News
Tech marketing students cook up a sweet partnership with local small business
From left: Tech marketing students Lauren Grimes and Shannon Sherman share a laugh
with Jamie’s Eats & Sweets owner Jamie Lankford inside her café at 50 W. Broad Street
in Cookeville.
A class of marketing students in Tennessee Tech University’s College of Business has
spent the semester cooking up something sweet.
Students in Sherrie Cannon’s retail marketing management course partnered with local
café Jamie’s Eats & Sweets for an immersive learning opportunity that allowed the
class to gain hands-on marketing experience while offering valuable assistance to
an emerging breakfast, lunch and dessert hotspot on Cookeville’s historic West Side.
The class of 24 students broke into teams and dedicated their semester to working
alongside local entrepreneur Jamie Lankford, the owner of Jamie’s Eats & Sweets. Students’
midterms involved completing a marketing analysis of the café, and the final exam
called for them to develop five new marketing concepts, as well as promotional packets
and proposed changes to the café’s website and social media.
“Experiential learning is high on our priority list as a university right now and
Sherrie took it to heart,” said Cheryl Montgomery, director of program development
and engagement for Tech’s College of Business. “She decided to focus on our own community
and provide an opportunity for our students to engage in a real-world marketing scenario.
These students are leaving the class with a body of work they can show a potential
employer. It’s something very tangible that gives our Tennessee Tech students a leg
up.”
For Cannon, the decision to partner with a local business was a natural fit. While
today, she serves as associate director for professional development and an adjunct
instructor in the College of Business, Cannon previously spent 25 years as the successful
business owner of four retail establishments in the Upper Cumberland.
“I was absolutely thrilled with their final presentations. They put in a lot of time
and effort,” said Cannon. “This was not something you could do in 24 hours. It takes
the whole semester. In order to provide a great marketing concept, you really have
to look at all the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to the business
and the industry. You’re taking on a client and presenting just as you would if you
were in a boardroom.”
Perhaps even more importantly, Lankford was impressed with the students’ ideas for
her business, too.
“The students came up with so many great things. I can’t emphasize that enough. They
were all so professional,” said Lankford. “We have one marketing concept we’ve already
started implementing. It’s going really well for us so far. Another one of the groups
went through and created an entire video reel with drone footage and everything. They
had an idea for Valentine’s Day we’re probably going to use.”
Shannon Sherman, a senior marketing major from Cookeville, called the course “the
most applicable, hands-on experience I’ve had.”
Her team developed a new brand kit for the café, along with ideas for email campaigns
and even a selfie mirror where guests could snap a photo and tag the business on social
media.
“We presented with Jamie and two of her investors in the room,” said Sherman. “That
was super beneficial to us because we could see her reactions in real-time to know
what’s working and what’s not.”
“Seeing her excitement helped ease our nerves. She was so personable,” added Sherman.
For Lankford, the students’ ideas solidify her optimism for the future of her small
business and Cookeville’s burgeoning West Side.
“The people who shop here are some of the nicest people in the whole world,” said
Lankford. “Getting to hang out with the local business owners down here and going
through the ups and downs together – it’s a blessing. You get to meet so many new
people and it’s fun to see it all keep growing. There are only good things to come!”
Cannon explains that the university will offer the retail marketing management course
again in the spring of 2025 and hopes to partner with another small business in the
region. Interested business owners can contact Tech’s College of Business at business@tntech.edu to learn more.