Note
Please submit your applications ASAP, we're looking for self starters and the more on top of things you are the better. Thank you!

Mission Statement:

Our dream at Treehouse Vending LLC is to bring delicious yet healthy snack foods to our customers at a competitive price point. We are not out to have healthy “options” next to unhealthy ones as many of our competitors do. Our organization will change the way people think about the vending industry and become a national vendor because of our aesthetically pleasing state of the art machines and our innovative product list.

Treehouse Vending LLC Company Profile:

Overview
Founded in late 2007, Treehouse Vending will provide all-healthy snacks for hungry workers, students, and passers-by through untraditional, nature-inspired vending machines. The company's product list will include selections from Bear Naked Granola, Powerbar, Planters, Welch's, Newman's Own Organics, and Flying Pig Natural Foods. The machines themselves will be modified to look like a treehouse, complete with real salvaged wood sides and shingled roofs. Each product's nutritional information will be displayed in a fold out menu attached to the side of the “treehouse bulletin board”.

Founding Team
The company's founder, Matthew De Silva, is a division I scholarship cross country and track athlete for the Purdue Boilermakers. Outside of working on the company he manages a successful rental property company, Desylvia LLC, and is pursing a degree in management with minors in finance, history, and entrepreneurship. The company's strategic adviser is Strother Brann, an entrepreneurship professor and successful business owner. Through his company, Seneca Consulting, he provides advice for small and medium businesses. Another member of Treehouse's advisory board is Rachel Clark, a registered dietitian. She is working directly with the management team to approve each product's nutritional value before it can be added to the product list. Dr. Erika Sundstrum has offered her expertise by reviewing the product list and evaluating the company's overall health message. Currently positions are available in marketing, primary research, and secondary research.

Strategic Partnerships
Treehouse Vending is located in West Lafayette, Indiana, the home of Purdue University. The firm leverages many resources provided by the school. A strategic partnership as an affiliate member of the Purdue Research Park , a business incubator, has given management access to another set of advisors, a commercial shipping address, marketing support, legal council, and networking opportunities. Continued support from Purdue's Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurhsip will help the company gain experience through business plan competitions and seminars. All new hires will come from various majors across campus and bring diverse skill sets to the company.

Competitive Advantages

No other vending company in the greater Lafayette area can legitimatly claim that they can improve a company's bottom line or a school's test scores. Treehouse Vending's healthy food choices allow our customers to have better focus, energy, and overall health. This in turn generates better returns on labor for our location owners, allowing us to take the best locations with the most traffic and profit potential. The firm also has superior marketing in relation to its competitors, who have no interaction with customers and very little interest in introducing new products or marketing their services. Treehouse Vending will also utilize the latest technology for vending machines, including built in credit card readers and LCD television screens.

Marketing Specialist

Description
Are you looking for a position where your creativity and skill can make a difference? Working with Treehouse Vending will allow you to gain real-life marketing experience from a real company. The firm is registered with the state of Indiana as a limited liability corporation and will be launched either during or following this class. Your work will be used in the final business plan and on all business marketing materials, including our unique machines. This opportunity is an excellent resume builder and will be exciting, challenging, and rewarding for the successful applicant.

Skills/Attributes You Will Need
• Creative
• Passionate
• Team Oriented
• Drawing/Computer Rendering Ability
• Analytical Nature
• Punctual

Your Job Entails
•Creating a visual representation of the “Treehouse” Vending Machine to be used in sales presentations
•Leading the team in developing a full-scale marketing plan, writing, editing, and re-editing in a group environment
•Designing brochures and flyers
•Re-designing existing blog
•Working with Primary Research Teammate to study competitors and their marketing strategy/product mix
•Adding to existing marketing vision with innovative ideas and observations

Please Submit
• Resume
• Cover Letter
• Prior Work (if applicable)
• Other materials that qualify you for the position (letters of recommendation, business plan, concept statement, et cetera)

In an email with attachments to treehousevending@gmail.com with “Marketing Specialist” in the subject line

Thank you for your time and application, we look forward to filling the position.

Primary Research Analyst

Description
Here at Treehouse Vending we're looking for people with a strong sense of the world around them. Entrepreneurs certainly have that, so if you want to be a successful small business owner take a look at this position! Our Primary Research Analyst will be our eyes and ears on the ground. Primary research entails going out into the real world and talking with potential customers and locations. The position will allow you to develop a sense of how to put together strong and convincing data. You will also be asked to present your findings to the group and possibly to other third parties. Coincidentally this is a skill that most every employee needs to have. If you want to "be your own boss", you'll need an even stronger background in research and presentation/communication skills. Here's your chance to back up that "strong communication skills" qualification on your resume with actual research (shown on the business plan), that you can take to your future employer or a venture capitalist!

Skills/Attributes You Will Need
•Punctual
•Resourceful
•Analytical
•Outgoing
•Friendly
•Conversational
•Organized
•Strong Writing Ability
•Well Spoken
•Persistent
•Passionate

Your Job Entails
•Interviewing customers about their preferences in a “normal” vending machine
•Quantifying data into meaningful trends and visual representations (graphs/charts)
•Writing various sections of the business plan with other members of the team
•Calling and meeting with locations and identifying their needs
•Conducting blind and open taste tests with customers
•Advising the team on “real world” trends gained through research

Please Submit
• Resume
• Cover Letter
• Prior Work (if applicable)
• Other materials that qualify you for the position (letters of recommendation, business plan, concept statement, et cetera)

In an email with attachments to treehousevending@gmail.com with “Primary Research Analyst” in the subject line

Thank you for your time and application, we look forward to filling the position.

Secondary Research Analyst

Description
If you are the type of person who wonders why things happen please read on. If not well... Why do we have two people just doing research? Research is what a business plan is primarily comprised of and it is what Treehouse Vending is missing. Our "secondary" researcher is not at all going to play second fiddle to our "primary" researcher. In fact they are completely separate jobs. The title refers to doing secondary research, which includes sources from other businesses, academia, demographic information etc. This means that you won't have to get out into the real world and talk to people about our products. You are our "big picture" person who can offer us a view of the opportunity from 30,000 feet up. Thinking this way is very important for starting a business, because we all inherently think far too small.

Skills/Attributes You Will Need
•Resourceful
•Analytical
•Determined
•Punctual
•Academic
•Organized
•Strong Writing Ability
•Persistent
•Passionate

Your Job Entails
•Creating a comprehensive list of all competitors in the Lafayette area
•Digging for professional information and studies that support our mission
•Identifying our target demographic (numerically)
•Modeling some of our financials with aid from project manager
•Graphing data into useful and visible trends to be used in the business plan

Please Submit
•Resume
•Cover Letter
•Prior Work (if applicable)
•Other materials that qualify you for the position (letters of recommendation, business plan, concept statement, et cetera)

In an email with attachments to treehousevending@gmail.com with “Secondary Research Analyst” in the subject line

Thank you for your time and application, we look forward to filling the position.

Attached is my resume and cover letter that validates why I will be a successful project manager. Please review these materials prior to your application. They are in Microsoft Word 97 format. Thank you and good luck.