April 2015 MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER It started as an experiment. Now it’s a new way to experience the vibrancy of the Twin Cities. April 2015 | MIDTO...
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April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

It started as an experiment. Now it’s a new way to experience the vibrancy of the Twin Cities.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Ace in the City has emerged as a Christian community development organization. A faith-based nonprofit with a vision to see the city renewed and reclaimed for Christ.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Process | How it happened Inspired by the life of his friend Ace, Tim Anderson teamed his love of basketball and kids to form a community development organization known to the Powderhorn Minneapolis community as Ace in the City. They now have the vision to open a boxcar coffeeshop in downtown Minneapolis to spread the mission of Ace with the Minneapolis community and grow Ace’s overall impact.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

sample concept ^^

The Midtown Community is seeking to be a People with Ideas for the World. They support organizations with new ideas and friendships. Midtown organized this event with and for Ace to further propel their vision for a new business in Minneapolis.

A powerful relationship is also developing between Ace and Latitude -- a creative shop in Minneapolis focused on propelling visions forward with passion and purpose. Learn more: latitudeelevates.com

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

To provide background Tim Schuster interviewed Tim Anderson along with Tyler Van Eps of Latitude. Then participants were invited to choose between one of four groups to ideate around these topics:

By Students, For Students p8 Group 2 | Partnerships & Engagement p11 Group 3 | Building Financial Capital p17 Group 4 | Telling the Latitude and Ace Story p26 Group 1 |

Those Ideas are as follows…

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Group 1 | By Students, For Students Student engagement is within the fabric of this business. 1) Envision the type of coffee shop you’d like going to. What does it look like? Feel like? Sound like? Hip. A little old school, but cool. Different vibe each day. Personalized. Fun. Creative. Unique. High-energy. Upbeat. Interactive. Music – (Lecrae, Amber Run, Ellie Goulding, Daughter, Honne, Jon Bellion, Bastille, Ryan Weaver, Years & Years, Sam Smith)

2) Envision the type of coffee shop you’d like to work for? What does it look like? Feel like?

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Work-study through school.

Sound like? Students mostly able to work weekends. Online ordering for the morning. 4:30 shift weekdays. Menus online with hours, menu, about us. Staff Bible study. Culture of honor/prayer Costumes. Different. Fun. Abstract. Be taught how to know where you’re getting your supplies. Products in & out are economically sustainable. Fair Trade (coffee, cups, boxcars, deciding what to sell) Words that describe us or pictures on our tshirts April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Mati Ask me about Ace!

Casual. Personalized to the individual yet blended with the team. Design your own. Names on them. Comfortable. Weekly “staff” meeting, team building, personal finances, responsibility, HR. Training opportunities in Customer Service, Accounting, Marketing, Community Relations. Students mostly able to work weekends. Work-study through school. Online ordering for the morning. 4:30 shift weekdays. Menus online with hours, menu, about us. Leadership opportunities. Resume Builders. Employee benefits. Equipped to do it all. Well-rounded training program.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

3) A boss can be your best friend or your biggest nightmare. Tell me what you envision to be a good boss. What does a good boss do? Sound like? Act?

A good boss is… Encouraging, reliable, consistent. Understanding. Leader. Motivational. Mature. Open to feedback. Interactive. Nice. Serious at times. Present. Equipper. Fun! Understands work can get boring, so they miX it Up a liTtle Bit. A bad boss is… Their way or the highway. Mean. Not interactive. Micro-managing. Yells. Not helpful.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Beyond coffee, we’d want to sell an experience.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

4) Beyond coffee, we’d want to sell an experience. It’s downtown Minneapolis on a beautiful summer’s day with hundreds of passer-bys every few minutes. How could we engage those passer-bys in a way that is fun, energetic, creative and aligns with who we are as an organization? Jar of an object where people guess how many are in there every day. Winner = free drink next day. Participant writes email so we can get ahold of them. Rewards card. Fact on the wall every day. Yell something at customers that walk in. Like Jimmy Johns. To go: We give them their drink. To stay: Take a number and sit down. We bring them their drink. Location outside of parking garage. Celebrate “employee” and other customers’ special days. Bring your baby, get a size up for the 30th customer free coffee. Happy Birthday – Free Coffee!

