Andover Business Club

Hello Everyone! I am thrilled to share that the club remains in excellent shape, and our future prospects are as strong as ever. Below you will find a summary of the club's activity and accomplishments thus far this year. MEETINGS: Since the start of the year, ABC has continued to hold weekly meetings where we discuss business and current events. We have had consistent, solid attendance: on top of our eight-person board, our meetings also tend to attract around a dozen non-board-members. Some of our topics this year have included: Our upcoming venture Joint meeting with Student Advocates for Climate Awareness (SACA)  discussing whether or not the business community will be able to innovate our way out of climate change Facebook's big bet on the Metaverse Electric vehicles, and whether Telsa's $1 trillion market cap is sustainable The business of Nuclear energy (and potential innovation in the space) Potential venture collaboration with PA Coffee Club (guess what we were goi...

Last Wednesday ABC met via Zoom to discuss Cryptocurrencies. We first discussed whether Bitcoin is viable as a currency; Rohan pointed out that currencies need to be stable in order to be widely adopted, and Bitcoin is currently very volatile. Bitcoin also consumes a significant amount of energy per transaction, which makes it inefficient and potentially dangerous to the environment. We also discussed Tesla's purchase of $1.5 Billion worth of Bitcoin, which James pointed out, and whether that is setting a precedent for other S&P 500 companies. This segued into Luc asking the club whether they owned any Bitcoin; no one except Luc owned any. Luc told the rest of the club to "have fun staying poor," a common joke amongst Bitcoiners. Nonetheless, Luc also pointed out that anyone who owns an S&P 500 index fund technically owns Bitcoin, as Tesla ––who owns Bitcoin–– is an S&P 500 component. The meeting next transitioned into a discussion of digital currencies and di...

This past Wednesday, Andover Business Club got to have their first outside meeting of 2021. It was amazing to see everyone in person after a year apart, and the board is more than convinced that everyone was tired of meeting online. This week is also one of the first weeks everyone at PA got to attend classes in person, and the campus is starting to take back its friendly feel. Unfortunately, one of our presidents was not able to be in person. However, make no mistake, Kenichi was still as much of a presence as he was last year. Not to mention, with the help of board members such as Rohan and Reese, ABC gained 13 members yesterday alone! With growth like this, ABC could be looking at an even bigger group than last year. Switching to the topic of our Wednesday meeting, ABC talked as a whole about the American education system. More specifically, we talked about public schools in America. Most members brought up the struggles of public schools in the poorer parts of America. We talked ab...

    E xcellent end of term meeting today, ABC! We had a lively discussion about User Experience (UX), eliciting our own opinions about certain companies, how they operate, and what it is that makes us eager to continue consuming. We then set out to explore what makes good user experience, and what a company should do in order to achieve such.      User Experience is about the interaction of a customer with a company's product, and whether their experience was pleasant, manageable, satisfactory and frictionless. Companies that focus on developing such user experience are very "customer-centric", focusing on generating a good experience for the customer. We discussed how a company first needs to develop a worthwhile product that a customer will want and be happy with, and then focus on enhancing their experience. No matter how good a customer's experience is, if the product is not of worth to people, the whole endeavor is futile.      Prior to the g...

 Another great ABC meeting this week! We had a great meeting about advertising and branding, focusing specifically on a few different case studies and topics. We had engaging discussions around the strength & usefulness of branding, relating to Apple, Starbucks, Supreme, Amazon, Facebook, and other social media companies.  We started our discussion talking about phrases that make a company so popular. Phrases such as "Netflix and chill" or Nike's "just do it" are what we centered the conversation around. These phrases are exactly how a company gets free advertising and creates brand exposure. They allow people to learn and remember a company. We then moved on to how brands built continuity and trust through branding and advertising. Jake from State Farm is a great example of the advertising, and Starbucks shutting down worldwide for a day to train baristas is an example that shows a company committed to quality.  Moving on, we discussed verbs for a short per...

Another great meeting this week! Thank you to everyone who came, especially since we tried out Friday meetings instead of our usual Wednesday ones. For those who couldn't come, fear not! We discussed the topic of streaming services, such as Netflix, PrimeVideo, Disney+, and HBOmax. Before streaming services became a major source of entertainment, many people watched shows on cable. Over time, consumers started watching shows on platforms that included a variety of shows where they can pick what to watch instead of following the scheduling of cable services. Now with everyone spending more time indoors because of the pandemic, easy, accessible entertainment options, especially streaming services, are especially lucrative. Thus, we explored the different types and our opinions on them. The first service that we talked about was Netflix. Netflix originally started off selling or renting DVDs out to people. Later, they started compiling the shows up digitally. During a Blockbuster shar...

