Jason Li, who has a passion for technology and innovation, started his own company, iReTron, at the age of fifteen. iReTron buys old technology and electronics and refurbishes them to make a profit.

Jason immigrated from China to the US at only six years old. He said he has always wanted to be independent and contribute as opposed to taking for himself, which is why he started iReTron. Jason said he has had two main passions in his life: iReTron, and Judo. Jason made it to national championships in the US for Judo but unfortunately broke his leg. While he was in recovery, he read books about social enterprises, which is when he had the idea for iReTron.

Jason began by borrowing $2,000 from his parents. Two years after starting his business, Jason appeared on Shark Tank.

iReTron is catered to people who don’t necessarily want the newest iPhone or the best technology. iReTron buys old phones and other technology for higher prices than anyone else, making them the best option for selling your unwanted technology. iReTron makes it easy to sell your old phones in just three simple steps.

Jason has bottomed out his inventory many times, meaning that he has always been able to resell the phones and technology iReTron buys. Selling the product is easier for him than buying the product.
Unfortunately, Jason was unable to make a deal with one of the sharks when he entered the shark tank, and when he went to college, iReTron slowed to a standstill. However, that was by no means the end of his entrepreneurial career. Even now, as he is in college, he is working on a new startup. This resistance to giving up is a crucial quality for any entrepreneur. Your first, or second, or even third startup may not be the jackpot, but one day, one will succeed.

At the young age of 9, Mozaih Bridges launched his business Mo’s Bows.  Mo’s Bows makes handmade bowties. This business was inspired by Mozaih’s grandmother, who taught him to sew. With a distinctive and charismatic personality, Moziah was unable to find accessories that perfectly matched his taste.  With the help of his grandmother, he began making his own bowties, and in 2011, he started Mo’s Bows.

At the age of 12, Mozaih took his business to Shark Tank, and became the youngest entrepreneur to appear on the show.  Daymond John invested in his business, and to this day remains his business mentor.  However, even before taking his venture to Shark Tank, Mozaih had already received copious amounts of air time.  He had previously been featured on numerous major TV shows, including the Today Show, and many News Channels.  To date, Mo’s Bows has made over $700,000 in sales, and has five employees.  Mo’s Bows are now sold in retail all over the U.S.  Mozaih has partnered with many companies including: Cole Haan, Bloomingdale’s, The Home Shopping Network, and Neiman Marcus.

Mozaih’s mission however is not just to make a profit selling bowties, but also to send impoverished children of Memphis to a summer camp.  In 2012, he started Go Mo, a scholarship fund which has sent over fifty kids to summer camp to date.

Mozah did not stop with simply selling bow ties.  He also sells regular ties, pocket squares, and hats.  Seeking to further his horizon even more, Mozaih made an appearance on the 2021 Memphis fashion week show.

Moziah is an inspiration to entrepreneurs that anyone at any age can be wildly successful.  You don’t need to have endless money or a groundbreaking discovery to start up a successful business venture.  Moziah simply used his creative instincts, and his ability to design to create something great.

Cher Hale, a Taiwanese-American, is the founder of Grinkgo Public relations.  Grinkgo Public Relations is a nations boutique agency that promotes social good through story telling.  This company’s specialty is making known the underrepresented authors, experts, and entrepreneurs through social media and other communication resources.  Cher is passionate about telling diverse and unique stories through online, print, TV, radio, and podcasts.

Cher had been freelancing for a couple of years before starting Grinko Public Relations.  One day, a client asked her if she would be willing to pitch podcasts on her behalf.  Cher was thrilled to, and thanks to a couple of well-timed internships, she had the skill set to give it a try.  Within six months, that service generated a record amount of income, and Cher was able to hire employees to help sustain the growth.  Since then, they’ve added some more traditional services like editing, TV, and radio pitching, along with advertising and outreach for speaking gigs.  In the recent years, Cher rebranded her company to what it is now: Grinko Public Relations.

As a new business owner, Cher doesn’t have the luxury of endless time to try out new ideas for her business.  Therefore, when a new idea comes to mind, she lets the idea settle and develop for a little while before taking action.  She ensures that the new idea or course of action aligns with her personal goals and convictions, and also aligns with the mission of her business.  She then talks to people to continue piecing ideas and thoughts into a great idea.

Something that also helps her to be a successful entrepreneur is tracking her time to ensure productive time management.  She records exactly how long it takes to complete each project, and evaluates her reports at the end of each week.  She said that just knowing that a timer is going also gives her motivation to work faster.

As an entrepreneur, letting ideas develop and collaborating with others, and affectively managing time, are vital for success.

Braden Parker and his friend realized a few years back that they were frustrated with the current shoe market, and they weren’t the only ones.  Many people they talked to expressed the same frustration with the way shoes lacked durability, versatility to keep up with their daily activities, and proper support.  They constantly found themselves buying new shoes because the old ones would wear out or just fail to meet their expectations.  Parker and his now business partner were driven by this frustration and shifting technology to find a solution.

They talked to pedorthic experts to determine the best shoe structure to support the whole body, and withstand all activities people did throughout their daily lives.  They learned that each individual has a different foot structure, and therefore needs a different structure to support their feet.

For this reason, Parker and his partner founded Casca.  A company that creates customized shoe insoles.  With the simple use of a smartphone, Casca can create a personalized insole for anyone.  Parker uses the best 3D printer on the market to make production fast, efficient, and easy.  Parker started Casca with his partner two years ago in order to combine his passion and experience with inspirational brands with a cutting-edge and functional product.  Parker now has a ten member team working on Casca.

For the past five years, Parker has been devoted to developing a company that help people achieve more.  Prior to starting Casca, Parker did consulting for many start ups, implementing his background in finance and branding to help them grow as companies.

Apart from driving business for Casca, Parker goes to numerous entrepreneurial events and helps inspire others to innovate.  To help grow personally as an entrepreneur, Parker takes time each week to review his goals, and ensure that they are aligned with his long term goals for the business.  This is something that each of us take implement into our own lives.

Do all candles have to be girly? This is the question that Hart Main, a 13 year old asked when his sister was selling candles for a school fundraiser.  When he wanted to buy a bike that cost $1,200, he decided to start his own business instead of fundraising the way most kids would.  Hart Main decided that not all candles had to have girly scents.  He created Man Can: candles with scents like bacon, fresh cut grass, and saw dust, that were sold in tin soup cans.

Main started his business by purchasing a candle making starter kit with $100 of savings in order to raise enough money to buy his bike.  He would buy soup cans from the grocery store which he would use to sell his candles in, instead of traditional glass jars.  Eventually, his family was buying more soup than they could consume, so Main began donating the soup to soup kitchens as charity.  About a year after starting his small business, the local news station picked up Main’s story.  As a result, Main had 4,800 new candle orders.  Main then moved manufacturing from his kitchen to a warehouse and five employees were hired to help with production.

Four years later, Main was approached by Beaver Creek Candle Company, and Man Cans went into full production.  Now, instead of donating soup cans, Main donates 75 cents from every candle sale to soup kitchen in four states.  Man Can has now donated $35,000 to twenty-five soup kitchens.

So no, not all candles have to have “girly” scents.  Hart Main found a need in the candle market for manly scented candles, and brought this idea into reality in order to buy a bike.  Main took a risk by using his savings to start a candle company, but it paid for itself many times over.  At the young age of 13, Hart Main started a successful business by questioning the norm, creating a solution, and investing in his idea.