Write a 2 page summary about this.

The main problem that Sunshine State Ice Cream Parlors is seeing is that the company is looking to expand to new locations, without needing to operate those locations themselves. Thus, they are looking into franchising opportunities and potential expansion through that. They knew they had a problem when they realized that expansion was something they were looking for, but nobody had the time or wanted to exert the effort to open a new location, and decided to look into franchising the business to allow others to run their business model and have success elsewhere.

The most significant symptom is that there is a push to expand with no knowledge of how to do so. This is because none of the family has been involved in running a small business before this one. Many of the other family members saw Isabel’s success and decided to follow her lead and open their own locations close to their homes. This led to some of these locations operating with debt service. Although all locations are seeing a profit, because of this debt they are looking for more profit to put more money in their own pockets. This drive for more income pushes the family to want to open more stores, without the hassle of being the operator of all of these locations.

There are a number of stakeholders in this problem, starting with the entire Rivera family. Although they each have a different stake in what’s happening, they are each involved. Other stakeholders would include potential franchisees and the customers of their establishments. The primary stakeholder would be Isabel Rivera since she opened the company and has her livelihood at stake. Isabel’s parents are another important stakeholder, as they would be interested not only in the success of their daughter but also in ensuring they see a return on their investment in all of these properties. Isabel’s siblings have a stake as well, as they’ve left their other ventures to open these stores as well and would like to see them succeed so they can pay off their own debts. Potential franchisees want to see success so they can earn their own money, and open their own stores away from where the existing stores are located. Customers have a stake in getting a good product at a fair price, and they would like to see those needs met as well.

With so many stakeholders, there are many different criteria for success. The success criteria for Isabel is being able to continue to run her shops and operate at a profit so that she can continue to follow her dream. The success criteria for Isabel’s parents are getting their investment back and continuing to earn on that investment. The success criteria for Isabel’s siblings would be continuing to profit off of their business. Franchisees would want to see profits and enjoy running their own business. Customer success criteria would be to continue to see the same quality and pricing that they’ve come to enjoy, and for new customers to be able to experience the same through new franchises.

The main constraint here is that this family has no idea how to franchise. This is their first small business, and they’ve seen relatively rapid expansion. They aren’t sure what to do next, but they want to see more profits and are looking for an avenue to do so. Another constraint is that although Isabel started the company, her parents have the majority stake in it and half ownership in all of the stores. Additionally, they do not seem to be incorporated and instead operate each location individually rather than under one main branch. They are very loose with rules, only having an informal agreement not to offer discounts or promotions on ice cream.

There were assumptions made here through incomplete data. One assumption made is that Sunshine State Ice Cream Parlor doesn’t have much structure, as the information provided does not mention them hiring an attorney or anyone else to discuss this process. Other assumptions include that these stores are all in similar locations, being streetfront businesses in popular tourist areas- the location means a lot for a store like this, and although all located near beaches we aren’t sure exactly where they’re located in these areas. This information would allow the recommendations made within this paper to be more substantial and pointed at individual success.

Primary data is the data collected firsthand through surveys, experiments, and other hands-on attempts to collect data that are done on-site. This is the active data directly pertaining to what is going on with a business, and the customers that frequent that business. It is the best way to look at exactly what customers are looking for, or if a company has shortcomings in those areas. Secondary data is the data collected by an outside source. For example, if you were to gather the information that came from someone else’s summary of where they got their information that would be considered secondary data. Your information would have come from a source of a source. This data also would be information collected that isn’t directly related to the business itself but looks at factors that may be influencing trends in purchase so that decisions about marketing, inventory, and other crucial business decisions can be made with the best possible outcomes.

The data collected and the charts included within show trends in customer purchases related to ice cream flavors, toppings, and sizes. In addition, there are also trends in customer purchases related to weather, season, and time of day. All of these lead to decisions that should be made related to inventory and staffing. With all of these attributes put into place, this allows us to ensure that there are no stock-outs or long waits for customers who may otherwise decide to go to another establishment for their ice cream fix.

One piece of secondary data that was looked at was the type of ice cream that customers would be looking to enjoy. A poll of nearly 20,000 Americans was done in July of 2020 and found that Chocolate Ice Cream is the most popular, with 17% of the vote, followed by Vanilla at 15%, and Strawberry, Mint Chocolate Chip, and Butter Pecan rounding out the top 5 with 8% of the vote for each of them. Based on the fact that your company primarily sells five flavors at each store, these should be the flavors you look at. Although this only accounts for 56% of preferred flavors, the other 44% of preferences are split rather evenly across nine other flavors in this poll, meaning that there is a very strong preference for these five flavors and they should be the ones carried in your stores. This data is relevant because it shows the popular flavors across America and ties directly to the product you sell. It would also be considered relevant since it does not have a pinpoint outcome or solution. It is accurate because it surveys 20,000 random Americans from all walks of life, and they have no reason to mislead anyone on their favorite ice cream flavors. When numbers come into play it becomes accurate because there is a clear representation of the exact amount of data points which gives you a clear vision of what the outcome or solution is. This survey is from only three months ago, making it a very recent depiction of what customers are looking for right now. This was a very complete list of options, with more than 14 options so customers didn’t choose their favorites out of what was available, they were directly able to choose their favorite flavor. This is comparable because this is the exact product that the Rivera family is looking to sell.

Secondary external data would include data for favorite toppings. After conducting this review we found that 52% of people prefer small chocolate bits on their ice cream. Next up was hot fudge at 49% and nuts at 40% for favorite toppings, with whipped cream not far behind at 37%. The information provided in this external data is both relevant and accurate. This was relevant because of the survey of people done collectively based upon the topic of ice cream and favorite toppings but also accurate because of the statistical facts documented after the conclusion of the survey. This survey identifies which are the top 3 most popular ice cream toppings amongst Americans with over half of the people surveyed preferring small chocolate bits and the rest with different toppings such as hot fudge, nuts, and whipped cream. It is considered to be accurate because it was a randomized survey of about 2,000 Americans. This data is also considered timely due to the fact that it was gathered in 2020, therefore the information is still relevant. To our knowledge, there does not seem to be any information missing from the data. Every piece of data was conducted fairly. This information is comparable to the information for the ice cream shop because it identifies which would be the best toppings to have more supply of. By filling out this survey this will increase awareness to the company executives so they have a better understanding of what the public population wants more of and what this ice cream shop can improve on. Surveys are a great marketing strategy without being pushy and over the top where it could potentially scare away potential and or existing customers.

A survey was conducted to acquire primary data and insights on general consumer preferences and tastes regarding ice cream products. One of the questions on the survey was: “How do you like your ice-cream?”. This was a multiple-choice question with the options being: traditional served, soft served, or gelato. Over 50 percent of survey takers answered ‘traditional’, while soft served and gelato were both at approximately 25 percent. Based on the data, the client should definitely look at serving traditional ice cream over other options. Traditional was wildly popular compared to the other selections.

Another piece of data collected was based on the question: “What time of day do you eat Ice cream”. This was also a multiple choice. The options were: morning, afternoon, evening, night. A stunning 45 percent of survey takers answered for ‘evening’, with ‘night’ in second place at 22 percent and ‘afternoon’ in third at 12 percent. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the ice cream shop is properly staffed in the evenings for the rush of customers they would likely experience. Doing so would also reduce customer wait times dramatically.