PHUN PHING3RS is a business plan to sell foam finger school spirit items at Marian University sporting events. The five member team will operate at basketball, cycling, baseball, softball and football games. Their target markets are students, families, alumni and fans. Market research found demand for a navy blue "love sign" foam finger imprinted with "Go Knights!". The team will advertise on social media and around campus. Financially, they aim to sell 400 fingers, break even at 10 units, and make a $1,002.50 profit from a $300 loan. Their plan is to pay back the loan and potentially continue or dissolve the business based on spring semester performance.

1. BUSINESS 109-SECTION A
PHUN PHING3RS
Business Plan
Terrence Bailey, Mackenzie Dailey, Tyler Roberts, Joe Thomas, Alexa West
12/5/2014
The purpose of this document is to outline the finer points of PHUN PHING3RS’ business plan.

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Table of Contents
I. Executive Summary..........................................................................................................3-4
II. Value Proposition.................................................................................................................5
III. Target Market.......................................................................................................................6
IV. Market Research…...............................................................................................................7
V. Competitive Landscape........................................................................................................7
VI. Industry Trends....................................................................................................................8
VII. Operating Plan......................................................................................................................9
VIII. Management Plan.................................................................................................................9
IX. Marketing Plan...................................................................................................................10
X. Financial Plan…….. .....................................................................................................11-12
XI. Exit Strategy.......................................................................................................................14
XII. Appendix......................................................................................................................14-17

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I. Executive Summary
Here at PHUN PHING3RS, we have a vision to make Marian Athletics the toughest
venue in the Midwest for any opposing team traveling here to compete. The Pittsburgh Steelers
are known for their Terrible Towels, and the Green Bay Packers are known for their
Chesseheads; let’s collectively make foam fingers more prominent than ever with PHUN
PHING3RS. We have the firepower, now we need soldiers! Opposing schools should feel like
they have entered a warzone every time they intersect 30th and Cold Spring. Your initial thought
may be: “Foam fingers are dead.” Let us tell you why you could not be more naïve; 21st century
America is all about trends. Hardly anything we buy is a “new” idea; it is simply presented in a
“new” way. PHUN PHING3RS has all the opportunity in the world to be profitable. We plan on
being so!
We are PHUN PHING3RS, and we are a business 109 company that wants to begin
selling our foam fingers at the beginning of the spring semester in 2015 here at Marian
University. We are a company that is targeted at selling school spirit in the form of foam fingers
to children, students on and off campus, parents, alumni, and Marian sporting fans of all kinds.
From our surveys taken both online and face-to-face, we have discovered that students on this
campus are interested in our product, and we want to take it to the next level to make our dream
a reality. Competition is very limited since our only forms of direct competition include the
bookstore and rally towels who were a previous winner of the BUS109 competition. From
researching different companies that are currently operating foam business, we have discovered
that “the foam finger may be the only product famous not as an object of obsession but as a
symbol of obsession” as stated by the online magazine, Inc.

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Our company will be operating at sporting, alumni, and fundraising events around the
Marian campus. At these events, we will operate one hour before game time and close up shop
about halfway through each game. Our remaining inventory will be accounted for by the
operations manager and taken to her room for storage until the next event we will be working.
We do not plan on hiring any additional members for our team, and each one of us five members
that are currently making this business plan each have different managing positions for each of
the different aspects of the business we are creating. Ways that we will be advertising include
making posters and flyers to hang up around campus, getting orders and letting our followers
know about our business on social media sites, and making promotional videos to show on our
social media websites. Word of mouth and seeing others with these fingers is also a way for us
to indirectly get our company name and product out there.
The amount of the loan we plan on asking for is $300.00 which would buy us our first
bulk order of 100 foam fingers. Over the whole time period we are planning to operate, we plan
on selling 400 foam fingers which would include 200 bulk sales from organizations on campus
and in the surrounding areas and 200 individual sales from working at the many events over the
course of the spring semester. We will be bringing in a total revenue stream of $2,367.00 with
expenses of $1,364.50 which will give our company a net income of $1,002.50. Also for every
$1.00 of assets we own, we will make $2.36. At the end of the semester, we will be able to pay
all of the loan back which would equal $307.50 which includes the loan and interest. If we are
very profitable our first semester, we would like to continue business, but if we are not, we will
end our business at the end of the spring semester and divide our profits equally amongst the five
team members.

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PHUN PHING3RS is our company which is all about selling school spirit in the form of
a foam finger to children, students, faculty, alumni, and fans of Marian University. Although
many different potential business ideas were out there, our group decided on having foam fingers
which would add a new twist to Marian spirit items. PHUN PHING3RS, as a company, wants to
encourage potential customers to show their school spirit through buying one of our products.
We do believe that our business is very profitable because we have low costs and prices that are
set at the perfect level. Consumers will purchase our item due to its enthusiastic support of the
21 varsity sports at Marian University. One for all and fun for all!
II. Value Proposition
PHUN PHING3RS sells Marian University school spirit in the form of foam fingers. We
are attempting to profit from the fact that Marian is continuing to grow through our academics
and athletic programs. Marian is reaching new levels of success in the popularity of sports and
success in those sports including the football team reaching the NAIA Football Championship
Series final four during the 2014 season and the cycling team clinching their 27th national title in
the Collegiate Track National Championships this past fall. Since the athletics program is
growing and expanding here, the “rally cry” product we chose is a navy blue foam finger with
gold imprint writing in the shape of a popular u-shaped hand that symbolizes the love sign.

