Building Entrepreneurship on the Road: A “Shark Tank”-like Approach
Louis Alexander
Organization: Banyan Global, Implementation IDIQ holder

The ‘Building Entrepreneurship on the Road: a “Shark Tank”-like approach’ is based on a public-private partnership project related to at-risk youth and human trafficking. A youth-focused video was produced (with MTV’s help), and a team organized public showings in eight Mexican cities in collaboration with a local movie theatre company (Cinepolis in Mexico). The screens were large portable movie screens that allowed viewing by dozens if not hundreds of people. In most towns there were 100 – 200 participants, and in one town there were close to one thousand people watching. After the short video was shown, the “youth facilitators” engaged the audience in a Q&A and hosted games that created spaces for dialogue in small groups. This “Shark Tank”-like idea for YouthPower can be used to create a video about entrepreneurship, led by youth entrepreneurs, that would evaluate business plans and proposals from youth. The video can be fun, dynamic, but also serious, and get people excited about the issues and challenges that surface when one is thinking about starting, strengthening, or expanding a micro- or small business. These types of public learning events held in small neighborhoods and communities where there is little entertainment tend to be a big hit, especially when held in public squares, community centers, or schools.  The “Shark Tank” format on TV has been one of the more successful programs watched by whole families, not just adults or youth. In this case, the road trip and local presentations would encourage family dialogue around business entrepreneurship in microeconomic settings where there are many family-led or family-supported businesses. The video can generate discussion about business planning, product and service quality, marketing, inventory, market demand, attention to clients, business expansion, cash flow, use of credit, return on investment, business location, and more.