GATHERED
A business simulation. Three quarters. Real decisions. Real consequences.
Enter your name to begin. It will appear on your reflection card.
Social media strategist. She builds campaigns for businesses that are ready to grow.
Maya has been approached by Gathered, a curated gift and lifestyle shop. Before she recommends a single campaign idea, she needs to understand whether the numbers support growth.
She is handing the keys to you. Run Gathered for three quarters. Make the purchasing decisions. Watch what happens to the statements. At the end, tell Maya what you found.
- There are six checkpoints worth 2 points each, 12 points total: one after each round, Maya's net income question, your campaign choice, and Maya's final question.
- Answer correctly on the first try for 2 points, or on the second try for 1 point. You get two attempts.
- Your campaign choice earns 2 points if it fits your statements, 1 if it is safe but smaller than you could afford, and 0 if it costs more than your net income.
- Your ordering and counting decisions are not scored on their own. They create the numbers you analyze, and demand is unpredictable, so different students see different results.
- Write your reflection to reveal your score. Earn 10 of 12 points (about 83%) or more to receive the Inventory Inspector badge.
Shrinkage is inventory your records say you have that is no longer on the shelf. Units can disappear through theft, damage, spoilage, counting or receiving mistakes, and unrecorded returns or samples.
Your purchase tracking cannot see any of this. Records only show what should be on hand. Only a physical count shows what is on hand.
Shrinkage happens whether or not anyone counts. A count does not cause the loss, it reveals it. Either way the lost units end up in cost of goods sold, because they were in your beginning inventory but are not in your ending inventory.
Maya has looked at all three quarters of statements. She turns to you.
"Before I tell you what campaign makes sense, I need you to tell me what you are working with. What did the numbers show you this year?"
Claire, this is your analysis to deliver. Choose the campaign that your statements actually support.
You ran Gathered for three quarters, watched the statements react to your decisions, and chose a campaign based on what the numbers showed.
Maya wants to understand your thinking, not just the outcome. Walk her through what surprised you.
Download your reflection card and submit the file as directed by your instructor. If you earned the badge, it will appear on the card.