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May 21, 2009
Business Is Booming at CALS High: Entrepreneurial Seniors Market Royal Tees
There's positive economic news out of CALS Early College High School, where a business venture started by seniors is about to go national.
"Money can be the best way to motivate kids," says economics teacher Jennifer Peyrot, who worked in retail and entertainment management before she began teaching at CALS. "I wanted to bring that into the classroom."
Peyrot and her seniors launched Falcon Royal Tees, a t-shirt business. The venture is part of Junior Achievement, a program that teaches kids about business. Junior Achievement projects aren’t normally part of regular classroom instruction. But this isn't an ordinary economics class.
"They're very motivated. They really want to perform," says Falcon Royal Tees graduate adviser Imran Ahmand, who just earned his MBA from USC.
"They know their demographic well, so they're targeting their own demographic. They just did a small twist on an existing product."
The product is Pro Club Tee, popular for its durability and its loose, low fit. The twist is a trademark logo; a bold, thick T wearing a crown. The logo sits low, just above the hem. That way, it can be seen even if the t-shirt is being worn under something else.
"We asked a lot of questions," says Falcon Royal Tees President Vanessa Mendez says, poring over the marketing data she and her executive team compiled before launching the project. 200 students were asked about t-shirts, logos, spending habits and styles.
The results were compiled with help from a statistics teacher.
The result was a business plan that took first place at a local Junior Achievement competition in April, where Falcon Royal Tees was named Company of the Year.
"They were nervous," says Peyrot, "But they really held up, even though they had some technical difficulties with their
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From left, Miriam Navarro, Juan Carlos Vasquez, Graduate Adviser Imran Ahmand, Vanessa Mendez and Economics Teacher Jennifer Payrot won Company of the Year at the southern California Junior Achievement competition
From left, Miraim Navarro, Economics Teacher Jennifer Payrot, Juan Carlos Vasquez, Vanessa Mendez and Graduate Adviser Imran Ahmand examine marketing data, as they prepare for the national Junior Achievement competition
Designer Beto Vasquez shows off the Falcon Royal Tee with the trademark logo
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presentation. They walked up to the judges, looked them in the eye and greeted them, thanked them for coming. I think the way they presented themselves made a big impression."
The victorious Falcon Royal Tees team is now headed for Junior Achievement's national competition in Boston this summer. The Falcon team will be up against 23 competitors from across the country.
"We're going to win," says Juan Carlos Vasquez, Vice President of Human Resources.
The winning attitude is part of Falcon Royal Tees business model, which emphasizes ethics. Part of the proceeds support CALS after school programs.
As they prepare for the national competition, the Falcon Royal Tees team is focused on sales goals. Students who sell the shirts get a commission, and social marketing tools like Facebook are being enlisted as well. There's a lot to think about; pricing, supplies, inventory and expenses that now include travel to Boston.
"It's not as easy as it looks," says Vanessa Mendez. "That's for sure."
Vanessa Mendez, President
Juan Carlos Vasquez, Vice President, Human Resources
Miriam Navarro VP of Marketing
Romero Martinez, VP Finance
Beto Vasquez, designer.
USC MBA student Imran Ahmand
Billiam Pleitez VP of Production
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