Elon University students walk past Skid’s Restaurant every day on the way to the gym or en route to class. Until recently, it was rare they stopped in for a bite.
Enactus, a student organization that calls upon Elon student entrepreneurs to help local, national and international businesses in need, has begun the process of marketing Skid’s Restaurant to the larger student clientele.
“The goal of our project is to improve the restaurant and market it so it can maintain its local presence, but at the same time, attract the student body and make improvements to the restaurant overall,” said sophomore Andrew Lynch, Enactus member and Skid’s project manager.
At the beginning of the Fall 2012 semester, Enactus members surveyed Elon students about their knowledge of Skid’s. The results indicated many knew about the restaurant but had never set foot in the building. That’s when Enactus decided to add social media to Skid’s marketing strategy and began hosting profit shares to bring more customers into the restaurant.
Lynch said the most successful marketing project Enactus has implemented so far is an event called Late Night Skid’s, where the restaurant is open from 10:30 p.m. until 2:30 a.m. By closing time at the first Late Night Skid’s, every seat had been filled, according to Lynch.
“We thought maybe since they came for Late Night, they’ll come at other times of the day,” Lynch said.
Glenda Robertson, the manager of Skid’s, said the restaurant has seen an overall increase in student traffic during all times of the day after the success of Late Night Skid’s and other strategies from Enactus.
Another important factor of the project has been making the restaurant more environmentally friendly. Enactus received a grant from Sam’s Club Step Up for Small Business worth $1,500. Members spent part of the grant money on installing LED lighting. The change has not only been a step toward a more green facility, but also makes the overall atmosphere more inviting and comfortable, according to Lynch.
“We’re all about making businesses more sustainable and making products more environmentally friendly,” Lynch said.
Enactus’ ultimate goal with this project is to make Skid’s sustainable without the help of the organization.
Enactus is also currently involved in three additional projects, including “Let’s Can Hunger.” For this project, Enactus made a pledge with Campbell’s Soup to accumulate 5,000 pounds of canned goods this year while educating the local community about hunger.
“Our mission is to make the world better and more sustainable, so there are many people affected by Enactus in a positive way,” said senior Andrew Ganim, president of Enactus. “We don’t want to just give people fish — we want to teach them how to fish in order to better sustain themselves.”
The mission of Enactus is also to provide participating students with valuable experience and leadership opportunities. Ganim said 99 percent of Enactus participants have a job when they graduate because of their drive and dedication. Getting involved with the organization is an optimal way to employ business skills learned in the classroom in a professional environment, he said.