Business Commons^™

Motivations And Barriers In College Students For Coffee Consumption From Coffee Shops: A Podcast, Khushi Dave

Senior Theses

The book, Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How It Transformed Our World, highlights the globalization of coffee; it was first discovered in the mountainsides of modern—day Ethiopia and has since swept the globe. Historically used for religious, medicinal, and recreational purposes, people flocked to coffee houses for the taste of the brew. Now, this beloved bean is ever prevalent on college campuses, especially through foodservice locations. This paper explores the role of foodservice locations, specifically coffee shops, in coffee consumption among college students. Specifically, it will survey the reasons that college students want to buy coffee from …

Analysis Of The Relationship Between Covid-19 And Employee Satisfaction In Luxury Hotels, Renee Bawcom

Senior Theses

This paper investigates the relationship between the COVID-19 pandemic and employee satisfaction in luxury hotels. Through a review of the existing body of scholarly literature about factors affecting employee satisfaction, and new collection and analysis of data on the topic, the identification and evolution of factors affecting employee satisfaction was explored. In reference to companies’ responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, luxury hotel employees’ levels of satisfaction were analyzed. The analysis concluded that the widespread changes made to the luxury hotel industry in response to the COVID-19 pandemic did not have a negative impact on employee satisfaction.

Analyzing Local Alcohol Vendor Inventory Management Strategy, Angelo J. Amore

Senior Theses

This paper attempts to analyze how local alcohol vendors maintain their inventory throughout the year in Columbia, attempting to manage factors such as the season, sporting events, and other public gatherings and events. The research question resulted in contacting over 30 local alcohol vendors in Columbia, to ask them questions regarding their strategy in alcohol inventory management. The responses to these questions were then used to organize the vendors into groups by whether or not they utilize a reorder point to purchase/brew alcohol, or if they utilize periodic ordering. The vendors were also asked to rank the seasons from most …

From The Pits To The People, William J. Robertson

Senior Theses

This thesis explores the current and future status of authentic barbeque in the State of South Carolina. It begins by introducing the topic, exploring the background of barbeque in the state, and then introduces the issues at hand – the importance of advertising the restaurants and the impending question of age of the restaurants’ owners, operators, and pitmasters. In the literature review, the issues are given background and the typical authentic barbeque restaurant is described. Five restaurants are examined in the methodology and research, selected due to their locations in each of the regions of South Carolina (Midlands, Lowcountry, Upstate, …

Everything You Never Wanted To Know About Spanish Wines (And A Few Things You Did), John Phillips Wacker

Senior Theses

The Spanish wine scene is incredibly diverse, and an immense number of different wines are made in the country. Likewise, Spain is incredibly rich in culture, with a wide array of languages, histories, cultures, and cuisines found throughout the nation. The sheer number and variety of Spanish wines and the incredible variety of cultures found in Spain may be daunting to the uninitiated. Thus, a guide to Spanish wine and culture, which not only details the two but links them, as well, may prove very helpful to the Spanish wine newcomer or perhaps even a sommelier.

This thesis-guide was compiled …

Indah: The Unorthodox Rise Of A Columbian Staple, Will Helms

Senior Theses

Over the course of several weeks, I conducted a series of observations at Indah Coffee Co. in order to better understand its marketing and interaction with the neighborhood. After observing the coffee shop several times, I consulted outside sources, a process that is considered to be in the psychological realm of “grounded theory”, constantly comparing them to my own observations. After an interview with Indah’s owner, I began compiling my findings. The following paper is an outline of my findings, including the importance of the product in the coffee industry versus other industries, the power of successful grassroots marketing, and …

Authenticity In The Country Music Industry, Alyssa Johnson

Senior Theses

When researching the country music industry, it is impossible to avoid certain words—authenticity, sincerity, tradition—as a country music consumer, I have personally noticed these themes appearing frequently. As a consumer, I have been confused by the images that I’ve observed in country music scholarship and journalism based on tradition or authenticity (or, more often, the lack thereof). There is serious reverence for certain people, places, and things in country music. The Grand Ole Opry, the “legends” of the industry, and Nashville itself are treated with the utmost respect because of the roles that they’ve played in the development of country …

Functional Space Management In The Hospitality Industry And Its Future Outlook, Katherine Dail

Senior Theses

In recent years, profit made from ancillary revenues has become more vital to the success of service companies. This phenomenon is very pronounced in the airline industry, but is also beginning to become more relevant to hotels as it is applied to functional space and meetings. Most of these ancillary revenues, including meetings, are typically not considered an important source of revenue for hotels, but rather as tools to draw in primary activities. This thesis seeks to delve into the importance of the meetings industry to the economy and to the hospitality industry by considering underutilized functional space and customer …