In 2013, then 13 year old lacrosse player Rachel Zietz identified a serious but often unknown problem in the lacrosse industry.  Affordable lacrosse equipment that was also durable and reliable was very hard to find.  Rachel decided to start her own company, called Gladiator Lacrosse.  She pitched her idea to investors in Florida, earning $2,700 in investments.  Within one year, she turned that money into $200,000 in sales.  Two years after that, Gladiator Lacrosse, made over a million in sales.  In addition to being very successful, Rachel Zeitz prides herself on running her business herself.  Even before she was old enough to drive, and her mom had to drive her to business meetings, she went and ran the meetings as a true CEO and leader.  She has earned the respect often just given to older businesspeople.  Zeitz stated, “People don’t treat me like a kid, they treat me like a business woman.”  Rachel Zeitz has proven that age is no barrier when it comes to starting, running, and operating a successful business.  

From the time he was a child, Keith Davis Jr. was influenced by entrepreneurs. He watched his father sell clothes, watches, and other miscellaneous items throughout his childhood.  At 10 years old, Keith’s personal entrepreneurial journey began.  He bought a few cheap hats and then sold them to his classmates at school, making about $10 per hat.  Keith was inspired by this;  he continued to sell items at his school, ranging from trading cards to clothing items to bubblegum.  After high school, Keith went on to attend the University of Houston.  Since he began his time there, he has expanded his salesman skills to other venues, becoming a “nationally known public speaker, actor, model, newspaper publisher, and author.”  Keith goes to show that a good salesman can be more than just a seller of physical goods.  Keith sells his thoughts, his beliefs, his ideas, basically his entire persona.  Keith Davis Jr. hopes to inspire another generation of young entrepreneurs through his work, as both his newspaper and book are aimed at young people with a passion for selling.

Sabrina Mutukisna is the founder of Town Kitchen, a San Francisco based “for-profit/nonprofit hybrid.”  I am not exactly sure how that works, but nonetheless she has founded a very successful and impactful company.  To launch her business, Mutukisna started a crowdfunding campaign through Indiegogo.  Town Kitchen delivers high quality, chef-crafted box lunches each day to workers in the Bay Area.  To do this, Mutukisna employs almost exclusively at-risk and impoverished youth.  In addition, all of Town Kitchen’s ingredients are purchased from local small and family run businesses. Through these efforts, Mutukisna ensures that her company is more than just a business.  It has a positive impact on both its employees and its customers, representing what a true local and virtuous company can look like.  Town Kitchen holds their young employees to a very high standard.   They are expected to show up on time and work hard, as it is not simply a charity to hire them but a chance for them to support and better themselves.

Sixteen year old Moziah Bridges is one inspiring entrepreneur.  He has always been interested in looking good, wearing a suit and tie whenever he possibly could from the time he was 4 years old.  As he got older he became especially fond of bow ties.  However, Mo noticed that there was only a small selection of  bow ties available for kids, and most were clip-ons.  Mo believed a man (or boy) should be able to tie his own ties.  So at the age of 9 years old, he started his own bow tie company, sewing ties from scratch, using the skills his grandmother taught him.  At first he just sold locally and on Etsy, but his ties became very popular very fast. 

After a few years, Moziah made an appearance on Shark Tank and ended up partnering with Daymond John, a very successful clothing entrepreneur.  John went on to become his mentor.  Mo says the best advice he ever received was from John, who told him, “Stay true to your brand.”  I believe this is very applicable to all young entrepreneurs and startups, because it is so easy for people to get overly ambitious and try to expand their business beyond what it is meant for.  However, sometimes all that is needed is patience, passion, persistence and hard work, and an innovative idea can take off just like Mo’s Bows.