international experiences

I've always had a love for business and travel so I decided to bring my two passions together for an international experience.

 
 
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Studying abroad - florence, italy

I wanted to connect with new people and experience life from a different perspective. It combined my love of business with exploring unknown cultures that are different from my own. This once in a lifetime opportunity taught me how to balance school and work while traveling extensively throughout Europe. Over the four months I spent in Italy, I blogged about my experiences and growth.

Check it out here: https://t3rope.wordpress.com/author/kdemarey/

Growth throughout my journey

The following video, my capstone project, highlights my experiences spending four months abroad.

Running a U.s. Based business from overseas

After running DeMarey Landscaping for 5+ years, I felt comfortable that I could balance the demands of studying and traveling in Europe while running a business back in the states. With the support of my friends, family and hardworking employees, I was able to bring my dream of travel to life. I overcame a multitude of obstacles, the challenge of communicating with clients across time zones and the difficulty of dealing with job-site complications while being thousands of miles away. With the help of technology and a strategically planned management system, I kept the business running and acquired a multitude of new jobs and increased our client base by providing excellent around-the-clock customer service. 

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family business in italy

Italy is compromised of small family businesses like prosciutteria's and ristorante's and other larger family businesses such as Ferrari and Ferragamo. Through my studies in Italy and traveling throughout Europe, I learned about foreign affairs, small vs. large family businesses and various economies.

Fun facts I noticed: 

  • Throughout all of Europe, GMO's are completely restricted changing the dynamics of the food market

  • Businesses in Florence consist mainly of restaurants, grocery stores and a few clothing chains. Marketing firms, financial services and health insurance are nonexistent. If looking for a full time job or future career path, the most prominent option for Italian residents are in food services and hospitality. 

  • Europeans place more emphasis on leisure and family time than on work, unlike the states, where everyone is judged based on their occupation. This notion of success creates a different market and changes consumer purchasing habits.