RUNNING HEAD: INTERVIEW 1

Week 4 Interview with an entrepreneur

Shane Gray, 566541

LDR606

Siena Heights University, Graduate College

07/28/2017
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RiversEdge Ice Cream & Popcorn.

Meet Marcia Magiera,

owner of RiversEdge Ice Cream &

Pop Corn, which is located in

Battle Creek, Michigan,

sandwiched between the north

banks of the Battle Creek, and the Linear Path (photo inset above, from Google Maps, 2017).

Eighteen years ago Marcia bought a building that appeared more like an old run-down,

brick shelter for strays. In 2013, she decided that it was time to turn that empty canvas into what

is now a popular hangout where families enjoy the sweet treats of summer, and warm drinks and

entertainment in the winter. This interview will reveal how a Real Estate Broker turned a

building that the city considered an eye-sore, into a destination stop for residents and visitors

alike, opening RiversEdge in spring of 2016.

New beginnings

Growing up, one of her favorite memories was of riding the bus into the city to go to the

ice cream shop, especially Baskin Robins. A childhood where the love of fairytales and holiday

decorations were seeds that several

years later would be part of an

inspiration for a business. According

to Mosakowski (1998),

entrepreneurial resources are defined

as the propensity of an individual to

behave creatively, act with foresight,

use intuition, and be alert to new

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opportunities (p. 625). Marcia has proven that this definition is correct. During the Christmas

season of 2016, Marcia won a contest where she presented her vision of RiversEdge as a

gingerbread house (photo inset, bottom p. 2, top p.3, 2016, bottom p. 3, 2017, from Marcia

Magiera). Marcia presented the most innovative, creative, and most likely to become more than

a business, but a destination; she received a

several thousand dollar prize to renovate

the business into her vision, as she had

presented it. RiversEdge became one of

the popular destinations during the

Christmas season, within the city of Battle

Creek, Michigan.

In 2013 Marcia began working part-time at MOO-ville Creamery, which is located in

Nashville, Michigan. MOO-ville provided assistance in solidifying the idea that ice cream is a

treat that the young and old alike thoroughly enjoy, and creating an atmosphere where families

can stop not only to enjoy a treat, but to spend time having fun, connecting as a family. This was

the beginning of a seed being planted for what type of

atmosphere Marcia had to create for the residents of

Battle Creek to have a desire to choose RiversEdge as a

frequent stop, and present itself as desirable for visitors.

When asked what her why is, Marcia peered into the

store and after observing the children and the adults all

enjoying themselves in something she created, she

looked at me and said, The young people. Watching

them come back and seeing them grow and mature.

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Developing capital

Prior to opening RiversEdge, Marcia was a

successful Real Estate Broker who deals in commercial

properties. Therefore, she was fortunate enough to have

her own financing to begin the business on her own.

Beginning a business with capital already established is

rare in a high percentage of new businesses. The

research of De Bettignies (2008) provides that in the United States, small firms represent more

than 99.7% of all employers [...and] (sic.) create more than 50% of the nonfarm private GDP; yet

to even get started, they almost invariably require external funds (p. 151). As the creative juices

continued to flow, so it was also with the finances. A vision of winter guests gathering at

RiversEdge to enjoy entertainment, drinks and camaraderie, presented the need to seek

financing. Finances to pay the entertainers, create a warm space for patrons, and entertainers, to

enjoy the offerings of their community space, compliments of Marcia and RiversEdge. To gain

the financing necessary, Marcia sought assistance from a local financial institution, also known

as the bank.

Initially, Marcia began her business with just a couple of family members and very close

personal friends who nearly volunteered their time to assist in serving the immediate loyal

customer base. By the second year that RiversEdge has

been in business, Marcia has hired an employee payroll

which consists of two managers, a drink specialist, and a

band of six teenagers who serve the food items to patrons.

The restaurant now consists of a patio, picnic area, and a

family style dining area, and bar, inside the store.

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To assist with marketing, an artist has also been employed

to continuously create an atmosphere with the ambiance of

family, fun and entertainment (photos inset top & bottom

pp. 4-5, 2016-2017, from Marcia Magiera).

