David Long, student store supervisor and marketing teacher at Columbia River, said the competition process requires students to prove they have a firm grasp on an array of business-related practices.
“Our kids do the work all semester,” said Long. “It is about a 90-page document they send in… they have to document the procedure of how we open and close the store, how the profit loss is done, how the point of sale is taken, taking care of stocking, restocking, inventory control and just basically running a small business.”
Sixteen students operate the store with each one getting a bite of the small business pie, taking on a different role for two weeks and then rotating. Roles include cashier, smoothie operator, greeter and even security detail.
“Everything is bought and purchased,” added Long. “We get invoices; we have margins that we have to obtain. From that standpoint, it’s real-world.
Long said third-year marketing students are the ones who helm the ship, and reaching that stage becomes very prestigious.
“You have to earn your
way into the class, into the store,” he said.
If there is one thing missing from the equation, according to Long, it’s that the students aren’t exposed to all of the expenses that they would normally encounter in the business world – a component, he said, students must learn
in theory.
“They are kind of running a business with rose-colored glasses,” he said. “They don’t have an overhead; they don’t have to pay their utilities; there is no salary.”
Despite that fact, Long said plenty remains for those that operate the student store to gain valuable small business insight.
“It (the store) is our learning lab,” he said. “There’s what you learn in a book, and then there’s what you actually do in the lab. Our student store is a hands-on experience for our kids.”
This is the third straight year Columbia River High School’s student store has obtained the “Best Practices” award from DECA.
