The typical UB student doesn't worry about inventories, marketing and the ever-advancing world of business technology. But then again, Benjamin Dolgin-Gardner is not your typical student.
Dolgin-Gardner, a senior international business major, is the founder and CEO of Xtatix LLC, a Web-based company. The company specializes in portable digital electronics but is continually evolving to capitalize on cutting-edge technology.
"This is like a puzzle that's constantly in motion," Dolgin-Gardner said. "It's nothing special, the key is to put the pieces together and stay excited while making others excited in helping you reach the goal you set."
Xtatix, whose motto is "reward your ambition," sells top-of-the-line mp3 players and currently has four models in production.
From start to finish, Dolgin-Gardner's company has been a worldwide effort.
He created the company after a trip to southern China, where the economy was booming as a result of recent government allocations of resources in the technology-based industrial centers. Dolgin-Gardner traveled the area alone, using his green backpack as a traveling office. After learning Chinese, he was officially fluent in six languages, and Dolgin-Gardner was able to build relationships with the factories that produced the technology.
"I learned how they do things," Dolgin-Gardner said. "They were producing flash chips, cutting edge flat-screen televisions and monitors, car DVD players, and mp3 players. Those are the things I stuck to and the knowledge I gathered."
Continuing with the global effort, Xtatix's products are manufactured in China, and the products are warehoused in the United Kingdom and United States. Wholesalers and distributors are "vertically integrated" worldwide. A designer based in Sweden handles the logo, packaging and image for Dolgin-Gardner's products.
The company's Web site is constantly updated and is the focal point of Xtatix's operations, according to Dolgin-Gardner. The site has a feature that allows prospective customers to compare Xtatix's products to other popular mp3 players, like Apple's iPod.
Dolgin-Gardner said that like any other business venture, he's had to learn from his experiences, both good and bad. He said he hopes to see his company flourish but is prepared to take on another project if he decides to move on.
"If this doesn't work, I can always sell food on the streets of Bangkok," he said.