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III. Target Market
We are targeting children, students both on and off campus, parents, alumni, and the
average Marian University sports fan. In order to fulfill our orders for our market of children,
we plan to sell to Cold Spring Elementary and St. Michael’s Elementary in bulk. Bud’s Tavern
is also a place in the surrounding area around Marian that is a key location to get involved with
to sell our product. Many parents, alumni, and older students at the university could be targeted
by our company working beside Bud’s Tavern. Another way to get to our target market of
alumni would be to develop a relationship with the Office of Alumni Relations. To inform
students here on campus about our product, we would contact different student-led groups like
Knight Nation, Sophia Club, Crafting Club, and the general Office of Student Activities here on
the Marian campus. It would be a big opportunity for each one of these groups to buy our
Go
Knights!

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product in bulk to distribute however they so choose to each one of the target markets that we are
aiming to concentrate on.
IV. Market Research
Statistics gathered from online and face-to-face surveys found that 39.6% out of 200
respondents would prefer a “love sign” for the shape of the finger. The phrase “Go Knights!” is
favored over other phrases at 54.8% (out of 200). The Marian University logo is an essential
part of our product. It will be featured on the backside of the product. From our surveys, we
discovered 59.4% (out of 200) of respondents would likely purchase our product. Even though
this is not a high percentage, we believe our product will more likely be purchased when
potential customers see their peers with our product. Our product will be blue foam with a gold
imprint color on it (62.2% of respondents). These fingers will be sold at sporting, alumni, and
fundraising events on the Marian University campus. The selling price of our product is $6. A
discount will be available for an order of three or more units, priced $5 per unit.
V. Competitive Landscape
Our direct competition mainly comes from the bookstore that Marian University has on
campus. They do not currently sell foam fingers, but they do have items such as pompoms,
beads, banners, and other spirit wear items that directly effects our competition. Other potential
competitors would be the rally towels which came to Marian recently due to an earlier BUS109
competition winner being crowned. You can shop online for foam fingers at different website
including AmeriFoam, Zarlit Foam, Alibaba.com, Spirit Industries, and professional sports teams
around the United States; however, the only way to purchase a foam finger is by purchasing
them in bulk orders, such as buying 50, 100, or 200 foam fingers at one time depending on the

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supplier you choose to purchase from. It is possible to purchase a single foam finger; the item
that you would receive would be a blank foam finger which has no imprint color on it for a total
of $8.
VI. Industry Trends
Although the foam finger industry might be overlooked in today’s world, there is still
plenty of buzz about it, and we, PHUN PHING3RS, want our fellow Marian sports fans to
become a part of our potential business here on the Marian University campus. According to
Forbes magazine, the sports memorabilia section of the sporting goods market is a “multi-billion
dollar industry.” As many have learned through sports history, the United States and the world
are both heavily influenced by sports whether it is through the Super Bowl, FIFA World Cup, or
the finals for the NBA. “As we have witnessed firsthand, there is an overwhelming desire for
sports fans to either own a piece of history or passionately collect memorabilia,” which again
supplies the fact that sports is a popular topic for people around the world today. With our
business of selling foam fingers, we believe that “the real scope of it was to encourage fan
support” as stated by FOX News. The idea of our product is that “the finger is showing that your
team is #1, giving you a great way to rally and show you're the biggest fan,” according to
Shop.com. Our company, PHUN PHING3RS, wants a sports memorabilia item to be a
collectible for any Marian student, faculty member, and alumni members as well as Marian
sports fans around the 21 varsity sports that are offered here at the University. By the words of
the online magazine, Inc., “The foam finger may be the only product famous not as an object of
obsession but as a symbol of obsession. At the Super Bowl or a Pop Warner game, waving and
thrusting in the stands, it amplifies devotion and evokes the deep connection between fan and
team. The finger is defiant and triumphant and a little bit rude. We're No. 1! We're No. 1!”

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VII. Operating Plan
PHUN PHING3RS will be available at men’s and women’s basketball games, the Marian
Midwest Cycling Classic, men’s baseball games, and women’s softball games. We will also be
available at the men’s football spring classic game and the April SOAR event for incoming
freshmen and transfer students and parents. We will be operating one hour before each sporting
event starts. A table will be set up with foam fingers to sell at the entrance to each sporting event
which would be in the foyer of the PE Center, front entrance to the football field, or on the home
side of any baseball and softball events. At the table we set up, we will advertise our product
using signs informing potential customers. One team member is going to work the table; the
remaining team members will walk through the stands and bleachers advertising and selling our
foam fingers.
As soon as each event reaches its mid-point, we will end our operations for that event.
All unsold items will be sorted and counted, so that the operations manager will be able to keep
track of our inventory. The remaining fingers that have been accounted for by the operations
manager will be stored in that team member’s dorm room until the next event comes up. Before
we begin operations for the next sporting event, our operations manager will recount and
distribute the correct amount of foam fingers to each team member working during the next
event scheduled on the calendar.
VII. Management Plan
For our business, we do not plan on hiring any outside individuals to help us operate our
business. The only employees will be the five individuals who have worked to develop this
business plan throughout the course of the fall semester of 2014. For the spring semester, our

