Students participating in the Kenan-Flagler Career Symposium from 2021. The symposium celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Courtesy photo

Kenan-Flagler Students Take Entrepreneurship To The Streets

Kenan-Flagler just announced their new undergraduate Flash Entrepreneurship course that goes beyond roleplaying and hypotheticals for aspiring entrepreneurs.

The school’s new BUSI 590 course guides students through the real process of running their own pop-up shop at The PITCH on Franklin Street – a local event space and networking hub less than a mile from the business school.

What products were the students bringing to market? They landed on Halloween costumes, partnering with the retailer Rubies. They saw the need after discovering that the closest Halloween shop was actually near their neighbors at Duke Fuqua, a good 20-30 minute drive away in Durham.

The course was taught by Associate Professor of Management and Corporate Communications, Tim Flood. Kenan-Flagler alumni Jared Porter came out for the occasion, assisting in organizing and setting up the store alongside the owner and director of The PITCH.

The students are divided into teams – tangible marketing, social media, and operations. Flash Entrepreneurship student Autumn Jones said that she and the others were fueled by legendary UNC basketball coach Dean Smith’s motto “play hard, play smart, play together.”

In a true act of Tar Heel community support, their proceeds were donated to support Hurricane Helene recovery in western North Carolina.