Ideas to reality

Knowing what services and items to offer for

customers is obviously as important to the success of the

business as it is to gaining patrons who continue to return,

and interesting enough to draw in visitors. Keller (1993) indicated that an understanding of the

difference between product-related, and non-product-related attributes, will assist the

entrepreneur in getting their product and service right, according to what the customers want or

are interested in. Product-related attributes are defined as the ingredients necessary for

performing the product or service function sought by consumersProduct-related attributes vary

by product or service category (p. 4). These attributes are important to the customer who is

looking for a quality product or service which will last and provide for a need. Non-product-

related attributes are defined as external aspects of the product or service that relate to its

purchase or consumption (p. 4). As an entrepreneur

in the entertainment or restaurant business, the non-

product-related-attributes are some of the most

important factors to consider for customer interest

and satisfaction. According to Keller (1993) there

are four things which should be focused on: price

information, packaging or product appearance

information, user imagery (i.e., what type of person

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uses the product or service), and usage

imagery (i.e., where and in what types of

situations the product or service is used)

(p. 4). RiversEdge seems to be aligned

with Kellers assertions. The growth in

customer base or customers served has

grown exponentially in one years time.

The majority of those customers being families (photos inset top p. 6, 2016, bottom p. 6, 2016,

from Marcia Magiera).

History and origin

Marcia is not a stranger to business, as she recalled beginning her entrepreneurship at a

very young age, when she opened her own cleaning business in Las Vegas, Nevada. As you can

imagine, the work is difficult, the hours long and the wage was light. It was at the age of twenty-

five that she made the decision to enter into the real estate industry, while living in Las Vegas.

Marcia considers her vocation as being sales, and has made her success with a high

school diploma and some college. When asked what her philosophy on higher education is, she

replied: I believe that it is good for some and not meant for others. It really depends on what

the individual wants to do for work. She went on to define her

philosophy, saying vocational training is what I consider as the

most useful form of higher education, as it trains the individual in

exactly what they need, to do the work they have chosen.

Industry niche

When asked what she felt was her industry niche, Marcia

replied simply, atmosphere. After seeing the building before

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being transformed into RiversEdge, I can testify that Marcia

has done well in setting the industry standard, in meeting her

niche (photos inset top p. 7, 2017, bottom p. 7, 2017, from

Marcia Magiera).

Although Marcia has created a very successful

business, she stated that she considered the greatest risk as

being failure. Increasing the concern she had for failure, she stated that her biggest obstacle

while establishing RiversEdge was the bureaucracy which must be navigated in establishing,

opening and operating this type of business within the City.

Noting the heart that Marcia has for her stakeholders, when asked what she considered as

the biggest surprise encountered since opening, she sat back, focused her gaze toward the two

teenaged girls working behind the counter, and simply stated: Working with the young people.

It has been a pleasant surprise in how much I enjoy working with and watching the young people

grow, mature, and learn the different processes within the business.

Advice and looking back

Try to find your passion. Find somewhere you can observe others in business and try it

out before diving in; is the advice that Marcia states she would impart to new entrepreneurs who

are seeking to get into the business field.

As indicated by Kuratko (2014), new-venture development is the first stages in the

entrepreneurial process, which consists of activities

associated with the initial formulation of the

ventureand requires creativity and assessment (p.

481). When asked, what is the worst advice you

received, Marcia replied: purchase used equipment.

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She went on to say that if she had it to do over again, she would have spent more time making an

assessment and researching the items of equipment that were essential and also had the best

forecast for longevity. Unfortunately, it seemed that following the advice of other well intended

people caused her to spend more on equipment, and cut back on creativity. In the end, she

recovered and devised a strategic plan for how she would continue moving forward to reaching

her goals and meeting the needs of her stakeholders.

Conclusion

Marcia Magiera, owner of RiversEdge Ice Cream & Pop Corn, which is located in Battle

Creek, Michigan, sandwiched between the north banks of the Battle Creek, and the Linear Path,

is an example of an entrepreneur who started a business from conception to grand opening. The

unemployment rate has been declining steadily for the last several years, and RiversEdge is

doing her part in seeing that it continues (photos inset center p. 8, 2016, from Marcia Magiera).
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References

De Bettignies, J. (2008). Financing the Entrepreneurial Venture. Management Science, 54(1),

151-166. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/20122367

Keller, K. (1993). Conceptualizing, Measuring, and Managing Customer-Based Brand Equity.

Journal of Marketing, 57(1), 1-22. doi:10.2307/1252054

Kuratko, D. F. (2014). Entrepreneurship: Theory, process, practice. Mason, OH: South-Western

Cengage learning.

Mosakowski, E. (1998). Entrepreneurial Resources, Organizational Choices, and Competitive

Outcomes. Organization Science, 9(6), 625-643. Retrieved from

http://www.jstor.org/stable/2640246