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total operating hours will be between 80 and 100 hours, depending on the weather and potential
conflicts with setting ourselves up in the lobby of the PE Center for some basketball games. At
each game, we would be set up for about two hours depending on how long the first half of each
different game lasts. During the spring semester, there are 40 to 50 sporting, alumni, and
fundraising events that take place on campus. Our management team includes Mackenzie Dailey
as our administrative manager, Terrence Bailey as our sales manager, Tyler Roberts as our
financial manager, Joe Thomas as our social media manager, and Alexa West as our operations
manager who will also deal with inventory for the company.
VIII. Marketing Plan
We are going to be successful thanks to multiple different marketing and advertising
ideas we have developed to get the word of our product out there. We are going to be innovative
and creative in the advertising we do for our product. Our pitches will include humor, emotion,
and sincerity. For example, the slogan, “Everybody scores with PHUN PHING3RS” touches
upon the humor side of our advertising campaign. Other slogans that we have come up with
include “Prove you’re a knight! Get your PHUN PHING3R at the next sporting event,” “Point
out the hottest girls with your PHUN PHING3R,” and “Make your Marian Knights more fun
with PHUN PHING3RS.” In addition, we have plans on using commercials and short films to
engage the student body, parents, alumni, and all other target markets we have. The videos will
be posted on our Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter accounts. In order to attract the attention of
our biggest target market (children), we will use posters with pictures of children promoting our
foam fingers with a smile on their face using that emotion to capture the attention of these
children.

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IX. Financial Plan
In order to cover the cost of our first shipment of a bulk order of 100 foam fingers, we are
asking for a loan of $300.00. We will pay off our loan by the end of the semester which in total
will cost $307.50 which includes the $300.00 loan plus $7.50 in interest on the loan which is
calculated by taking the loan amount of $300.00 multiplied by 6% then multiplied by 4 months
since that is how the loan will be taken out for. Each team member will contribute $20.00 of
capital stock to the company. For every $1.00 of assets we have, we will collect $2.36 which
gives us a large profit margin of 45%. We plan on selling a total of 400 units total; half of the
units will be sold as group sales while the other half will be sold as individual sales. By using a
square reader, we will be able to accept credit and debit cards as well as checks and cash. We
are opening a bank account with PNC Bank, so that we can safely deposit and stored our
revenue.
We have several costs associated with our business; however our total cost is very low.
For instance, each unit costs us $3.18 with a one-time screening cost of $40.00. It will cost us
$25.00 to open our bank account. Every time a customer uses our square reader, 2.75% of our
total revenue will be taken out. Since we are asking for a $300.00 loan, we will have an interest
expense of $7.50. Since many team members already own a large amount of advertising and
operations supplies, our advertising expenses are very low at $20.00 which covers the cost of
signs and other items we will need to create the signs to hang up at our location and areas prior to
seeing our location at games and events.
Here is a look at our income statement. As you can be seen, we receive total revenue of
$2,367.00, total expenses of $1,364.50 which gives us a net income of $1,022.50.

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Here is a look at our statement of cash flows.
If we sell 200 units, we will make a profit of $438.50. If we sell 300 units, we will make
a profit of $720.50. If we sell 400 units, we will make a profit of $1,002.50.

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We have a breakeven sale of 10 units excluding the payment of the loan.
For every $1.00 of assets we have, we will collect $2.36.
X. Exit Strategy
At the end of the semester, our team will be able to pay our loan back in full. If we make
a large profit by the end of the semester, we will operate in the fall of 2015. Due to the
popularity of the sport of football here at Marian University, the fall semester would be an
excellent time of year to continue operating our business. If we make a small profit, we will end

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our operations on May 9, 2015 dividing the profits equally among the five team members. Any
unsold non-cash assets will be sold to the Marian University Office of Student Activities here on
campus.
XI. Appendix
This is an example of what one of our advertising signs would look like that we would
hang posters around campus for our markets to see.

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The following paper include the survey that we used to collect some of our data. This
survey was used during the face-to-face encounters we had with potential customers.
1. How likely are you to by a foam finger?
Very Unlikely
Unlikely
Neither Unlikely Nor Likely
Likely
Very Likely
Price
2. About how much would you be willing to pay for this product?
Color
3. What color scheme do you prefer?
Blue on Gold
Gold on Blue
Other:______________________________
Phrases
4. Which wording do you like?
Go Knights!
Knights!
Knights #1
Other:______________________________
Shape
What foam finger shape would you prefer?
1.

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2.
3.
4.

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This is the picture of our Facebook fan page which has not been running very long.
Currently, we have a total of 20 likes on our fan page and 127 friends from our company profile
page.