Author Archive for kuscevicke24

Henry Burner – Buttonsmith, Inc.

Posted by kuscevicke24 
· Saturday, December 7th, 2024 
· 2 Comments

14-year-old entrepreneur Henry Burner is the creator of Buttonsmith, Inc., a business that started from a fourth-grade class project on trading in 2013. Henry made pinback buttons to sell to his classmates and that summer moved to selling them at local farmers markets. In 2014, Burner moved online to sell his products via his website and Amazon. The product catalog grew to include buttons, magnets, lanyards, fixed-top badge reels, and his newest product: Tinker Reels, badge reels with swappable tops, which he currently has a patent pending on the design.

Henry suffered from dyslexia which caused him to have trouble in school, but he didn’t let that stop him from pursuing his button idea. It started in the spring of his fourth-grade year when he had a trading post for frontier life. His mom asked if he wanted to bake cupcakes or cookies to sell, but he thought that market was too overpopulated and wanted to sell something unique. That’s when he pulled out his mom’s old button maker and started making buttons. That was the first time that Henry really felt successful at school, and he wanted to continue selling.

The company now sells products on their website, Amazon, and they are in over 1,600 Walmart stores. Online sales are by-far the company’s largest platform for making money. They currently offer lanyards, dog collars, leashes, business cards, banners, etc. and are working to expand the existing offerings.

Henry overcame challenges to become one of the youngest ‘Forbes 30 Under 30’ title winners and has established a multi-million-dollar empire. His goal is to expand into Europe and make Buttonsmith a known name across the globe.

Kaitlyn Kuscevic

2 Comments
Categories : Business, Entrepreneurship

Touch Up Cup – Carson and Jason Grill

Posted by kuscevicke24 
· Friday, November 15th, 2024 
· 3 Comments

A few years back, Carson and Jason Grill were doing some touch up painting in their house. With little kids running around and fingerprints everywhere, touch ups always need to be done. Most people save messy paint cans for future touch ups, but this leaves spaces cluttered and smelling like paint. They knew there had to be a better way to save paint for future touch ups that doesn’t involve saving large cans with very little paint left in them.

Carson Grill is the inventor of Touch Up Cup, the most innovative solution to all paint storage problems. Touch Up Cup has an air-tight silicone seal to keep paint fresh for over ten years, eliminating bulky, rusty cans and clumpy paint. Touch Up Cup is a patented product that also has a stainless-steel blending sphere for easy mixing.

Carson Grill and his dad Jason appeared on season 12 of Shark Tank when Carson was just 15 years old. They came in seeking $150,000 in exchange for 10% equity in their company, Touch Up Cup. When they came onto Shark Tank, Touch Up Cup had $220,000 in sales, was in 4,000 stores, and had a private-label partnership with one of the most recognizable brands in Painter’s Tape today.

Carson and Jason received offers from Blake and Damond, and they accepted Blake’s offer for $200,000 for 25% of their company. Touch Up Cup is now generating $2 million in annual revenue and has expanded into Lowe’s and Walmart Stores. Carson and Jason will continue to grow and expand their company to make the painting world easier and better than ever before!

Touch Up Cup - From Shark Tank to Lowe's, Touch Up Cup has you covered ...

Kaitlyn Kuscevic

3 Comments
Categories : Business, Design, Entrepreneurship, Gen Z, Painting, Shark Tank

Ornament Anchor – The Naqvi Family

Posted by kuscevicke24 
· Friday, October 25th, 2024 
· 3 Comments

Ornament Anchor is the smartest, easiest, and best way to hang your Christmas ornaments. Ornaments are very fragile, and even just bumping into the tree can make your ornaments fall or break. Additionally, cats and dogs pose a threat to low hanging Christmas ornaments. Flimsy hooks and simple ribbons don’t work, which led to the creation of Ornament Anchor. The simple product can hold up to 10 pounds and can be used to keep your memories safe and secure by fastening the ornament to the tree so that it can’t easily fall off.

Ayaan Naqvi (middle of the three children in the picture) came up with the idea for Ornament Anchor when he was in fourth grade. He was sitting by his Christmas tree trying to come up with an invention for a school project. He noticed that each year, a few of their family ornaments broke because they weren’t secured well to the tree. He came up with a product to anchor ornaments to the tree so that they wouldn’t fall off, and Ornament Anchor was born.

The Naqvi family appeared on Shark Tank in Season 10 with Kudo Banz, a product that starts with a storybook and at the end of the story provides a cool band for the child to wear. The Sharks thought that the valuation was too high, and the family left without making a deal. The Naqvi family appeared again on Season 13 of Shark Tank with their product Ornament Anchor. They were seeking $90,000 for 5% of their ornament-saving business. Ornament Anchor’s lifetime sales when they appeared on shark tank was over half a million dollars. None of the Sharks invested in Ornament Anchor despite their high profit margins and great sales to date.

Despite not making a deal on Shark Tank, Ornament Anchor now has a net worth of about 2 million dollars. The family of entrepreneurs has a bright future ahead, and who knows, we may seem them on Shark Tank again with another new product!

Whatever Happened To Ornament Anchor After Shark Tank Season 13?

