When KEY+ group Error Forgot Cborus from The Bunker first started their enterprise project, they had a simple but strong idea: to purchase a heat press and badge maker so they could create their own merchandise to sell.
The idea was straightforward (to create merchandise) but behind that simple goal was a lot of thinking and decision-making. To decide what products to create, they held a brainstorming session to think about what people are going to buy, carefully considering what would be popular and realistic to produce.
Overall, the group said that it was “not really hard to do some things” but they still had to work together and make important choices. Along the way, they learned new skills such as communication, especially when it came to pricing and decision-making. They had to discuss costs, profits and what customers might pay. They also strengthened their ability to settle disagreements and find solutions together.
The group also learnt business skills! They said that it was “interesting to use the heat press and the badge maker” and they learnt a lot of sales and marketing. They did “marketing pricing based off the merch shop – some of them were made a bit cheaper but we didn’t make much profit on the badge because they included the price of the badge maker.” Reflecting on this, the group thought about making the badges again and how they could make more profit in the future because they now already own the badge machine.
The group reflected on a few more challenges that they had along the way. They considered glow-in-the-dark wristbands, but realised they were too expensive and would have had to charge £3/£4 for them. The group felt that people wouldn’t want to pay that much. They also found that the baubles they ordered weren’t as big as they expected, which limited what they could put inside and meant they had to adapt their plans.
Overall, Error Forgot Cborus said that they were most proud of making a profit and being able to give back to The Bunker. The money raised will help improve Friday band club and fund a celebration trip for the group to go to laser tag.
The group then said that one of the best parts of the project was how they involved others in the club. They hosted a merch-making evening where everyone got involved. It became a fun, shared experience – and they even had pizza, which they said definitely helped boost motivation.
Looking ahead, they are already thinking about Stage 3. They’ve come up with ideas such as continuing to make merchandise, hosting a market, and even letting other bands use or hire their equipment to make their own merchandise.
When asked what advice they would give to other groups taking on an enterprise project they said:
- “Don’t charge too much and don’t charge too little because then you won’t make that much profit.”
- “Always try and find some middle ground if there is a disagreement.”
- “Don’t forget about the enterprise project.”
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