Henry Patterson was quite an imaginative young man, even from a very young age. When he was 5 and wanted some new toys, his mom suggested that he sell some of his old ones to buy a new one. Henry’s budding entrepreneurial mind then began to expand as he not only sold toys by themselves but with other, seemingly unrelated toy, in one case he says, “I loved doing this (selling his toys on ebay) and got quite imaginative putting Ben 10 on a tractor and selling him as Farmer Ben 10!” From then on, Henry knew he wanted to run his own business.
But what could a now ten year old do? The ages of fancy new tech startup owners and cutting edge online real estate moguls usually hover around early twenties to mid thirties, Henry needed to find something that he knew well and could do better than anyone. Then one day, he found it. What Henry knew better than anyone was how to be a kid! Looking back to the days of selling his toys one ebay, Henry, with some help, started the Not Before Tea company.
Not Before Tea sells items for kids. Small toys like animal blankets, stuffed animals, and children’s book (written by Henry himself) are all sold by Not Before Tea. Items for parents with small children are also sold, items like diaper bags and changing mats. Even room amenities are part of Not Before Tea, things like rugs and playful wall stickers.
Henry’s young but determined entrepreneurial spirit shows us all how powerful the right idea can be if you’re passionate about it and are willing to see it through with all you have.