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Motivational quotes on the walls. Throw little basketballs to passerbys. Unique welcome for customers. “Welcome to Moe’s!” Make customers feel welcome. Newspaper stand to attract the mature audience. Books. Coffee shop with WiFi. Must buy (or donate?) something for WiFi. Social media accounts. Team-building coffee mugs. Write encouragements on mugs/sleeves Branding our items after South Minneapolis “icons”. Portland Ave. Powderhorn Park. Cedar Ave. Minnehaha. Nokomis. Hiawatha. Harriet. MayDay. Lake St. Chicago Ave.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Donut names – Purple People Eater, Twin City Donut. Stone Arch Croissant. Powderhorn Pastry. Ace Cake. Ace Cream (ice cream). Ace Wrap. Ace Cafe Breakfast items such as bagels or sausage, egg, cheese wrap, muffin. Hot Chocolate. Ice cream. Customers able to do own toppings such as extra chocolate or others. Organic. Catering for meetings. Delivery. Handprint on the wall of everybody. Open to both sides so the street and parking lot/building can see it.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Group 2 | Partnerships & Engagement For this to exceed average and to reach the status of excellence, it’s going to be a team game. We need to partner well. The initial idea is to plant this on a busy downtown intersection. How could we go about positively engaging the typical downtown worker? Why go here instead of the other dozen coffee shops within a one-block radius? We’re downtown! Hundreds of businesses and organizations down every street and around every corner. In what ways might we be able to engage and partner with local businesses and organizations? April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Bootstrap Coffee Roasters in St. Paul Thrivent. brightpeak financial. Ray’s Roast (with Ray Lenzen) or other independent coffee roaster Concordia University marketing students do community projects. Mentorships from professional organizations (Exchange Club. Rotary) Engage with local businesses to feature certain foods per month with coffee. Twin Cities Roasters Minnesota Vikings

3) In what ways can we engage and partner with local (urban and suburban) churches? Provide coffee service for larger churches – mobile or semi permanent April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Maybe also smaller suburbs where people might feel isolated

4) Ultimately, our vision goes back home to the Powderhorn neighborhood. In what ways should we be looking to engage and partner with our community? Partner with other food truck. Tag onto food truck routes. Partner on levels of marketing to tell students’ stories. Partner both ways – college, business, students, business intern. North Hennepin Community College Cookie Cart in North Minneapolis. City Kid Java. Coffee companies in the city – Caribou. BBAY in Brooklyn Center Friendraiser alumni – serving and hosting

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Determining who the strategic partners are to be symbolic for both connections between downtown and Powderhorn. Once weekly at assisted living places or someplace were the elderly are. To have mixed generations. A mini coffee car that drives around in the airport, making it easier for travelers to get to. Would Ace be willing to partner with nonprofit groups who staff the coffeehouse for a day or week for a split of the proceeds (like concession stands at Target field)?

“Tell the kids’ stories anonymously, but here is who you help” Mission and connection awareness. Advertise we are using proceeds to aid Mexico mission trip. House it on-site at high schools on occasion Promote the brand in an area they don’t get exposure April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Which coffee shop is Powderhorn known for? Partner with them. Health Department -> find out what regulations are – where can you prepare product? Commercial kitchen needed? Return employee to manage as “paid intern” Letting local artists display their work around the coffee bus. Makes for great business and great conversation  Community events like providing coffee for sponsoring members (i.e. partnering with Capella University for a welcome event, providing coffee. Local fairs have ½ size container that is mobile for offering coffee

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Avenues for homeless youth Provide service for Sun./Wed. services. Summer programs for college students. Market on college campuses, give back % to on-campus ministries. Target business students (Carlson) for entrepreneur programs through boxcar.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Group 3 | Building Financial Capital After the honeymoon phase of excitement and buzz is over, how could we generate continued investment in this work from local businesses, churches, and individuals? 1) Let’s look beyond grants. This is going to take some substantial upfront costs to launch this vision. How do we get there? Buy a share for free coffee for life ($500?) Hoodstarter. Kickstarter. Go Fund Me. 2) Sustainability. The goal is to create a profitable business that will not need outside support to sustain its work. However, the story and the vision is so compelling that we’d be crazy not to continue to capitalize on it and share the story in hopes to generate more capital/donations.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Treat it like a food stand. Tiered implementation of menu items. Espresso -> Italian soda -> baked goods -> “_______” SAME in Denver. “So all may eat.” is their “payment model.” What else comes along with a coffee shop? Complimentary uses? Get donation of product/supply for 1st month The Ace benefit should be the focus. Financial Fitness & paid to be studying Minority owned business -> people own / investment model 1%, 5% etc. based on what you contribute. Social investment model. Simple donations. April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