Kaitlyn Kuscevic

3 Comments
Categories : Business, Christmas, Entrepreneurship, Ornament, Young Entrepreneur

Gavin Batarse – Glove Wrap

Posted by kuscevicke24 
· Monday, October 7th, 2024 
· 2 Comments

Gavin Batarse is a baseball enthusiast and entrepreneur from Orange County, California. Gavin loves playing baseball, and he learned that the secret to catching a ball is by breaking in and shaping your glove. When you buy a new glove, it is very stiff, rigid, and hard to close. From t-ball players to professional baseball players, everyone needs to break in a new glove when they get it. People have tired so many different ways, such as driving a car over their glove or putting in under their mattress to try and make their glove less stiff. Gavin saw that this was a problem and knew there needed to be a better way for baseball players to break in their new gloves. This led to the creation of Gavin’s invention, the Glove Wrap.

Glove Wrap is an elastic band with the exact width, length, and thickness needed to break in and shape your baseball glove while forming a perfect pocket. You simply put a ball inside your glove, wrap Glove Wrap around the entirety of the glove, and then leave it be.

Gavin appeared on season 15 of Shark Tank, with his older sister Morgan and their dad and coach Jon, when he was just 8 years old. They were seeking $50,000 for 20% of their company. When Gavin came onto Shark Tank, Glove Wrap had sold over 1,000 products and had over $19,000 in sales. The Sharks were very impressed with his knowledge and his invention at just 8 years old! Gavin got an offer from Mark Cuban and Michael Ruban for $50,000 for 22% of their company. Gavin proudly took their offer, and he is hoping to grow his company so that Glove Wrap is used across the country, from little league to Major League Baseball teams!

Glove Wrap Breaks in Baseball Gloves Shark Tank Season 15

Kaitlyn Kuscevic

2 Comments
Categories : Baseball, Business, Entrepreneurship, Kid Entrepreneurs

Carson Kropfl – Locker Board

Posted by kuscevicke24 
· Sunday, September 29th, 2024 
· No Comments

Carson Kropfl is an inventor, skater, and surfer from San Clemente, California. Carson first came up with his idea when he started middle school. He loved skateboarding, but he found that he didn’t have a skateboard that fit in his locker. He decided to make his own skateboards that he later called Locker Boards. Locker Boards are hand-made and reshaped from recycled skateboard decks at 16 inches long. At this length, they easily fit into backpacks and lockers. Locker Boards are also good for the planet. The rectangular shape of the board allows you to still be able to do tricks on it, like a normal skateboard, despite the smaller size. In his first 9 months of running the company, Carson made $10,000 in revenue, selling online and promoting his product through social media.

Carson appeared on Shark Tank in 2017 when he was just 11 years old. He came in seeking $60,000 for a 15% stake in his company. He received offers from Mark Cuban, Robert Herjavec, and Richard Branson. He took Richard Branson’s offer of $65,000 for 20% of his company with the goal of growing his company to be known across the country. In February of 2020, Carson signed a licensing deal with a major toy company called Wham-O. Locker Board now has a net worth of $325,000, and Carson is looking to sell the company so he can focus on his schooling.

When Carson was asked on Shark Tank where he wants to be in 5, 10, and 20 years, Carson simply said “everywhere.” He seems to have achieved that goal and is now looking forward to the next stage of his life and all that is ahead of him.

– Kaitlyn Kuscevic

No Comments
Categories : Business, Great Ideas, Millennial Enrepreneuers

Cassidy Crowley: The Baby Toon

Posted by kuscevicke24 
· Sunday, September 22nd, 2024 
· 2 Comments

Cassidy Crowley is a young entrepreneur from Hawaii who invented a product called the Baby Toon. The Baby Toon is a rectangularly shaped feeding tool for infants that also functions as a teether. The product is silicone based and flexible, eliminating the choking hazard and possible harm, such as poking an eye, that comes with regularly shaped spoons. The feeding utensil can easily be grasped by a baby with the rectangular shape and can be attached to a baby’s shirt using a pacifier clip to avoid spoons being thrown on to the floor.

Cassidy came up with the idea when she was seven years old after watching her mom struggle with feeding her baby sister with a regularly shaped spoon. At age seven, she took part in the Honolulu District Science Fair, which went on to receive notable mention from the event. She presented a prototype that she later learned how to make in a silicone, flexible material, and brought the product to the market.

Cassidy landed a spot on Season 11 of Shark Tank, pitching her idea with the hope of a $50,000 investment for 50% of her company. Cassidy accepted an offer for exactly what she wanted from Lori Greiner. Sales for the Baby Toon skyrocketed after appearing on Shark Tank, bringing in $100,000 in revenue a month after its premier. With the help of Lori, the Baby Toon made a deal with Munchkin, a leading baby and children’s product manufacturer, which put the product in over 5,000 stores. The Baby Toon is available online through Amazon and Munchkin, as well as stores such as Target and Walmart.

Cassidy is proof that no matter how old you are, starting a business and being successful is achievable. As of 2024, the Baby Toon is worth over $1 million, something that Cassidy never could have imagined, but couldn’t be prouder of!

– Kaitlyn Kuscevic

2 Comments
Categories : Babies, Entrepreneurship, Gen Z