Mind your own business with some help from a new service on campus
A new service is coming to
campus, and it's aimed at students
with an idea for a business
— anything from a jewellery company
to a hotel to a construction
firm and beyond.
Biz Inc. was launched earlier this year at the University of Western Ontario, and now it's finally coming to Fanshawe. After David Belford, Dean of Fanshawe's Lawrence Kinlin School of Business, met with the General Manager of the Small Business Centre and the man who ran Biz Inc. at Western last December, he saw what a boon it would be for Fanshawe students with an entrepreneurial spirit. "We were just talking together about how we can build student and youth entrepreneurship in London … It just seemed like a great idea to help the students who want to start businesses to be able to access services and become more aware of how to start a business in London," Belford said.
He approached Fanshawe College management and some members of the Fanshawe Student Union with the idea, and it was very well received. The college and the Student Union have partnered together to bring this service to students.
Fanshawe's Biz Inc. is officially launching with the Start-Me- Up Mixer on November 22 at 5 p.m. in the Alumni Lounge in the Student Centre building. Come for light snacks, refreshments and a chance to speak with Daniel Ninclaus, a professor in the LKSB and the Student Advisor for the Biz Inc. program.
Ninclaus holds a Master's degree in Business. He has been a professor at Fanshawe for a year and has 35 years of experience in business, which is why he was brought on as the Student Advisor. Prior to being a professor, he worked with the Business Development Bank of Canada, which operates under the primary mandate to help small and medium sized businesses be created or expanded in Canada. He has started a number of his own small businesses and said he would have appreciated something like Biz Inc. when he was putting the businesses together. "I would have saved a lot of money from making mistakes, a lot of frustration, and I'd have a lot more hair on the top of my head," he joked.
"It's what you don't know that bites you in the butt," he continued. "The more you know, the fewer surprises you come up against and the more money stays in your company."
The whole purpose of the service is to help students make their business idea a reality, from figuring out what's best for their business — whether it's getting their product to market, selling a patent, opening a brick-and-mortar shop or selling things online — to navigating the many complicated aspects of starting and running a business — from taxation to hiring employees to product costing and much more — and Ninclaus can be there every step of the way. "You don't do it all in one shot because it's a little overwhelming, but as their project unfolds, we'll be able to coach them and help them," he said.
"The idea is to guide them through the process (of starting a business) and steer them in the right direction," he continued. "We are an institution of higher learning. Business also requires going to the school of hard knocks. We're here really to help our students avoid some of the hard knocks."
Both Belford and Ninclaus see Biz Inc. as a great way students can help bolster the local economy, as well as influence the bigger picture. "As a country, we've come on difficult economic times. The government is providing assistance to try to get people back, either back to work or reorientated in work and so on," said Ninclaus. "What we're hoping is that our students will be able to not only employ themselves and contribute to the tax base but also employ others who may be looking for work."
"We may have the next Bill Gates here!" he added.
For more information about Biz Inc., check out the mixer on November 22. The Biz Inc. office is located in the Student Union office in SC2001. Get in touch with Ninclaus to set up a time to chat about your business idea by sending him an email at bizinc@ fanshawec.ca. For more information visit bizinc.ca or twitter.com/BizIncLondon.
Biz Inc. was launched earlier this year at the University of Western Ontario, and now it's finally coming to Fanshawe. After David Belford, Dean of Fanshawe's Lawrence Kinlin School of Business, met with the General Manager of the Small Business Centre and the man who ran Biz Inc. at Western last December, he saw what a boon it would be for Fanshawe students with an entrepreneurial spirit. "We were just talking together about how we can build student and youth entrepreneurship in London … It just seemed like a great idea to help the students who want to start businesses to be able to access services and become more aware of how to start a business in London," Belford said.
He approached Fanshawe College management and some members of the Fanshawe Student Union with the idea, and it was very well received. The college and the Student Union have partnered together to bring this service to students.
Fanshawe's Biz Inc. is officially launching with the Start-Me- Up Mixer on November 22 at 5 p.m. in the Alumni Lounge in the Student Centre building. Come for light snacks, refreshments and a chance to speak with Daniel Ninclaus, a professor in the LKSB and the Student Advisor for the Biz Inc. program.
Ninclaus holds a Master's degree in Business. He has been a professor at Fanshawe for a year and has 35 years of experience in business, which is why he was brought on as the Student Advisor. Prior to being a professor, he worked with the Business Development Bank of Canada, which operates under the primary mandate to help small and medium sized businesses be created or expanded in Canada. He has started a number of his own small businesses and said he would have appreciated something like Biz Inc. when he was putting the businesses together. "I would have saved a lot of money from making mistakes, a lot of frustration, and I'd have a lot more hair on the top of my head," he joked.
"It's what you don't know that bites you in the butt," he continued. "The more you know, the fewer surprises you come up against and the more money stays in your company."
The whole purpose of the service is to help students make their business idea a reality, from figuring out what's best for their business — whether it's getting their product to market, selling a patent, opening a brick-and-mortar shop or selling things online — to navigating the many complicated aspects of starting and running a business — from taxation to hiring employees to product costing and much more — and Ninclaus can be there every step of the way. "You don't do it all in one shot because it's a little overwhelming, but as their project unfolds, we'll be able to coach them and help them," he said.
"The idea is to guide them through the process (of starting a business) and steer them in the right direction," he continued. "We are an institution of higher learning. Business also requires going to the school of hard knocks. We're here really to help our students avoid some of the hard knocks."
Both Belford and Ninclaus see Biz Inc. as a great way students can help bolster the local economy, as well as influence the bigger picture. "As a country, we've come on difficult economic times. The government is providing assistance to try to get people back, either back to work or reorientated in work and so on," said Ninclaus. "What we're hoping is that our students will be able to not only employ themselves and contribute to the tax base but also employ others who may be looking for work."
"We may have the next Bill Gates here!" he added.
For more information about Biz Inc., check out the mixer on November 22. The Biz Inc. office is located in the Student Union office in SC2001. Get in touch with Ninclaus to set up a time to chat about your business idea by sending him an email at bizinc@ fanshawec.ca. For more information visit bizinc.ca or twitter.com/BizIncLondon.
