Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations Commons^™

Examining The Experiences Of Small, Independent Grocers During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Jamie Picardy, Lisa Luken, Iris Michaud, Martha Lefebvre

Maine Policy Review

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed existing vulnerabilities across various sectors of the economy and society. Disruptions to the food chain have been common during the pandemic, resulting in empty shelves at grocery stores and modifications to consumer culture. Within this study, we examined resilience (characterized by flexibility, diversity, redundancy, adaptability, innovation, self-reliance and infrastructure) of small, independent grocery stores in Maine.

Local Food Policy & Consumer Food Cooperatives: Evolutionary Case Studies, Afton Hupper

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Darwin’s theory of natural selection has played a central role in the development of the biological sciences, but evolution can also explain change in human culture. Institutions, mechanisms that govern behavior and social order, are important subjects of cultural evolution. Institutions can help stabilize cooperation, defined as behavior that benefits others, often at a personal cost. Cooperation is important for solving social dilemmas, scenarios in which the interests of the individual conflict with those of the group. A number of mechanisms by which institutions evolve to support cooperation have been identified, yet theoretical models of institutional change have rarely been …

Looking At Innovation Dialogically: Teaching Communication And (Social) Change In The Innovation Engineering Program At The University Of Maine, Mark J. Congdon Jr.

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Higher education institutions face two concurrent demands: preparing students for the job-market, while also developing informed and engaged citizens (Frey & Palmer, 2014; Gould, 2003). How universities reconcile these demands varies. The Innovation Engineering program (IE) at the University of Maine strives to both, “change the world by enabling innovation” (concern for social issues) and educate entrepreneurs (students) whose innovations reach markets quicker and at a decreased risk (capitalist orientation) (Hall, 2013; Kelly, 2014). The program uses a systems approach to innovation by teaching tools and methods for creating, communicating, and commercializing meaningfully unique ideas. Processes and contexts are important …

Fisheries & Tourism Fact Sheet Series: Tourism And Your Lobster Fishing License, Maine Sea Grant, Lobster Institute

Maine Sea Grant Publications

This fact sheet is part of a series intended to provide resources for fishermen and aquaculture farmers who seek to augment their earnings through tourism. Licensing is nothing new to commercial lobstermen, but those who might also want to run lobstering tours may have questions about licensing. This document reviews basic requirements and limitations of licensing as they relate to carrying paid passengers on lobster tours. Although this fact sheet targets the lobster industry, those targeting groundfish and other species also may want to consider the tourism market.

Fisheries & Tourism Fact Sheet Series: Marketing 101, Maine Sea Grant, Lobster Institute

Maine Sea Grant Publications

This fact sheet is part of a series intended to provide resources for fishermen and aquaculture farmers who seek to augment their earnings through tourism. A marketing strategy includes everything you do to inform potential customers what you have to offer, and to influence their decision to spend their money with you. This fact sheet describes customer identification, defining the experience, establishing prices, promotion, and marketing resources.

Fisheries & Tourism Fact Sheet Series: What Makes A Great Tour?, Maine Sea Grant, Lobster Institute

Maine Sea Grant Publications

Happy, satisfied customers will return, and they will tell their friends about your business. They are your best marketing tool. This fact sheet outlines "tried and true" methods of running tours that lead to happy customers.

Fisheries & Tourism Fact Sheet Series: Creating Partnerships With Tourism Businesses, Maine Sea Grant, Lobster Institute

Maine Sea Grant Publications

Fishermen and aquaculture farmers who partner with tourism industry members can leverage respective skill sets to save costs and increase visibility and marketing options. This fact sheet outlines types of partnerships such as informal cooperation, packaged experiences, specialized agreements, and related resources.

Fisheries & Tourism Fact Sheet Series: Maritime Law, Liability, And Insurance, Maine Sea Grant, Lobster Institute

Maine Sea Grant Publications

According to maritime law, once tourists step on your fishing boat or visit your aquaculture site, they become passengers for hire, you are responsible for their welfare, and issues of liability and insurance become extremely important. This fact sheet outlines "duty of reasonable care," maritime liability, jurisdiction, liability, and insurance as they apply to fisheries tourism businesses.

Fisheries & Tourism Fact Sheet Series: Getting Your Boat Ready For Passengers: Vessel Requirements, Maine Sea Grant, Lobster Institute

Maine Sea Grant Publications

Federal law requires that vessels used to take passengers for hire from Maine ports are owned and constructed in the United States. A fishing boat may be classified as an inspected vessel or an uninspected vessel, depending on the number of passengers it will carry and whether it meets the required construction and safety requirements.

Fisheries & Tourism Fact Sheet Series: Want To Get Your Captain's License?, Maine Sea Grant, Lobster Institute

Maine Sea Grant Publications

Are you interested in taking passengers for hire aboard your fishing boat or another vessel? Here are some facts about captain's licenses that can assist you in your decision. Any person who operates a vessel that carries one or more paying passengers is required to have a valid U.S. Coast Guard captain's license, also known as a Merchant Mariner Credential. There are several grades of captain's licenses and endorsements that a person may earn depending on their experience and the activity that they want to perform.

