Hello, I am looking for someone to write an article on #2: GoPro. It needs to be at least 500 words.

Hello, I am looking for someone to write an article on #2: GoPro. It needs to be at least 500 words. Case Study #2: GoPro Nick Woodman and GoPro Nicholas Woodman is the founder and CEO of GoPro, the fastest-growing digital imaging company in the United States. Woodman got the idea of manufacturing a wrist strap that could bind&nbsp.cameras while he was surfing in Australia. After testing the initial prototypes, he decided to make the camera, its waterproof housing as well as the wrist strap. The initial investment of $200,000 to start GoPro was provided by Woodman’s father (Mail Online). Woodman had a humble beginning. He compiled the legal documents from his Volkswagen Van and founded Woodman Labs. He slept in the same vehicle during marketing trips. The entrepreneur was everything rolled into one. he was the&nbsp.truck driver, R&D guy, customer service executive, product designer as well as the salesman of GoPro.

Business for GoPro

The sales of GoPro have doubled every year since its inception. In 2012, the company generated revenue of $521 million (Mac). The revenue spiked to $985.7 million in 2013.&nbsp.GoPros net income also increased to $60.6 million in 2013, a substantial increase from the net income of $32.3 million in 2012 (Poletti). &nbsp.While the revenue of GoPro continues its northward trend, the company’s profitability has not kept pace. GoPro reported a net loss of $19.8 million in the quarter ended June 30, 2014 (GoPro). The company has many competitors including Sony Corp. Numerous Chinese camera brands also compete with the GoPro range. The present day smartphones, equipped with video cameras, also pose as indirect competitors of GoPro. The company offered shares to the public through an IPO in June 2014. The shares were offered at top-of-the-range IPO price of $24 per share. The stock surged 100 percent within the first week to trade at $48. Woodman sold 3.6 million shares and garnered $86 million from the IPO (Solomon). GoPro is listed on Nasdaq under the symbol GPRO (Picker). The stock is currently trading between $45 and $50 (Meadows). The stocks 52-week high has been&nbsp.$&nbsp.98.47 while the 52- week low has been $&nbsp.28.65 (NASDAQ.com).

GoPro’s Target Market

GoPro manufactures digital cameras that are ideal for unique point-of-view perspective videos and can be best used in adventure sports (Mac). GoPro targets surfers, skiers and sky drivers who want to record their escapades. The potential in this niche market is huge (Burrows). The tiny, rugged cameras can be used in umpteen other situations. The target market has extended to Hollywood directors, NFL teams, rock band groups, police and even the U.S. military (Mac). Marine biologists use these gadgets for undersea research while teachers use them to give students an idea of what it is like to operate Curiosity rover on Mars (Burrows). GoPro has a strong brand identity because it enables consumers capture and share meaningful life experiences. When consumers recorded and uploaded user-generated GoPro videos online, the company’s YouTube page generated close to 170 million views (Burrows). The social networking platform thus gave a lot of mileage to the company. The&nbsp.volume and quality of&nbsp.GoPro&nbsp.created content has the potency to engage customers. GoPro therefore intends to become a media company.&nbsp.

Nick Woodman and Principles of Entrepreneurship

Woodman started off as a one man army. He worked assiduously for 20 hours a day, 7 days a week. He wrote off his personal life to succeed in his business venture (Milord). 37-year-old Woodman is a highly motivated individual and has a strong will-power (Islam). Woodman was driven by constructive fear as well as a rock-solid commitment to succeed. The failure of his earlier two start-ups.&nbsp.EmpowerAll.com and Funbug did not deter Woodman from following his passion (Mac).&nbsp. Woodman urges entrepreneurs to shun&nbsp.self-doubt and insecurity. He claims entrepreneurship is about being well informed and taking risks. He advises entrepreneurs to keep trying till they succeed (O’Connor). I would definitely like to read ‘From Rock Bottom to Billionaire’ because I feel it will be a treasure trove of advice for budding entrepreneurs.

Encouragement from GoPro

I intend taking up a job after I complete this course. Eventually I want to start my own business venture. The job will help me gain valuable experience as well as accumulate some money which will be invested in my business. The course at IUPUI / Kelley School of Business has helped me by providing academic rigor and exposing me to various real life corporate situations. Hard work and tenacity are the perhaps the two most important characteristics required for success.

Works Cited

Burrows, Peter. Gopro Widens The View Of Its Customer Base.&nbsp.Bloomberg Business&nbsp.2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.

GoPro,.&nbsp.Gopro Announces Second Quarter 2014 Results. 2015. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

Gopro.com,. Gopro | Worlds Most Versatile Camera | HERO4 Black Edition. N.p., 2015. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

Islam, Rayyan. 7 Traits Of Successful Entrepreneurs.&nbsp.The Creativity Post. N.p., 2014. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

Mac, Ryan. Five Startup Lessons From Gopro Founder And Billionaire Nick Woodman.&nbsp.Forbes2013. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

Mac, Ryan. The Mad Billionaire Behind Gopro: The Worlds Hottest Camera Company.&nbsp.Forbes2015. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.

Mail Online,. Gopro Stock Increases 60 Percent Since Thursdays IPO - Making Company Founder Nick Woodman An Overnight Multi-Billionaire. 2015. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

Milord, Joseph. Meet The Millionaires Who Bounced Back From Rock Bottom.&nbsp.Elite Daily&nbsp.2013. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

NASDAQ.com,. Gopro, Inc. (GPRO). N.p., 2015. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

O’Connor, Joseph T. Featured Outlaw: Nicholas Woodman.&nbsp.Explore Big Sky. N.p., 2014. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

Picker, Leslie. Gopro Jumps After IPO Values Camera Maker At $3 Billion.&nbsp.Bloomberg Business2015. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

Poletti, Therese. Gopro’S Financials: A Profitable Surprise.&nbsp.Market Watch&nbsp.2014. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

Solomon, Brian. Gopro Cant Be Stopped: Stock Up Over 100% From IPO.&nbsp.Forbes&nbsp.2015. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.