Anderson laura think like an economist photo essay Mr. Nelson GAVS Economics Class

1. Photo Essay – Think Like an
Economist Project
Laura Anderson
GAVS Economics Class
Mr. Nelson

2. Dry Cleaner
• Goods and Services
– Dry clean clothes, garments, and drapes
– Press shirts and iron pants
– Repair small tears and missing buttons
• Factors of Production
– Building
– Dry clean machinery
– Employees to press and iron clothes
– Owner/Manager
– Ticket system to track clothing items
– Hangers, plastic bags, buttons, pins
– Computer/Cash register
• Opportunity Cost
– Ironing clothes at home and replacing
buttons with sewing kit
• Trade Off
– Working long hours while being exposed to
potentially dangerous cleaning chemicals

3. Cupcake Store
• Goods and Services
– Gourmet hand-crafted cupcakes
– Mini cupcakes and cake pops
– Gluten free and vegan option
• Factors of Production
– Building
– Baking trays and ovens
– Mixing bowls
– Fresh ingredients (batter, eggs, fruit, etc.)
– Frosting bags
– Employees to make and serve cupcakes
– Computer/Cash register
• Opportunity Cost
– Make cupcakes at home using whatever
ingredients you want in your own oven
• Trade Off
– Concentrating on a special dessert niche like
cupcakes might limit revenue stream

4. Quick Haircut Business
• Goods and Services
– Adults and children haircut services available
– Hair coloring
– Limited haircut styles at a reasonable price
• Factors of Production
– Building
– Barber style chairs
– Scissors, combs, brushes, trimmers
– Capes to keep cut hair off of customer
– Hair dryers, coloring kits, hair gels
– Employees to cut, style, and color hair
– Owner/Manager
– Computer/Cash register
• Opportunity Cost
– Family member cuts hair at home for free
• Trade Off
– Opening a salon would enable owner to offer
higher-end services to women customers

5. Pizza Place
• Goods and Services
– Pizzas (pepperoni, meat, veggie, etc.)
– Chicken wings
– Italian cheese bread
– Soft drinks
• Factors of Production
– Building
– Baking ovens
– Pizza dough
– Ingredients like cheese, meats, veggies, etc.
– Employees to bake pizzas and handle orders
– Owner/Manager
– Computer/Cash register
• Opportunity Cost
– Buy frozen pizza and stick in oven or prepare
homemade pizza with fresh ingredients
• Trade Off
– No delivery option is inconvenient for busy
families and folks that don’t have cars

6. Hand Car Wash
• Goods and Services
– Wash and dry cars
– Wax cars
– Detailing cars
• Factors of Production
– Building
– Water
– Soap
– Wax
– Drying cloths
– Sprayers
– Employees to wash the cars
– Owner/Manager
• Opportunity Cost
– Could wash/dry/wax car at home
• Trade Off
– Automated car wash is quicker and requires
less employees due to machinery.