BoyWonder1911 Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Another topic on this forum got me thinking about this particular subject, one subject that I find intriguing and that I don't think is pervasive in drum corps at the moment, at least not to my knowledge, and that is the subject of funding through business models. I believe Star of Indiana got their start by setting up businesses up for the purpose of funneling money into the corps. I don't believe, to my knowledge, that any corps currently follows this model, or has gotten their start by this. I certainly believe that money, in any relevant society, is the lifeblood of economy, and that having more money will thus help our activity by providing lower tour fees, thus more students may be able to march, and with those two forces combined, will 1) raise competition levels and 2) having more corps founded. Of course this is elementary, but money doesn't grow on trees, and the question has always been "how to get more money"? And I know that corps sell souvenir merchandise, but this normally goes right towards fuel, and isn't really all that effective. Bingo helps, but 1)isn't really a bona fide business, and 2) some states don't even allow it. I was wondering how others may feel about corps getting into the business of business...starting a business for the purpose of garnering money for their corps? BW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 (edited) Another topic on this forum got me thinking about this particular subject, one subject that I find intriguing and that I don't think is pervasive in drum corps at the moment, at least not to my knowledge, and that is the subject of funding through business models. I believe Star of Indiana got their start by setting up businesses up for the purpose of funneling money into the corps. I don't believe, to my knowledge, that any corps currently follows this model, or has gotten their start by this. I certainly believe that money, in any relevant society, is the lifeblood of economy, and that having more money will thus help our activity by providing lower tour fees, thus more students may be able to march, and with those two forces combined, will 1) raise competition levels and 2) having more corps founded. Of course this is elementary, but money doesn't grow on trees, and the question has always been "how to get more money"? Sounds interesting, but would you invest ( say And I know that corps sell souvenir merchandise, but this normally goes right towards fuel, and isn't really all that effective. Bingo helps, but 1)isn't really a bona fide business, and 2) some states don't even allow it. I was wondering how others may feel about corps getting into the business of business...starting a business for the purpose of garnering money for their corps? BW Sounds interesting at first blush, but would you invest ( say) a $5,000 in a new business if you found out the money would not come back to you as a stockholder or investor, but instead the profits would go to ( say ) The Audubon Society Chapter in your town for field trips to the woods of Tennessee ? Wouldn't you be better off just donating the $5,000 directly to a Drum Corps... or a bird watching society if this was your interest ? Business is in the business of making money for the businees.. for owners... and for those who invest their money in it. A Business that has a shadow enterprise that the business is funding doesn't seem to fulfil it's fiduciary obligation to it's investors if such a shadow enterprise is not disclosed to investors in the business, it would seem to me. Plus, if one gives a donation to a qualified tax exempt 501c3 organization is is tax deductible. However, If one gives money to an individual for his business it is not tax deductible. Edited May 22, 2011 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NR_Ohiobando Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I don't know that this is related, but recently one of Madison's alumni who marched in 81 and 82 cut a pretty cool deal with the corps for fundraising. http://www.madisonscouts.org/blog/?p=478 If the article is true, then ALL profits from that particular store go directly to help out the Scouts. I'm not sure if this was just a special deal for a short time or if it truly is always going to benefit the Scouts, but either way it's an extremely cool fundraising opportunity that the Scouts are lucky to have. Obviously the Scouts aren't the "Madison Chocolaterie Stam Scouts" or "Madison Scouts sponsored by Chocolaterie Stam", but it is certainly a cool gig. plug: you can order their awesome chocolate online too! http://www.stamchocolate.com/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoyWonder1911 Posted May 22, 2011 Author Share Posted May 22, 2011 Businesses are in the business of making money for the owners - in this case, the owners would be the corps itself. You don't have to sell public stock in order to be a business. In fact, most businesses are privately owned. Something like starting a busing company, or trucking company, the ideas are really limitless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoyWonder1911 Posted May 22, 2011 Author Share Posted May 22, 2011 And that Madison Scouts article is pretty darned cool! Kudos to that guy for donating that store's profits to the corps. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 (edited) Businesses are in the business of making money for the owners - in this case, the owners would be the corps itself. You don't have to sell public stock in order to be a business. In fact, most businesses are privately owned. Something like starting a busing company, or trucking company, the ideas are really limitless. You are correct that private business owners have a lot of lattitude in how they use the profits from the business. They themselves can donate to ( say ) a Corps, or to most anything. I'm simply stating that this is not the most prudent way to run a business, as it mingles business with hobbies, which is generally not a recommended business practice. But it's not my business, and it's not my money. And if ( say ) a business owner wants to give proceeds from the business dirctly into a hobby or charity that they like, and if the recipient finds another willing donor and source of funds for their operation, whats not to like ? Its a free country. Edited May 22, 2011 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 And that Madison Scouts article is pretty darned cool! Kudos to that guy for donating that store's profits to the corps. agree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Boo Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I believe Star of Indiana got their start by setting up businesses up for the purpose of funneling money into the corps. The corps got its start with seed money from Bill Cook, but very soon, a bus company and a travel company were set up to support the corps. The bus company became HUGE in the charter business before being sold off and the travel company specializes in corporate travel for companies across America. In the early days, the bus company also kept buses from other corps busy during the off-season, helping those corps make some money. (I remember seeing Madison Scouts buses with removable Star of Indiana logo strips attached to the front and back.) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Businesses are in the business of making money for the owners - in this case, the owners would be the corps itself. You don't have to sell public stock in order to be a business. In fact, most businesses are privately owned. Something like starting a busing company, or trucking company, the ideas are really limitless. Cadets had a bus company for a while; the band I teach used them for a trip one year. Not sure if it was too expensive to operate or what, but I don't think it is in operation anymore. Never hear about it, anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrillmanSop06 Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 You are correct that private business owners have a lot of lattitude in how they use the profits from the business. They themselves can donate to ( say ) a Corps, or to most anything. I'm simply stating that this is not the most prudent way to run a business, as it mingles business with hobbies, which is generally not a recommended business practice. But it's not my business, and it's not my money. And if ( say ) a business owner wants to give proceeds from the business dirctly into a hobby or charity that they like, and if the recipient finds another willing donor and source of funds for their operation, whats not to like ? Its a free country. The business would be organized and chartered by the corps as the for-profit "division" of the 501c3 organization. It's quite clear you're not familiar with business practices as they relate to nonprofit organizations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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