A serial entrepreneur, Betty Bai came up with the idea for her first startup during an MBA at Lancaster University Management School
After years of working in the travel industry in Sweden, Betty Bai saw first-hand that traditional travel practices were fading. People were no longer happy to travel in groups with strangers, and her Chinese clients were looking for more individual travel and flexibility.With customer behavior and technology driving change in the industry, Betty decided to take some time out. She decided to pursue a full-time MBA at the UK’s Lancaster University Management School, to learn how to tackle the challenges posed by the changing market.
After graduating, Betty launched her own travel tech startup KanKan, which used an Uber-style sharing economy model to link travelers with ‘local buddies’ for a personalized travel experience.
She sold KanKan in December 2016. Since then, she’s gone on to found her own luxury travel company, Baitu, which provides high-end services to Chinese clients—like the opportunity to meet Prince Harry at the Tiffany Royal Charity Polo event for example!
Why should entrepreneurs do an MBA? BusinessBecause caught up with Betty to find out.
How did the idea for KanKan come about?
I remember a course called Managing IT in Organizations on my MBA. My study group was analyzing Zara and how their supply chain management could be improved through use of IT. It made me realize that all areas of business influence an industry’s development, like a butterfly effect. The IT industry could cause revolution in many industries.
I began to do research on how I could apply technology to the travel industry and find solutions to the challenges. At the time, Uber was applying technology to change the taxi industry with a shared economy business model. I thought I could apply this to the travel industry, which is how my company and the travel app were established.
My idea was to create a platform where travelers could link up with locals to make a visit to a city easier and get the feeling of living like a local.
How did the Lancaster MBA support you in developing your business?
As the founder of a small startup there are many challenges: securing investment, developing the platform, building a team, positioning the company, operations, and marketing the product. I also had to think about the challenges of supply and demand and the seasonal nature of the tourism industry. Studying an MBA helped me greatly in all these challenges.
It also broadened my knowledge to work in other sectors in the travel industry and look at the world in a different way. I now understand all types of business knowledge and can manage, analyze and develop it by making strategic decisions.
I feel I’m not only able to spot an opportunity, but can now react to it and drive a plan forward from market research, building a team, business development, analyzing financial figures and building a customer base. The MBA taught me to see the big picture and to pay attention to economic and political changes around the world.
What about funding?
The new venture challenge module on the MBA helped develop my skills and confidence to pitch to investors. I learned both how to deliver the pitch to prospective investors and also about the financial terms and contracts. From this I managed to secure £200k investment to start my company after graduating.
Why did you decide to pursue the Lancaster MBA?
Lancaster was very strong in the areas I was personally interested in. The MBA’s corporate strategy module ranked number one in the world. I knew these skills would benefit me greatly going forward.
A good business strategy is very important when leading a company in a successfully direction. The lecturer, Professor Gerry Johnson had also published a book called Exploring Strategy, which was one of my favorites.
What advice do you have for anyone considering an MBA?
I would encourage people from all industries to do an MBA. The general education is beneficial no matter what your background is. It can open up great opportunities in so many ways. It really is a platform from which you can achieve you dreams.
Student Reviews
Lancaster University Management School
An exceptional educational establishment in the North West of England.
This university has been a fantastic life experience as well as a great academic one. I first decided to go to Lancaster University Management School due to its exceptional business education facilities and have not been disappointed. I recommend the university to anybody that wants to put themselves in a strong position for a career upon graduation.
Student Ambassador
Overall, the instruction is decent, however it also depends on your department. The people are friendly, in my opinion. The sporting events are enjoyable, and there is a good sense of community. Although the city is quite remote, it is nonetheless attractive.
Lancaster University honest review
The education system in the university is excellent especially that of the Management School. The campus has great facilities for students to study and live in a relaxed manner. The students can engage in various activities through the socities.
Great opportunities to think beyond
Lancaster University provides a lot of good opportunities to think beyond.There Entrepreneurship in residence program helps students to meet and seek guidance about entrepreneurship and the challenges.Their Work in progress program help to fabricate your startup idea and further to pitch to the potential investors.Apart from that there are lot of programs like Enactus, guest lectures and guidance from seniors to help and shape your career needs.
They provide lot of opportunities to shape up your employability skills.
A top university in the UK for management science!
If you’re interested in management science studies, Lancaster University is one of the top universities in the UK. The faculty is renowned and have a sterling reputation for research in management science. Candidates specifically interested in Forecasting would find the Centre for Marketing Analytics and Forecasting especially relevant to their field. Besides, the ROI is good as the overall cost compared to other universities is less.
Great university for academia – not great for 'entrepreneurs'
Please keep in mind that my review is nuanced by my expectations of an Entrepreneurship degree :) I came to Lancaster University because it was one of the top universities to have a course in Entrepreneurship. After 4 years in this degree, my most valuable experience has been my placement and not the actual course. The course is heavily focused on impractical elements, which is a bit odd for an Entrepreneurship degree. There are some modules that involve hands-on work but the faculty support for such things has not been great. My course also involved a lot of teamwork which has been fantastic and really prepared me when it comes to dealing with the diversity of opinions. In terms of career prospects, the management school does A LOT to host events, workshops and support sessions to help you build up your employability skills. Although, I wish there was more acknowledgement of SMEs/startups as a viable career option. The entrepreneurship team which is meant to support budding businesses is really stepping up their game with tons of guest speakers, workshops and pitching opportunities. The location is a concern if you're not in STEM, Law or Accounting and Finance. Business requires networking with the broader community. However, for Lancaster students, the best bet is a trip down to Manchester or London. On the flip side, living in Lancaster is much cheaper! Overall, if the purpose of your university experience is to receive top academic education and have great facilities at your disposal, Lancaster is a great choice. But if you want to be in business and entrepreneurship, I would look elsewhere.