LIFE Leadership Fundraising idea – 20 min. video to watch right after the Friendraiser. Find business owner in non-Powderhorn area to put structure on for land and exposure.

A place to pause and take notes.

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Group 4 | Branding: Telling the Latitude and Ace Story 1) Whether you’re new to Ace or Latitude, or been around for awhile, how can we capture our story through this concept? How can we share it? 2) This is an amazing partnership with Ace & Latitude. How could both organizations maintain their brand, yet both share their unique stories and vision? Meet with local business leaders. Meet with local church leaders. Monthly “radical” adopt-a-blocks – boxcar shows up on a random block. Prayer, needs, groceries?

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Employee Titles: “Professional Neighbor” “Loving Neighbor’

“Daymaker” Nominate “Extreme home makeovers” per year. Corporate accounts for using boxcar coffee exclusively for events/seminars We have the best fastest WiFi in town. We’re a WiFi shop…with coffee! Google this: “Daniel Pink Pixar Pitch” Pitch it like Pixar! Empower kids and teens to tell the story. (Assumes there really is a story!) What if a train or boxcar could be branded: “Future coffeehouse supporting Urban Youth” (If sponsorship doesn’t work, photoshop it) “Would you be willing to round up to $2 to donate to Ace in the City?” (idea from Walgreens)

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Create a loyalty program that exchanges a value-add offering for email address. Use to build a donor base. Cups have updates keeping the community informed and engaged with Ace. Priorities: 1. KIDS FIRST! 2. Movement 3. Organization Capture the journey... Not just the destination…. Drink coffee, it’s enjoyable, you’ve met the kids, you’re compelled to tell the story to others. Rotating awesome powerful WiFi passwords that will make you smile or think a bit. Smiles tell stories. Simple platform / conversation starters. Highschools, weekly lunch hours, promote videos. Food truck association? Billboard? Cards / physical handouts with coffee

kids are the greatest storytellers April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Simple pictures or images on/in/ontop the boxcar = a thousand words. A little flipbook attached to the back corner of the boxcar with pictures and stories of mission trips Blow up social media, especially if the container moves like in the movie “The Chef” Flash mobs brought to you by Latitude Partner with the picture story people from Articulture Friendraiser as publicity -> social justice & social change Create reality show Tag lines on the coffee cups / liners -> say what you want people to remember. Ask people questions you want them to think about. Start an association of for-profit partnering with non-profit businesses. MSPMAG. NE Arts district What can’t you help but read? Student stories on boxcars

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Community supported cooperatively – owned membership structure. Give kids actual part ownership. Facebook – studentproduced videos to share at churches and schools Read the book Contagious and steal the $100 Philly Cheese Steak idea: coffee drink version. “Jesus” in marketing, on boxcar – serving, radical generosity. Drinking challenge? Signature drink BOXCAR EXCLUSIVE Boxcar “club” memberships, coffee each day $/month

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

“FORTUNATELY, for this project,

kids

are the greatest storytellers.” April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Thank you! Facilitator Tim Schuster [email protected] Ace in the City Tim Anderson [email protected] Latitude Tyler Van Eps [email protected] Writer Jeff Isaacson [email protected]

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Participants Cameron Peterson Brooke Peterson Hannah Skildum Lee Byberg Josh Wyatt

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER

Lynn Henry Abbie Finger Mati Regassi Meti Regassi Drevon Wade Deontre Wade

Graciela Torres Joan Schonning Steve Schonning Rochelle Sweeney

Learn how your idea or organization can benefit from a Midtown Friendraiser™

April 2015 | MIDTOWN FRIENDRAISER