A historical and critical analysis of an entrepreneurial venture Essay

A historical and critical analysis of an entrepreneurial venture - Essay Example m, 2010). Entrepreneurship is therefore, the process of identifying business opportunities and gathering the necessary resources to start the business. Historically, in the 20th century, Joseph Schumpeter advanced one of the most used theories. He spearheaded the venturing process and gains credited for making it happen. He claimed that an entrepreneur replaces an existing economy by destroying one and making a better economy. Schumpeter’s first example of entrepreneurship was the combination of steam engines, which used coal and wagons. From this came the horseless carriages. This led to the invention of the car. We can see there was usage of already existing technology, which just got bettered. This came with a significant reduction in cost. Entrepreneurs learn from experience and with time the entrepreneurial culture grows. An example of an entrepreneurial venture is the Starbucks, a leading coffee company in Washington. It is the largest coffee house in the world, having o utlets in most significant world cities. Starbuck commenced its operations in Seattle Washington in March 30 1971. The founders were Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegla and Gordon bowker. It used the following strategies in the venturing process to make it a success story. ... There was a need to start coffee chains in the area and they capitalized on this opportunity. Consumers are mostly the best source of information, as they are the end users. Many other entrepreneurs have been able to identify business opportunities through discussions with retailers, wholesalers, or representatives of the manufacturer. Starbucks was able to carry out thorough market research by means of questionnaires. They sought information from existing consumers and other related businesses. Starbucks invested in modern coffee brewing technologies. It also stood a decent chance against the competitors. It is worth noting that opportunities do not offer financial reward commensurate to the risks that the entrepreneur chooses to take. Starbucks also had a concrete assessment plan which they put to use. It provides a basis explaining why to adopt or not adopt the opportunity. The plan usually defines the product or the service we are interested in, and the entire requirement necessa ry to actualize it and make it a viable venture. It also outlines the financial requirements necessary. The next thing is the development of the business plan. A business plan can only be made after having identified the opportunity. It is unique for that particular business opportunity. The business plan will assist the entrepreneur gauge the resources needed in developing the business opportunity. It also helps identify resources required to achieve the same, and how and where to gather such resources. The business plan also details how to manage the venture once it has come into operation. The Starbuck business plan outlines how they planned to venture into the market and how they planned to raise funds. After coming up with the business plan, one must come up with a