Learning the Business of Business

One would say that fifteen-year-old Jennifer C. is a typical teenager. However, she's not necessarily a teen you might hear about in the news, because she doesn't fit the stereotype usually presented by the media.

She stands just about five feet tall, has a perky personality, and likes to wear jeans. She also broke up with her boyfriend recently, is anxious to turn sixteen, and dreams of one day owning her own car. If she could afford to buy a car, it would be either a Nissan Maxima or a Mercedes-Benz (the color would have to be silver).

School, of course, is an important part of her life. This year she has to be at school by 7:30 for gym class - it's a requirement. (She's one of the lucky ones - many school districts across the country have eliminated gym classes altogether for high school students.) Her academic course load includes English, Spanish, biology, math, and American history.

Jennifer is also active in sports. She plays basketball and was a member of her middle school's champion field hockey team. Singing has been a passion since she was little, she confided. "I've been singing basically my whole life. But I got involved in singing in school in the sixth grade with a group of friends." In seventh and eighth grades, she joined her middle school choir. Her parents moved the family from New Hampshire to Boston just before she entered ninth grade. She began classes at a new school and promptly signed up for the school's music program. She has taken jazz and blues lessons, and joined the concert and gospel choirs. What is her favorite type of music? "Almost anything, but especially R&B and rap," she said. Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys, and 50 Cent are a few of the artists she likes.

Jennifer keeps quite busy pursuing her interests. But you might be surprised to learn that she also manages to squeeze in time to work in the family-owned dry cleaning business. She puts in a few hours working after school during the week, and on most Saturday afternoons.

The family now owns and operates two dry cleaners in Massachusetts and one in New Hampshire, so she has been around this business for some time. When she was younger she helped with small chores. "In the beginning," she said, "I didn't want to do it. I'd say I don't want to go. But I know it's about helping the family."

Of course, she doesn't operate any of the equipment. She spends her day greeting the customers, accepting their soiled clothes and linens, writing up intake slips, tagging intake garments, giving out finished orders, and receiving payments from customers: cash, checks or credit cards.

PT asked what she meant by the term "tagging." She explained, "I don't like doing it because it takes a lot of time. You have to write down the color of the garment, the brand name, and if there is anything wrong with the garment. We have numbers that we put on each piece of clothing or linen so we know whom it belongs to. And things like suede or other things like that, we send out to our other local location because the washing machines are bigger. Like dress shirts and blankets would be sent there. They can be done in bulk."

The working experience that Jennifer has gained - improving her people and communication skills (mentally and physically having to deal with customers), putting in her hours (making sure to follow procedures so as not to lose or damage customers' property), and managing money, has inspired her to pursue a business degree. "There are a lot of different things, so many types of businesses that I can apply what I'm learning." And this typical teen thinks a career on the business side of the music industry just might be the ticket.

* Reprinted from Positive Teens Magazine Volume 6 Issue 2, Mar/Apr 2004

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