Module 3: The Age of Discovery and the Impact of European Expansion

You are starting a trading company and are looking for investors. You can be the British East India Company, the Dutch East India Company, or the Virginia Company of London. As a lead investor in the company, you can determine if you want to setup a trading post in Asia, Africa or America. Choose only one of the continents to start your trading post. Create a business plan that inspires other investors to contribute money to the business venture.

Include the following information:

1. Choose your company and create a logo for it.
2. On which continent is your company going to setup their trading post?
3. Why did you choose that location?
4. How long will it take investors to make money on their investment?
5. What products are you going to trade with this region? Why/how did you choose these products? What products do you hope to gain from this region?
6. How will you recruit colonists to settle in your trading post?
7. How much money will you need to start your trading post?
8. How will you handle the native populations already settled there?
9. Are there specific requirements that you will establish for colonists in your trading post? Examples include religion, language, occupations, etc.
10. What are some potential problems in the area that you are going to occupy and how will you handle them? Examples include resistance from local rulers, competition with other trading companies, etc.

You may download the Trading Company Business Plan Checklist for this assignment. Use it as a guide in helping you complete the assessment and to understand how your work will be graded. You may need to use resources outside of this course to complete this assignment. If so, please submit a Works Cited document. If you need assistance, visit the Developmental Module for infomation citing any resources that you use. Submit your work to the dropbox when you have completed this assignment.

Once you have completed this module, please complete the module test.