American Business MB Business

[fritz1255]

I apologize in advance if this subject is covered in the MB pamphlet. I have just started a class in the American Business MB for the first time. Each Scout is to run a business of some kind for 3 months and keep a record of income, expenses, profits, etc. Let's face it folks, this concept is a little outmoded. Suggested business opportunities such as paper routes essentially don't exist any more, and I hate to see kids doing stuff just to satisfy the requirements such as running lemonade stands on weekends. Most of the kids work in some capacity for their parents - mowing lawns, feeding pets, etc. The main idea here is for the Scout to learn how to run a business. My feeling is that if they restructure their arrangement with their parents so they are actually buying gas for the lawnmower or the food for the dog, this should satisfy the spirit of the requirement. What does eveyone think?

[Quailman]

I apologize in advance if this subject is covered in the MB pamphlet. I have just started a class in the American Business MB for the first time...

No offense, but it's generally a good idea for the MB counselor to review the MB pamphlet before he meets with scouts for the first time. Some pamphlets are better than others.

5. Run a small business involving a product or service for at least three months. First find out the need for it. For example: a newspaper route, lawn mowing, sales of things you have made or grown. Keep records showing the costs, income, and profit or loss.
Report:
a. How service, friendliness, hard work, and salesmanship helped build your business.
b. The benefits you and others received because you were in business.
Comparable 4-H, FFA, or Junior Achievement projects may be used for requirement 5.

I think they need to go outside the family. Where is friendliness and salesmanship in mowing your own yard? The arrangement you describe might work for personal management, but they need to have a business with a product or service sold outside the family for this one.

Another service I've seen young men do here in Texas is pressure washing. Snow shoveling/blowing would work in the proper season up north. I knew a young man who got bored in class and learned to fashion large paper clips into cursive names that would fit on a necklace. He advertised and worked it into a business. And a neighbor of my mother's repainted mailboxes in a subdivision where all of them were required to be the same shade of brown. He bought a lot of paint and made a lot of money. It turned out it's cheaper to pay someone $10 to paint your mailbox than to buy a $15 gallon of paint and do it yourself. Boys who are interested in this MB should develop their own ideas.

[fritz1255]

Our Scoutmaster caught me a little off-guard on this one - I didn't think the badge was due to start until October, but we had our first meeting last week. We'll see what they come up with by next meeting, and maybe the pamphlet will help.

[mhjacobson]

One of the scouts in my troop started an Ebay business where he bought and sold trading cards. He is making a good amount of money at it. Is this the new lemonaide stand?

[AquilaNegra]

Can the same 3 months of a business be used for both the American Business badge and the Entrepreneurship? A majority of the Entrepreneurship requirements seem to overlap.

My son just started his eBay business as well. Took a huge loss on the shipping (ouch!) first time around, but it's a learning experience.

[wagionvigil]

That would be up to the counselors.

[Cowboy]

We are having the same discussion in our Troop. One of our "old timers" said that it would be sufficient if they had a pretend business, or just used thier recordings from PM. Since I am the counselor not him, I over ruled him. One option that I have thrown out to the boys and parents is helping to run Mom & Dads business. My son has been helping with my business for the past year with the only thing lacking being that he does not do the monthly balance sheet. Another option (as stated above) is mowing or snow shoveling, we are just entering the snow season here. My requirement would be a minimum number of customers, say 5. Less than that and you have no real concept of profit and loss. That is not adding to the requirements, it is defining a word, IMO. Any comments by others? I do note that last year (2008) only 500 AB MB's were earned. I told the guys that this is hard along the lines of an ER MB, and if they aren't able to give it the attention and hard work it requires, not to start it. They can take Salesmanship and get a lot of the same stuff as a primer for this one down the road.

[smtroop168]

We are offering this MB at our 2010 MB College. We have 24 scouts signed up so far and 2 qualified counselors. I personally don't see this badge being very difficult and like all MBs not designed to make the scout an expert in the field. I don't draw any great conclusions from the badge being the least earned either. Entrepreneurship and Salesmanship are similar badges (both of these have been offered in past MB Colleges as well). We have scouts sign up in October and they have time to work on their 3 month business prior to the first session in January.

If you would like, I can put you in contact with the two counselors and they can tell you how they are going to cover the badge. Email me if you're interested.

[alex gregory]

My son's cunning plan is to build a chicken coop (Woodworking MB), raise chickens (Pets MB), and sell the eggs (Business or Entrepreneur MB) along with fresh produce from his garden (Gardening MB). Quite the urban farmer!

[cballman]

Alex that would be quadruple dipping. I would have to have someone check it out to see if that is ok to do But then if he was one of my scouts to go and do that I think it would be an awesome task for any child to start and accomplish. If I was closer I would order a dozen eggs now to get my name in the pot.

[alex gregory]

No reason why a Scout could not run a business a Troop fund-raising project (probably count as a POR substitute for Life or Star as well).

[alex gregory]

If I was closer I would order a dozen eggs now to get my name in the pot.

No orders yet. We'll see what happens between cunning plan and actually having product to sell.

[Cowboy]

There is nothing against double dipping most of the time. There are a couple of MB's that do specify that you must do Requirement X for this merit badge and it cannot be something that you have done for another MB. Usually on the ERs. I can not recall which ones though.

[lifescoutforlife]

No reason why a Scout could not run a business a Troop fund-raising project (probably count as a POR substitute for Life or Star as well).

My son earned the MB this way by selling pumpkin rolls that he and his mother made at home and boys in the troop took orders for. They are going to do the same thing this year for Thanksgiving and Christmas so the boys can earn some money for thier personal accounts.

[mhjacobson]

However running a fundraising program is not one of the listed PORs to be used for advancement. BSA is very specific on which positions count as a POR.

[FrankJ]

For Star or Life it could be done as a SM assigned leadership project assuming the SM agreed. It would then require a fund raising app. from council.