Party with purpose

Business Model Canvas, Effectuation, Products and Events, Venture Creation 2 Minutes

We started making progress in defining our enterprise last week. Once we realized that our only option for a minimum viable product is to produce an actual event by the end of the semester, we went back to our inventory of means to brainstorm what would be feasible, scalable and repeatable within our timeframe. In our research, we are yet to find a venue to partner with in Tempe to host an all-ages nightlife event, so we shifted our focus to on-campus events. Most public universities pay companies to produce events for students throughout the year, so that could be our revenue model, rather than doing events that students pay for. Often, these large events are focused on a B or C-level concert or dance party. To differentiate, our company can offer more frequent and intimate arts-centered events for students.  Our events will be interactive and participatory, inviting students to contribute projects or learn a new arts-related skill. The art projects, performances, and workshops can rotate per event, but the environment around the projects can maintain a celebratory party environment with music, food, drinks and visual aesthetics.

Our discussion sparked an idea from a meeting I had attended earlier in the week. I know a woman who works with student engagement for Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts as well as the related on-campus student living community, Arcadia. They recently prepared a 100×9’ wall along one of their buildings to have a mural painted. They’ve purchased the paint and they are looking for the right artists to lead the mural project while working with students. This could be a good opportunity for us to host an arts-centered event on campus. We can take a painting project and make it a party, giving students an opportunity to connect with each other and do something creative to take their minds off of classes for a while.

Tomorrow, our team is going to meet at Best Hall at the Arcadia community to visit the site and talk to students in the area. If the mural project doesn’t work out, the community could still be a great place to host an event. Megan wasn’t able to schedule a call with me yet, but I should be able to connect with her this week to discuss the idea and receive feedback. As another option, we will look at the Student Pavilion for hosting the event. Tomorrow, we will run our identity branding by some students and develop our philosophy, messaging and norms.

Published by malenalou

Malena Grosz (Malena Lou) is an expressive creative and grounded professional, balancing the best of both worlds. Her professional career has explored graphic design, an apparel printing business, eCommerce management, marketing direction, and production for music festivals and events. As an artist, she curated an international art contest, exhibition, and fundraiser, performed with a vaudeville-burlesque group in four original productions, and has designed several art installations including the Flower of Cycles, which is made with 49 bicycle rims and over 4,000 addressable LEDs. The Flower of Cycles has been featured at Burning Man, Saguaro Man, Symbiosis, Firefly Gathering, Sonic Bloom, Gem and Jam, and the Oregon Eclipse Gathering. As an MFA candidate in Theatre, Arts Entrepreneurship and Management at ASU, Malena is deepening both her creative and professional abilities. Her research is exploring the intersection between underground party culture and the development of creative communities. Through curation of her InnerSpace parties, her aim is to cultivate community through immersive nightlife experiences, creating a platform and safe space for creative expression, collaboration, and celebration. In the next five years, she plans to open a nightclub in Arizona that also serves as an educational and social space to develop visual, audio and performance artists who work within nightlife production.

Published

Leave a comment