THUNDER BAY -- Katie Davidson got to gain some practical business experience while making a difference in the community.
The 16-year-old was one of the students in the Grade 11 marketing class at St. Ignatius High School that has been collaborating with the Grade 9 business class to hold a charity lunch market, which was held at the school on Tuesday.
The students were split into groups, with each responsible for organizing the project from the first step right to completion. The proceeds of the sales are donated to local charities, which were selected by each group.
She was part of the Claus Cupcakes group, which sold more than 100 cupcakes to benefit the Thunder Bay and District Humane Society.
“We really love animals and one of the girls in our group just adopted one from the Humane Society,” she said. “It fit.”
The market serves as the culminating activity for the two classes, with students able to put the lessons they learned through the semester into practice.
Grade 11 marketing teacher Cheri Kruse said that involves understanding how to develop a product, target a customer base and create brand awareness.
It’s valuable hands-on experience that shows students the complete nature of putting together a small-scale business practice.
“They realize how much work goes into planning an event,” Cruz said. “You take that whole time, right from the inception of the idea to the day of the activity. There is a lot of learning, market research, planning, pricing and brand strategy all along the way.”
The students selected nine local charities, including Community Living Thunder Bay, Habitat for Humanity and the local chapters of the Alzheimer’s Society and the Canadian Cancer Society.
Past versions of the event have each raised more than $1,000.
