Entrepreneurship University Home of the "Fighting Bengals" College of Entrepreneurial Studies (CES)

"We've got the merchandise and the store; all we need now is an identity."

Dwight Payne summed up the status of a new venture he just initiated with friend Gary Heap. Dwight and Gary reside in Santa Barbara, CA, where they attend college and pursue their mutual hobby of science-fiction book collecting.

"Dwight and I are really into science fiction," Heap explains. "We have pooled our book collection and have over 4,000 volumes - Heinlein, Van Vogt, Asimov, Bester, Moorcock, Pohl. You name the book; it's somewhere in our collection."

"Not only that," Payne adds, "we've got sci-fi magazines going back over twenty-five years. All neatly catalogued and indexed. I'll bet it would cost us $20,000 to assemble this collection today."

Payne and Heap decided that, at the end of this school year, they will dedicate the summer to getting a used-book store started in Santa Barbara as a means of supplementing their income year-round. They elaborate:

Payne: Gary and I figured that we might as well try to capitalize on our love of books and reading. Both of us are familiar with used-book store operations because we have haunted them so regularly in building our collection. We've been to just about every used-paperback operation in Southern California. A lot of them seem to be profiting.

Heap: My uncle owns a storefront near the University, and we made a deal for him to rebuild it as a used-book store; it's just about finished. He also co-signed an inventory loan for $4,000 for some start-up working capital. In exchange he gets 25 percent of our sales for two years. Not a bad deal, actually, since it is such a good location to serve the hordes of avid readers in the university area.

Payne: Just three weeks after lining up the building, Gary and I lucked into a deal in Ventura. The owner of a pretty good-sized used-paperback outlet put his merchandise up for sale to raise some quick cash.

Heap: We swung a good deal with him - over 10,000 paperbacks, magazines, and comics for $3,500, and $1,500 for all the shelving we will need. We borrowed the money from some fraternity brothers, rented a U-Haul truck, and carted the stuff home.

Payne: It filled the building about half way. We're currently cataloging the stuff. We got a great deal. Most of the books are in good shape and recent. It's a good mixture of fiction and nonfiction, including westerns, mysteries, gothics, biographies, and a few technical books.

Heap: We're virtually ready to open the doors, but we still haven't decided on what competitive strategy to use. We don't want to be just another used-book store. There are a half-dozen of those around town. We want to be something different in our image and in the way we operate.

Payne: We want to be able to attract customers based on our differentiated image and unique style of operating. We're looking to be something a little different. And profitable!

ADVISE DWIGHT AND GARY (There is no one right answer)