Sube

Fourteen years ago, Agnes Chavez set out on an ambitious quest to teach her young son Spanish. Her natural business acumen quickly transformed a personal passion into a marketable product. Sube is a play-based curriculum which teaches Spanish to elementary school students through fun activities like art, music and games. While Sube means “to ascend” in Spanish, Chavez’s journey has not followed a straight path. “As with any established company, you have to adapt along the way in order to grow,” she explains.

Chavez began developing educational curricula, testing and self-publishing, then marketing Sube through educational conferences. Ten years later, conference attendance dropped and Chavez began marketing on the web. In only two years, 80% of Sube’s sales were web-based, and her market was more geographically diverse. “I probably wouldn’t be in business today without that change. Many fellow publishers went out of business at that time,” recalls Chavez.

2008 marked another bend in the road. Web sales flattened out with the economic downturn, and Chavez approached Northern New Mexico Connect’s Market Intelligence team for help. The team generated a report identifying gaps and new opportunities for the Sube business. “This amazing report is now my marketing plan,” says Chavez. “I started implementing it right away.” Major changes include Search Engine Optimization by WESST (The Women’s Economic Self-Sufficiency Team); a new website organized by target markets like home schools, language schools and after-school programs; and a revamped, competitively priced home school version of the curriculum which has boosted sales significantly. “Bravo to Market Intelligence,” says Chavez. “Together, we’ve transformed lagging sales into record-breaking numbers for Sube.”

Imagine Education

Scott Laidlaw’s inspiration is education reform. While teaching at Appalachian State University, Laidlaw sought an on-the-ground experience in a public school setting. He found his calling at Roots and Wings in Questa, an innovative charter school that employs project-based or expeditionary learning.

When Laidlaw arrived at Roots and Wings, the students were testing in the twenty-eighth percentile for math, prompting Laidlaw and other teachers to experiment with story-based curriculum. Initially, an oversized map and handmade boats were used to model the Spice Trade of the early 1600s to teach ratios. “The kids loved it and wanted more. And when test scores doubled, we knew we were on to something,” says Laidlaw.

In 2009, Laidlaw and partner Jennifer Harris founded Imagine Education as a start-up company for educational games. Imagine Education is piloting it first game, Ko’s Journey, in six schools nationwide, while marketing the product to publishers, public schools, charter school organizations and virtual schools. ”This is a product with its roots and heart in New Mexico,” says Harris, “and we look forward to implementing our curriculum in the state.”

“Our challenges are typical for a start-up and we have received more touches of support in New Mexico than we could have imagined,” says Laidlaw.” Rio Gallinas Charter School in Las Vegas, NM purchased the game and paid for its development, New Mexico’s school community interfaced with Laidlaw on education best practices, and Northern New Mexico Connect has assisted with Market Intelligence. Market Intelligence developed an assessment of market issues and background information on the educational games market, provided Search Engine Optimization through its partner WESST (The Women’s Economic Self-Sufficiency Team), and helped with contacts in the entrepreneurial support community. As a result, the company is receiving assistance from two students enrolled in Los Alamos National Laboratory’s MBA summer intern program. “Northern New Mexico Connect has introduced us to fabulous resources to market our product and grow a successful company,” says Laidlaw.

For more information, visit www.kosjourney.com.