BUS101: Introduction to Business

Inventors of new-to-the-market products often form entrepreneurial start-ups to refine their product idea and bring it to market. This was the path taken by Bob Montgomery, inventor of the PowerSki Jetboard. As is typical of entrepreneurial start-ups, the company that Montgomery founded has these characteristics:

• It's characterized by innovative products and/or practices. Before the PowerSki Jetboard was invented, no comparable product existed.
• Its goals include profitability and growth. Because the patented Jetboard enjoys a temporary monopolistic position, PowerSki potentially could be very profitable.
• It focuses on new opportunities. Bob Montgomery dreamed of creating the first motorized surfboard. This dream began when he and a few of his surfer friends (all around age twelve) missed a wave because it was too far down the beach for them to catch. He imagined that if he was on a motorized surfboard (instead of an ordinary one that you had to paddle), he would have been able to catch that wave. His dream became the mission of his company: "PowerSki International Corp. was founded to deliver the patented PowerSki Jetboard, the world's only motorized surfboard, and its engine technology to the world market. It's PowerSki's goal to bring the experience of surfing to everyone on lakes, rivers, seas, and the ocean. 'Now everybody has an ocean, and can ride an endless wave'".
• Its owners are willing to take risks. Anybody who starts any business is taking a risk of some kind. The key to entrepreneurial risk is related to the idea of innovation: as Woody Allen once put it, "If you're not failing every now and again, it's a sign you're not doing anything very innovative".