Scaling Up
What happens when a small business grows; making more products, hiring people, reaching more customers; the challenges and opportunities of scaling
What a learner can do afterwards
- Describe what 'scaling up' means for a business
- Identify at least two challenges of growing a business (need more money, more people, more materials)
- Explain how a lemonade stand could grow into a bigger business step by step
The lesson
Scaling up means growing a business bigger. A business scales up when it makes more products, hires more people, or reaches more customers than before. It usually happens after a small business starts doing well and needs to keep up.
A lemonade stand can scale up step by step. Step 1: Maria sells lemonade alone at one small table. Step 2: So many people want lemonade that she cannot keep up, so she asks a friend to help. Step 3: They buy lemons in bigger batches from a big supplier, which costs more money at first but saves money per cup. Step 4: They open a second stand across the park to reach even more customers.
Growing bigger costs money before it earns money. A business needs cash for more supplies and more helpers, even before the extra customers show up.
Money is not the only challenge. A bigger business also needs more people to do the work and more materials to make enough products. The reward is reaching far more customers than before.
Scaling up means growing a business bigger, which takes more money, more people, and more materials, but lets it reach many more customers.
Watch it
Where it sits
This opens up
Nothing builds on it yet.
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.