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Student Entrepreneurs: LSU students who become their own bosses For many university students, balancing work, school, and a social life are enough of a challenge, but some students have chosen to test themselves even more and are starting their own businesses while in school. Meet four enterprising LSU students and two alumni who managed to balance the books while becoming their own bosses. LAUREN  Lauren, a graphic design senior minoring in business administration, has found a way to turn her talent for illustration into a budding business. Last October, she created her own company named Elle Alexandra, which features a line of 15 different cards. "My business is great for me because I design my own product. It's a mixture of design and business," Lauren said. Presently, the cards are sold in four local stationery shops and on the Elle Alexandra Web site. The cards are sold in packages of eight. On the front of the cards are girls wearing different outfits and doing different things to represent different emotions. Some of these are "Elle Gossip," "Elle Princess," and "Elle Honeymoon." The inside of the cards are blank. Lauren said LSU provided her with the education and support she needed to pursue her dream. Two of her professors, Tommy Karam, marketing instructor in the Ourso College of Business Administration, and Pat Vinning, art instructor in LSU's College of Art & Design, guided her through the process of forming her company.
Karam encouraged Lauren to explore her idea of having her own stationery line and gave her initial feedback on her business plan. Throughout the summer of 2003, Vinning and Lauren met several times as Vinning guided her through prepress to ensure that all her graphics files were correct and ready for printing. "I would have never made it this far without her," Lauren said of Vinning. Lauren's stationery line has been very successful. Christmas was better than she imagined it would be, with many people buying her cards as gifts. She hopes to expand her line by creating more designs in the near future. Lauren has managed to balance her business with her schoolwork. She has kept up her grades and plans to work toward an M.B.A upon graduation. DONALD, KIRK, & LANDON  Donald, Kirk, and Landon's passion for entertainment, graphic design, and promotion is what brought them together. They soon decided that their common interests would be a great basis for a business. In February 2004, this trio of friends started It's Time Productions, an entertainment and promotions company. The compay covers all aspects of promoting an event from promotional campaigns to designing CD covers and t-shirts. Donald is a sophomore majoring in finance and accounting, Kirk is a sophomore in information systems and decision sciences, and Landon is a senior studying marketing. Donald says the team attributes much of the success they have experienced with the business to the education they have received at LSU. "Marketing allows us to better position our service, while economics and accounting provide the knowledge needed to survey and analyze our market. Speech gives us the edge to make clear and concise presentations," Donald said. The business community originally had concerns about the age of the young entrepreneurs, who were all 20. However, their concerns have turned into respect after seeing the team's business demeanor. LSU's many resources helped the team begin their business. "We have worked with so many campus organizations through campaigns, community service programs, athletics, and junior recruitment," Donald said. It's Time Productions provided a scholarship to the winner of the Delta week pageant. The company is also working with the Office of Multicultural Affairs to provide two students who attend Springfest, a recruitment program that encourages the top students from the area to attend LSU, with scholarships. The team has partnered with a printing company from Houston. They plan on expanding their business, so they can focus solely on it when they graduate. SHAWN & BRAD  In May 1998, Shawn came up with his business plan for an Information Technology company while working to complete his M.B.A. degree in LSU's Ourso College of Business Administration. Just six months after graduation, Shawn and his friend Brad created Sparkhound. Sparkhound's name represents several things. The "spark" represents an idea in technology. "Hound" is derived from "bloodhound." The company helps people find what they are looking for in the technology field just like a bloodhound helps a hunter find his prey. Shawn says the hardest part of starting Sparkhound was quitting his other job. "It is a pretty scary thing to give up your paycheck and choose to live on your savings for a while." Eventually, both Shawn and Brad quit their jobs and focused only on Sparkhound.  This decision definitely paid off. Today, Sparkhound has grown from a two person staff to more than 32 people on the payroll. Some of the firms clients include Advantage Property Services, Piccadilly Cafeteria, Homeowners Loan, and New Phone. Shawn attributes much of his success to research he did for the business plan he developed for Bob Justis' entrepreneur class. Because of this research, he found a lot of factors that customers consider when making a decision. He still meets with Justis occasionally to discuss business problems and solutions. Because of his experience with the importance of research, Shawn advises students who want to start their own businesses to do their homework first. "If you are willing to put in the time, you are much more likely to be successful. People dream of how great it would be to own your own business, but they usually do not see the long hours, headaches, heartaches, and stress that can be the result. A lot of this can be avoided with careful planning," Shawn said. Contact Bethany Hales or Michelle Spielman | LSU
University Relations Related Links Ourso College of Business Administration
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