5A – Identifying Local Opportunities

1) Local vape shops lose profits due to recent tobacco law

https://www.alligator.org/news/local-vape-shops-lose-profits-due-to-recent-tobacco-law/article_6033000a-42d4-11ea-bd9f-4f3ed2b963e4.html

Months ago, a law was implemented in Alachua County to raise the minimum to purchase cigarettes and vape-related products from 18 to 21. Shortly after, a similar law was put into place nationwide by the President. As a result of these recent changes, vape shops are reporting a decline in their customers and profits. These stores are reporting as losing up to 40 percent of their customers and lower wages are being paid to employees.

The problem is that the local vape shops and businesses are seeing massive drops in their customers and profits because of a law that affects a key age group.

This problem affects the vape shop owners and workers as well as the former 18-20 year old customers. Vape shops will have to find ways to target a new primary customer base and increase sales. The 18-20 year olds who once could regularly purchase their own tobacco and vape products are probably going to find illicit ways to continue to buy and use them.
 

2) Female inmates at Coleman infected with Legionnaires’
https://www.ocala.com/news/20200130/female-inmates-at-coleman-infected-with-legionnaires

The Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Florida Department of Health are investigating the cause of an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease at a women’s federal prison in Sumter County. As many as a dozen inmates have been admitted to the hospital to seek treatment for the disease. Legionnaires’, a severe type of pneumonia, is commonly spread through the aspiration of water containing the disease-causing bacteria. Other inmates as well as their families have claimed that the deterioration of the facilities contributed to the outbreak.

The problem is with the prison officials. They have not effectively taken care of the prison’s facilities which the inmates have reported complaints of mold and sewage spills.

This problem affects the inmates at the prison. On top of living in awful conditions, they are being exposed to a serious disease. Fortunately, none of infected inmates have died from the disease.
 

3) Lucky’s Market closing all but one Florida store
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/fl-bz-luckys-closing-florida-20200121-jc5uva7oirg3nb2gp4oasgxusm-story.html

Lucky’s Market, a regional supermarket chain, is closing all of their stores in Florida except for the store in West Melbourne. After being invested by Kroger in 2016, the chain’s stores were reported to have not being sustainable due to underperforming and financial troubles that would lead them to file for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.

The problem is that Lucky’s Market is not able to sustain its business and has to close most of their stores. Lucky’s tried to compete against the likes of supermarket giants such as Publix, Aldi, and Whole Foods and wasn’t effective.

This problem affects the entire company. Their stores will close and ultimately be bought by the big brand name grocery stores as mentioned before. The employees will also be affected because they will be losing their jobs.

4) Students, staff may have been exposed to Hepatitis A at a Citrus County school

https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/region-citrus-hernando/students-staff-may-have-been-exposed-to-hepatitis-a-at-citrus-county-school

A Citrus County primary school sent a letter home to parents stating that someone that had been on school grounds tested positive for Hepatitis A. As students and staff could’ve come in contact with this virus, the letter urged vaccinations.

The problem is that somebody who tested positive for Hep A came in contact with a school with young children where it can be easily transmitted.

This problem affects everyone at the school who are at-risk of becoming infected but also the parents of the children who’ll worry about their kids’ health and have to get them vaccinated.

 5) Gainesville ranks among top cities in country for cases of STDs
https://www.alligator.org/news/gainesville-ranks-among-top-cities-in-country-for-cases-of/article_a9329c42-3ce5-11ea-8273-ab9d4cbb9e51.html

Recent study shows that Gainesville is among the top cities in the United States for reported cases of STDs. According to the article, Gainesville ranks nearly in the top 50 in the country for STDs per 100,000 people. The two most common STDs that are prevalent in Gainesville are Chlamydia and Gonorrhea.

The problem is the rise in STD cases being reported in Gainesville. With Gainesville being a college town and UF offering many health resources, the numbers are bound to rise in STD cases reported compared to other regular cities.

This problem affects Gainesville residents, more specifically UF students as they are going to have to take more precautions in order to protect themselves from STDs.

