivered. R. Bernard