  Wow, this week has been an eventful one in ABC! The board wishes all of you the best of luck going into midterms! We all hope that your midterms are (at least somewhat) stress-free, and that you get the grades you hoped for! Anyway, for those of you that were unable to make it to the meeting we had this morning, ABC discussed all things Apple. From the luxury image the company has built up over the years, to the simplicity of their products, Apple has more than succeeded in creating a name for themselves in the world of technology. When first delving into our discussion, club members were quick to bring up Apple's "luxury" image. From years of developing their brand name under the production of well-known products such as the iPhone, iPad, and iMac, Apple's image has become one that is of great popularity. Members talked about how even though the company usually tends to charge top dollar for their products (especially with the fairly recent iPhones breaking the $...

We hope you had a meaningful MLK Day programming and long weekend. Thank you to everyone who applied for a position on the Andover Business Club board. This year, we understand that it was difficult to attend meetings due to time zones, different work schedules, etc. We acknowledge and thank you for your tenacity and commitment to ABC, nonetheless. We hope that with these positions you will work collectively to fuel ABC's growth, which has come a long way since it was founded in 2017, and continue making this space inclusive and inviting to all members of the Andover community.  Attached is the ABC Board for the 2021-2022 school year. We will have a  brief meeting tomorrow, 1/20, at 10:15 AM EST . If you are on the board, you will be asked to stay a little after to discuss your roles and prompt a smooth transition. 

ABC reconvened for our first meeting of the year this past Wednesday! Additionally, board apps were due earlier this week, so thank you to all who applied. Board turnovers will follow shortly. This week, Student Advocates for Climate Awareness (SACA) partnered with ABC to  lead a discussion on the impacts of climate change and renewable resources on the private sector.  SACA is a club tackling climate change questions pertaining to various fields, from medicine to business. They've brought their insight to other clubs, asking participants to reflect on how climate change affects fields of their interest.  We focused our discussion on electric vehicles (EVs), honing in on the company Tesla in particular. We hope to see more EVs in the market in the future, with most of Tesla's market based in the Boston to New York corridor.  Upon reflection, this is likely due to a combination of geographical, socioeconomic, practical, and marketing reasons.  ABC and SACA also a...

This two-week interlude between Thanksgiving and Winter Break can be an odd time of year. With the global pandemic, this effect is only exacerbated. Much has happened in the world since we last met. Pfizer and BioNTech's vaccine was approved and the first doses have already been administered in England. Moderna is not too far behind. This week, ABC addressed the COVID-19 vaccine, the priority groups, the strained supply chain, and the ethics of distribution. We focused our discussion on the supply chain, in particular, distribution via aircraft. With sluggish business trips and vacations, fewer passenger planes are flying to remote and/or otherwise hard to reach places. Supplies and necessities like vaccines usually reach those remote corners of the world via the bellies of passenger planes. Therefore, with fewer flights across the board, it will be harder to deliver the vaccine around the world, particularly to small islands or countries with underdeveloped infrastructure. On the ...

ABC reconvened for our   final meeting of the term this past Wednesday.  We discussed the election and focused specifically on voting habits, the priorities driving voting decisions, and the state of the election. While the election took place on Tuesday evening, the results we not finalized when we met.  Interestingly, the WSJ conducted a poll and asked participants whether this election is about the  economy  or about  COVID-19 . While elections have historically been driven by people's perceptions of each candidate's ability to handle the economy, this year, it turns out  3% more people are voting based on who they believe will handle the coronavirus better . This is an interesting take on the election. Do you believe this is what voters considered? Or is there something else more prominent that went through voters' minds this year? We based our discussion primarily on this podcast.   Charlotte brought up good points about voting habits, notin...

Wow, this three-day week has been fast! We hope you had a somewhat restful long weekend after midterms. For those of you who missed the meeting this morning, ABC talked about the 2020 Presidential Candidates and the effects of their policies on the business world.  We began by talking about the tax policies of each candidate, namely that Trump proposes continuing to cut corporate and that Biden proposes to increase corporate taxes to 28% from 21% right now. Luc brought up a good point when he compared corporate taxes of both these candidates to that of Obama, which was closer to 38 percent, much higher than that of other wealthy countries. Both Biden and Trump's corporate tax proposals are significantly lower than Obama's, which could prove an important factor in economic recovery during a post-covid world. We also delved into Biden's 5.4 trillion dollar spending plan and his 2 trillion dollar deficit, even after increasing both income and corporate taxes. Is it an effectiv...

