Don't be fooled by the professional Web site and prompt delivery - the founders of Dormsnacks.com are four sophomores.
In EN 9: "Management of Industrial and Nonprofit Organizations" as first-years, Robby Klaber '07 and Kevin Dickson '07 jokingly egged each other on to come up with business ideas. One day, Dickson showed up in Klaber's room and said he thought he had "something." After bringing two other classmates on board - Herald photographer Chris Bennett '07 and Matt Bornstein '07 - the group began developing a business model for a snack delivery service in EN 90: "Managerial Decision Making."
When the group realized existing companies provided a similar service, Dickson said he "went through a crisis, thinking someone's already doing this." But the Dormsnacks staff soon realized their organization could be different.
"A lot of (snack service) companies are pretty much students hiding stuff in their dorm rooms who then get on their bike to pedal out deliveries and collect a few dollars," Dickson said. But Dormsnacks.com eschewed guerilla sales for an actual business plan.
"That helped formalize our ideas," Klaber said. "We had a very comprehensive business plan that detailed every small aspect."
Incorporated last May and launched in October 2004, the company now offers over 500 products, ranging from food and drinks to tampons and Q-tips. Unlike food delivery services at other campuses, Dormsnacks.com requires no minimum purchase and delivers merchandise to dorms every Sunday with no extra charge.
"We felt as students that we were being taken advantage of because CVS and Store24 pretty much have a monopoly in the area," Dickson said. "We're trying to cover costs, but more importantly we're try to get products to students at lower prices."
Dormsnacks purchases merchandise in bulk from a variety of wholesalers and retailers in the area offering the best prices. Rather than encountering skepticism on account of their age, the group has built professional relationships with many distributors. "A lot of people admire what we're trying to do and are very supportive," Dickson said.
While Klaber and Dickson said existing customers remain loyal and take them seriously as a business, attracting new customers is their greatest challenge. "The most challenging thing is getting people onto the Web site and to change their habits," Dickson said.
Apart from these marketing challenges, Klaber said the biggest surprise has been students' preference for healthier fare. Still, Kraft Easy Mac remains one of their most popular items.
As a Web-based company with little initial cost, Dormsnacks.com became profitable almost as soon as it began making deliveries. But the founders have yet to earn any salary themselves.
"If we're doing too well, we lower prices more," Klaber said. "Everything we've been making goes back into the company."
Klaber said the company will next open franchises at other schools where students have expressed interest. If all goes well, they may expand beyond Rhode Island by next spring. But the company continues to struggle with a public relations challenge here at Brown.
"Our Web developer, Matt Bornstein, did too good a job, and a lot of people don't think we're Brown students," Dickson said. He added that students come by his dorm room, see the Dormsnacks.com sign and ask if he's being paid to display it.
"We're definitely not a corporation working for an evil empire," Dickson said. "We started this ourselves."
