Eau Claire (WQOW) - Some people
take the weekend to relax, maybe run some errands or see friends. But a group
of high school students have been spending the past week learning how to run a
business as part of a marketing class.
"It's a good
experience to know what I'd be getting myself into," said Katie Lindquist,
a senior at Eau Claire
North High
School.
Katie is one of several Eau Claire North
students who spent Sunday learning how to run a business.
"It's definitely a
good thing to put on your resume, for like business experience. And I'm not
sure if I really want to do business, but its definitely eye opening so if I do
it would be good," Lindquist said.
She joins other students and their
marketing teacher in running "The North Pole," a temporary Christmas store on Starr
Avenue. It is a marketing club project where students are the salespeople.
"Not only do we
have Christmas trees, but we sell many decorations. Some of our decorations are
made by the Eau Claire North Art Club, so we have some ornaments and bulbs from
them, we also have used decorations that students gave to us to sell. All the
profits from that are going towards the local food pantry," said Shauna
Stamm, also a senior at Eau
Claire North High School.
So far, the students aren't minding
the work as much as the conditions.
"Having to sit in
the cold, try to stay warm, and still try and make sales, it's definitely an
experience that I feel every student should have. Being able to manage, and
sell, and work with money. Even load a tree on to a car," Stamm said.
However, they know the hours they
put in now can help them down the road.
"Now I know what
it's like to make profit margins and figure out, ok should we be open this day,
should we be open a different day, and just figuring out what would be best for
a business," said Stamm.
Over one hundred students have
worked on "The North Pole" in one way or another. The store, located at 1300 Starr Avenue, opened
December 1st and plans to stay open at least through December 15th.