A Case Study Of How Systems For Innovation Can Impact Municipal Economic Development, Nathaniel Wildes

Honors College

This study examines the impact a system for innovation can have on local economic development. Traditional economic development in a University community focuses on three options: attract large companies to the area, develop tourism or expand R&D (Richert, 2011). While this model has a number of success stories over the last 50 years, the 21st century has made this model obsolete.

From globalization to a rapidly changing technological environment, 21st century factors mean towns are no longer able to develop strategies or objectives in a time frame adequate to meet the demands of a modern economy. Municipalities that have purposefully …

Financing Maine’S Food Enterprises, Ron Phillips

Maine Policy Review

There is a need to rebuild and retool the food system as the emphasis turns to more local and regional approaches. There is an abundance of social capital to make this happen and more and more financial capital. Ron Phillips provides an overview of the various ways Maine’s food-production and processing enterprises are financed and the critical components needed for financing to be secured. Two small businesses are profiled: MOO Milk, an organic dairy cooperative, and Look’s Gourmet Food of Washington County.

New Foods For Thought: Maine Food Producers Add Value Through Innovation, Betsy Bieman

Maine Policy Review

This short article discusses how the Maine Technology Institute (MTI) is contributing to the state’s value-added food cluster.

Local And Regional Food Systems: A Usda Priority, Virginia Manuel

Maine Policy Review

Virginia Manuel gives examples of innovative Maine food production, distribution and processing projects and businesses and the ways USDA rural development is financing them.

The Renaissance Of A Food-Based Economy In Skowhegan, Amber Lambke

Maine Policy Review

This case study discusses the example of Skowhegan, Maine, which is seeing the rebirth of a local food-based economy, focused on the development of a local grist mill and farmer’s market

Maine’S Connected Food System: On The Web And Online, Barbara Ives, Sam Merrill

Maine Policy Review

The authors of this case study discuss how modern communications via the internet are expanding opportunities in Maine’s food system, ranging from consumers’ buying clubs to food resource maps to “Maine Ag Trader,” a website that enables producers and consumers to connect and find what they need.

Seafood Pies With A Social Purpose, Jeff Johnson

Maine Policy Review

This case study profiles a value-added food production company that uses sustainably-harvested Maine seafood and locally-grown vegetables to make frozen seafood pies. Located in Maine’s poorest county, Washington, the Cobscook Bay Company donates 25 percent of its profits to a local education initiative.

Crown O’Maine Organic Cooperative, Leah Cook

Maine Policy Review

The article describes how Crown O’Maine Organic Cooperative has grown from a small venture marketing one Aroostook County family farm’s potatoes to a statewide distribution company for organic foods

Unity Food Hub: Creating New Opportunities For Local Farms, Michael Gold

Maine Policy Review

Unity, Maine, as described in this case study, has grown into a “food hub,” as defined by the USDA. With support from the Maine Farmland Trust, a number of local development options are being explored.

Micmac Farms: From Community Garden To Four-Season Farm And Retail Outlet, Jane Caulfield

Maine Policy Review

This short case study describes how Maine’s Micmac tribe is developing “Micmac Farms” from a community garden to a four-season agricultural business.

Enhancing Linkages Between Universities And Small Businesses In Epscor Jurisdictions, Michael Eckardt, Vicki Nemeth

University of Maine Office of Research Administration: Grant Reports

This conference will be held October 15-16, 2007, in the Portland, Maine, area. The objective of the conference is development of research and economic infrastructure in EPSCoR states through enhancing linkages between universities and small businesses. Research focus areas of alternative energy, environmental science and engineering, and communication technology will be featured in the conference sessions, and were chosen to correspond with NSF, USDA, and commercial opportunities. Presentations within these focus areas will be made by people from a variety of successful small businesses, federal agencies, state government organizations, economic and social development organizations, and private and public research centers …

Center For Technology-Based Business Development, James Ward, Daniel Dwyer, Kathryn Hunt

University of Maine Office of Research Administration: Grant Reports

Center for Technology-Based Business Development The University of Maine will create a Center for Technology-Based Business Development to address Maine's shortcomings in the creation of technology-based businesses and net exportation of its science and engineering graduates, as well as university based R&D. Strong, decisive action will be taken to provide opportunities for Maine-based technologies and students to develop companies in Maine. This strategy is consistent with the state's Science and Technology Plan and the state's economic development strategy. The Center will build on the University of Maine's successful industrial activity, and the practical experience of many other research institutions.

The …

Nearly All In The Family: Nathan Winslow And His Family Network, Joyce Bibber

Maine History

This article traces the business activities of Nathan Winslow and discusses how his inter-relationships of family and fellow-Quakers advanced his interests.