4A – Forming An Opportunity Belief

I believe an opportunity exists for people who attend large sporting events such as an NFL game, NBA game, or a college sporting event. I believe the unmet need is to develop a food-delivery app, similar to Postmates and DoorDash, but for large sporting events. The app would detect your location to determine what stadium you’re currently and your order would be sent to a vendor that works inside the stadium. When you submit your order, you also put what seat you’re sitting in, so the vendor knows where to deliver the food. This app could also link your online ticket, just like our Florida Gators app for football tickets, for the added convenience of your seat and order to be linked together. Traditionally, food vendors used to be one of the unique aspects of American sporting events. These vendors would either set up somewhere in the stadium or have someone roam around the stadiums and sell snacks or drinks that you desired. However, today’s culture in America has now shifted to where convenience is now prioritized. People who have gone to a sporting event but refused to buy food or drinks because of long line waits or they didn’t want to miss any of the action has this need. This need has always existed because people don’t want to wait in long lines and miss the games, but it has become more prevalent in recent years. Stadiums have been seeing recent declines in average attendance numbers due to the rise of smart phones and streaming services giving people the option to view the games anywhere they want. Stadiums are working tremendously to implement features to make the game watching experience worth it. With the way food-delivery apps have become popular amongst college students and the millennial and Gen Z generations, a stadium styled Postmates would be a major step to improving the gameday experience.
 

The 4 questions I asked all three prototypical customers are
1.     Have you attended any sort of sporting event? If so, have you ever had any issues with the need described above?
2.     How long have you noticed this need?
3.     How are you currently addressing this need?
4.     Do you think an app like this would solve this need and would you use it?
 

Protocustomer #1 David W.

1. Yes, I attended every UF home football game this past season. I have had issues waiting in long lines to get food or drinks. I once went during halftime just to get bottled water and I didn’t even get back into my seat until shortly after the third quarter started.
2. I noticed this need at the first home game back in September since it was my first time going to a game.
3. I stopped buying food at the stadium and would eat somewhere else before I go to the games.
4. I’ve had positive experiences with food delivery apps before so I think it would work at sporting events and yes, I would use it.

 
Protocustomer #2 Carol M.

1. Yes, I have attended sporting events before. I’ve had issues with the need that is described.
2. I’ve noticed this need for a long time. Going to Bills games as a teenager in the late 80s, I remember the food lines always being long.
3. I typically don’t buy food inside the stadium and would rather get something to eat afterwards.
4. I think an app like this would solve the issue and yes, I would use it.

Protocustomer #3 Frank B.

1. I have attended sporting events before and yes, I’ve had issues with lines to get food.
2. I would say every time I go to a sporting event I’ve noticed this need.
3. I only go to get food during the game instead of halftime because that’s when the lines aren’t as busy or crowded.
4. I would love to see an app like this developed. It would solve the issue, so I don’t have to leave my seat or wait in long lines for food. I would definitely use it.

Reflection

• What I learned about my opportunity is the overwhelming support for it. All three people that I asked have stated they’ve had issues with getting food at sporting events, with 2 of them saying they’ve stopped getting food in the stadium, and would be in support of a Postmates-esque app for sports stadiums. Although I mentioned before that this need as always existed, it was interesting to hear the perspective of Protocustomer #2. She’s a bit older than the other two and even as a teenager over 30 years ago, this need existed and still hasn’t been effectively met or fixed.

Summary

• I believe my opportunity has growing interest and is possible. How it would get implemented is another different issue. Would the app be developed by a private company or would some agreements have to be made with the major sports leagues?  I do believe my opportunity is now more accurate as I listened to the perspectives of those who’ve attended sporting events and how this opportunity would be beneficial to their gameday stadium experience. Entrepreneurs should make customer feedback their biggest priority. The key to being a successful entrepreneur is to know the needs of their customers and adapt their opportunities that satisfies their needs. Unwilling to listen to feedback or the wants and needs of customers will not help you succeed in the long-run.