Growing Entrepreneurs - Nurturing Success


The snow shortened our week a bit, but we will be rescheduling speakers and our civic presentations soon!

Get ready for the Scrubs Sales Blitz coming this weekend and next Monday. We have divided the class into three teams and the team that makes the most money during the blitz receives "Casual Fridays" for the rest of the year!

ClassE Schedule - 8-9:30 am
Location: Lifespan Ctr. (unless note d below)
11021 E. Cty. Rd. 800 N. Charleston (Loxa Road just NE of the hospital)

Monday, 2/29- Sales Blitz Day - NO CLASS - but your team may be selling product in the community

Tuesday, 3/1- Social Media Marketing as a Business with ClassE Alum Reece Bell

Wednesday, 3/2 - Understanding Financial Projections 
with Ann Deters, CEO of Vantage Outsourcing

Thursday, 3/3 - Tour of Rural King Distribution Center 
with Ted Sells

Friday, 3/4- Book Discussions 
Steve Jobs, led by Whitney Janssen
How to Sell Anything to Anyone, led by Cole Diepholz




Monday the students refreshed the product and took inventory in the Lifespan Center's kitchen. 

We also divided into 3 groups and came up with sales strategies and incentives for the blitz this upcoming weekend.
ClassE visited the General Electric Lamp Plant in Mattoon. Over the years this plant has fluctuated in number of employees and products based on consumer demands. In the past, they made the flashcubes for cameras and employed up to 1,800 associates. Now, 89% of what they produce are component parts for energy efficient soft white (EESW)  and halogen lights for other GE plants. 
Jeff Doyle, the plant manager (pictured in the header of the e-blast and Mike Randolph, (pictured above) along with Dan Taylor, CFO, gave us a wonderful presentation and tour. 

The process is very complex and costly to create the filaments.  Foreign countries have lower labor costs, so they can underbid the prices of the American manufacturers. This competition and the popularity of the new LED lights put a strain on the demand for the EESW made in Mattoon.


Class Investors 

(Click on the name to go to their website.)

 City of Charleston

City of Mattoon

Coldwell Banker Real Estate

Commercial Electric

Curry Construction

Dau Consulting

Diepholz Auto Group

Ealy's Real Estate Appraisals

Eastern Illinois Properties

First Mid-Illinois Bank and Trust

First Neighbor Bank

Flesor's Candy Kitchen

General Electric

Gilbert, Metzger & Madigan LLP

Jerome C. Groniger

Howell Paving, Inc.

Innovative Staff Solutions

Inyart Tire and Auto

Lake Land College

Lifetime Eye Care

Lorenz Supply Company

Marketing by Jones, LLC

McDonald's of Coles County 

Mid-Illinois Concrete, Inc.

Ne-Co Asphalt Company

Pinnacle Foods Group, LLC

Reed's Fly-On Farming

Company

Rural King Supply

Sarah Bush Lincoln 

Health System

Scholes Trucking, Inc.

SEED Center at Eastern Illinois University

Eli & Ann Sidwell

Slumberland Furniture

The Sparks Foundation

Unique Home Properties

United Graphics, Inc.

Upchurch Group, Inc.

Vantage Outsourcing

Veolia Environmental Services

Washington State Bank

Wells Fargo Advisors

West & Company, LLC

Wireless Mikes 
Coles County Council on Aging Lifespan Center
Class Hosts

 

 

 

Due to the increased enrollment, the class will meet at the Coles County Council on Aging LifeSpan Center for the entire year. We will still be touring businesses 2-3 days per week. Thank you LifeSpan for this great partnership.

 

Coles County Council on Aging Lifespan Center 

 
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Would you like to become an investor to support this class?
Call 217-549-2564 or contact Jeanne Dau at [email protected]