We hope your week Midterms week went well. During ABC's Week 2 Meeting, we discussed  healthcare during COVID-19. Some questions we considered: What are the economics behind US Healthcare? Why is healthcare in the US so expensive versus in other countries? Who's benefitted from COVID-19? Should the US government subsidize COVID-19 vaccine research, or should private companies bear the cost of the burden? How should governments distribute funding for the vaccine?  T he article linked below – provided by Sam C. (thanks for this link!) – presented some great, though slightly biased, background information that ultimately guided our discussion from this week. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/05/health/covid-insurance-profits.html We understand that many of you were busy last week due to Midterms. Take care of yourself and we hope to see you next week during Meeting 3! 

 Welcome to the first Andover Business Club meeting of the school year! These are unprecedented times and certainly has taken all of us by surprise. And given that clubs cannot meet in person this term, ABC will look very different and the structure of this tight-knit community will inexorably feel new. Nonetheless, we welcome all students interested in the business world and beyond to the ABC community. Regardless of your experience in the business world or beyond, there is a place for you. Based on the survey sent out earlier, it appears most of you are interested in addressing the implications of COVID-19 on the business world in some way, shape, or form. Some of the surveys focused on how business models are changing while others wanted to talk about the rising importance of delivery. All of these important facets to address in these uncertain, changing times. At the meeting, we will vote on a specific topic or see where the conversation goes laissez-faire style.  We hope ...

Hi  ABC , We hope you’re doing well. Just two more weeks of school left! You got this! Though school is ending, a lot is happening both in the US and all around the world.  Political tensions ,  economic strains , and the  race to develop a vaccine  are among some of the top news headlines. ABC will be meeting one final time for this year via Zoom on  SUNDAY, MAY 24  at  9:30 PM EST . Though this is not the way we had hoped to meet spring term,  thank you  to all of the members who have showed up to our past two virtual meetings. This final meeting is, as always, 100% optional though we would love to see your faces one last time before we part for summer break. Copied below is the link to the meeting. We hope to see you this Sunday, but if not, have a wonderful, well-deserved break! Best, The ABC Board ----------------------------------------------------- Ava Long is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom mee...

Hi   ABC , We hope you’re doing well.   Tomorrow evening at   8:30 PM EST , ABC will host another optional ZOOM meeting. This meeting will be what you want it to be. Some of you may have questions about the   SAVE Program , which can be answered during this time. We can alternatively talk about   shifting global powers   as it relates to COVID-19, a pertinent topic in the news currently. This meeting is 100% optional :) Nonetheless, hope to see some of you soon! The Board ZOOM INFO_______________________________ Ava Long is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Topic: ABC Zoom Session #2 Time: May 5, 2020 08:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81825575159?pwd=TWxWZFVpRWRtWnJTQlZBa3FFNXljZz09 Meeting ID: 818 2557 5159 Password: 5kbm08

Dear ABC, Wow. It’s been a while and all of us have certainly been through a lot. We hope you’re all doing well in these unprecedented times and we hope you are all staying safe and practicing healthy habits. ABC will host a 100% optional meeting this Sunday at 8 PM EST in place of our usual weekly meetings. Join us if you’d like, we won’t be talking business; we just want to check in with you all to see how you’re doing.   Copied below is the information for our meeting. Again, 100% optional! We hope to see some of you soon! Stay safe, The Board

Good morning   ABC , We will be meeting tonight at   6:30 PM in Sam Phil room 102   for our final meeting of the term. There will be pizza. We will be meeting to discuss   ventures for spring term   and if time permits, we will move into a discussion about either   Ponzi schemes   or   branding   a company.   See you tonight, The Board

Good morning   ABC , We will be meeting at 6:30 PM tonight in Sam Phil room 102. We will debrief the   hot chocolate sale   and go over margins etc. After, we can move into a discussion about the coronavirus . While a global issue, it has become relevant to PA in many ways. Furthermore, WSJ reported yesterday morning that the   Dow dropped 400 points   with the pervasion of coronavirus outside of China. We can have a general discussion about the disease itself or we can transition into a discussion about the effects of events in the medical field on the economy, in particular, stock performance. Come with ideas! See you tonight, The Board

Good evening   ABC , Awesome job to everyone who helped out with the   Hot Chocolate Sale   this evening! Here are the numbers. Financials : COGS = $145 Revenue = $226.50 Gross profit margin   = (226.50-145)/226.50 =   36.0% GPM didn’t quite meet our expectations so we’ll debrief during our next meeting on Tuesday. Most importantly… I hope we have all learned the power of   team work   and   communication through this venture. Some special shout outs to these wonderful members for prompting the success of tonight: Sabby   Luc Melissa Venkat Reese Richard Alex This sale couldn’t have happened without all your help! Regards, Ava