Children have idols and dream about walking in their footsteps. They are also taught to inculcate the good habits of elders and eminent personalities that their parents perhaps idolise. However, the young minds never fail to surprise. They sometimes challenge the status quo and inspire adults to want to be like them. Here are some teen entrepreneurs who have done just that.
Akshay Ruparelia
Image Courtesy: Business Today
19 year old Akshay Ruparelia made it to the headlines in October 2017 as the youngest millionaire in the UK and the owner of the 18th largest estate agency in the country. He started his online estate agency, Doorsteps.co.uk., with a loan of £ 7,000 from his relatives. His company is now valued at £ 12 million – a commendable feat since he took off just about sixteen months back, juggling between his school tasks and the challenges of setting up a new business.
The young genius had outsourced the responsibility of taking business calls to a call centre during his school hours. The teen entrepreneur already boasts of having cracked property deals worth £ 100 million within sixteen months. He nurtures the ambition to replace traditional estate agents who charge exorbitantly for their services with his smart business model of offering the same services at affordable prices.
Amber Kelley
Image Courtesy: Seattle Refined
Winning the cooking competition on the television show ‘Food Network Star Kids’ at the young age of 13, set the stone for the entrepreneurial journey of Amber Kelly as a celebrity chef. The competition brought her to the limelight, earning her the opportunity to feature in a web series on the Food Network. Besides, the 14 year old also has her own YouTube channel, ‘Cook with Amber’, which has around 37,000 subscribers. She has also been the Kid Coach at the 2016 Kid Talks, an initiative by Mashable, as well as an Inspirational Kid on The Today Show. What’s more, she is the proud owner of the title of Culinary Wizard on the show, ‘Live from the Red Carpet’ that was broadcast before the 2015 Academy Awards on E!
Moziah Bridges
Image Courtesy: Inc.
Moziah Bridges, better known as Mo Bridges, took the life-changing decision of turning his creativity into a business idea at the very young age of 9 years. Having mastered the art of sewing, which he’d learnt from his grandmother, he put his skill to create bow ties with colorful fabric that stands out. He soon launched his own company, Mo’s Bows, and started selling them on Etsy.
His bow ties met with astounding success, grabbing the attention of boutique owners across states who became wholesale buyers of his creations. Presently a teen, he carries the responsibilities of his Memphis-based business on his young shoulders as the CEO, albeit with some expert guidance from his family members. The fact that he retails through some of the leading retailers in the country like Bloomingdale and Neiman Marcus speak volumes about his creations.
Bella Tipping
Image courtesy: Bella Tipping
Bella Tipping noticed as a teenager what most of us perhaps haven’t yet. She realised that online reviews of restaurants and hotels only receive feedback on their facilities and services from adults. She found out there were no forums that catered to reviews from children.
She started penning down her detailed views of her experiences during vacations and compared them with that of her parents’. It was a discovery for her parents to see how their daughter’s opinions widely differed from theirs. Bella’s reviews also showed a great eye for detail that their reviews lacked. Thus, kidzcationz.com was born and Bella became the 13 year old entrepreneur of the first online travel review site for children.
The little wonders make their presence felt and compel us to look at them with awe and appreciation. They act as an inspiration for us to follow suit. After all, better late than never!