Archive for Business::Entrepreneurs

Letterboxd: Revolutionizing Film

Posted by Reed Oakes 
· Monday, December 9th, 2024 
· 4 Comments

It is very rare that I interact with an app that changes my life. Instagram and Snapchat were amazing in their prime, back in middle and high school. However, now that I have grown up, games and social apps just do not do the same thing they used to do. In 2021, some friends recommended an app called Letterboxd, which is a movie cataloging service that also involves a social aspect. Because of my love for movies, I was able to jump right in and start reviewing my first films, and it made me feel like a serious movie critic.

Matthew Buchanan and Karl von Randow invented Letterboxd in 2011, which completely shook the world of movie critics. Before, critics would hide behind sites such as IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes, and create reviews that were far different from audience reviews. With Letterboxd, there are millions of different reviews for each film, and there are so many different ways to write reviews.

In conclusion, Buchanan and von Randow changed how movie reviews are written and read today, and as an avid movie lover, I am so grateful for these entrepreneurs changing a market that I never thought would change.

4 Comments
Categories : App, Business, Business::Entrepreneurs, Movies

Ryan Hickman: CEO of Ryan’s Recycling

Posted by krummelva24 
· Saturday, December 7th, 2024 
· 2 Comments

Meet the Eleven Year Old Behind Ryan's Recycling Company | Discovery Time

Ryan Hickman’s love for recycling began in 2012 when he was only 3 and a half years old after his dad took him to the local recycling center. He realized at a young age that everyone had a part to play in maintaining the environment. Ryan played his part by creating his own business: Ryan’s Recycling Company. He started his business ventures by handing out empty plastic bags to his neighbors in his hometown of Orange County, California in hopes that they would save their cans and bottles for him to recycle. The friends, families, and coworkers of his neighbors also saved their recyclables for Ryan too. He soon had customers all over Orange County. On the weekends, Ryan and his dad would drive around to local houses to collect their cans and bottles, sort through his customers’ recyclables, and deliver them to the recycling center. Within a decade of Ryan’s Recycling Company, Ryan had successfully collected and recycled 1.6 million cans and bottles. His motivation for his business stems from his determination to help the environment.

Ryan’s passion for recycling will stay with him for his entire life. All of the money he earns through Ryan’s Recycling goes towards his college education. Though he is still young, Ryan’s current plan is to attend a college close to home so that he can continue to run his recycling company while in college. Ryan is also a Youth Ambassador at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach, California and gives them the proceeds from selling t-shirts and hats with the Ryan’s Recycling logo on them. Ryan says that the Center’s mission is to “rescue sick and injured seals and sea lions to help them get better.” Additionally, in 2020, Ryan founded a nonprofit called Project3R, which strives to inform and educate others on the importance of recycling and to increase environmental awareness among all people. Project 3R also hosts community events such as beach cleanups. Ryan is inspiring his friends, neighbors, and community to make the world a better place. “It feels good knowing that I make a difference,” Ryan says. “I just know that people are inspired, and they aren’t littering, and [they are] picking up as much trash as they see on the ground.”

To learn more about Ryan’s Recycling Company, click here.

2 Comments
Categories : Business::Entrepreneurs, eco-friendly, Environment, Nonprofit, Recycling, Uncategorized, Young Entrepreneur

Olivia Abrams – Tick Mitt

Posted by Hannah Ya 
· Saturday, December 7th, 2024 
· 3 Comments

Two people smiling and posing in a forest during autumn.

Have you ever wanted an easier way to remove ticks that’s also non-toxic and reusable? Well Tick Mitt is the perfect solution for you! Tick Mitt was founded by Olivia Abrams in March 2023 after she realized that she wanted to continue entrepreneurship after graduating from Lehigh University in 2021. Olivia had to create a business plan for her final entrepreneurship class at Lehigh, and she chose to do it on Tick Mitt.

Four colorful bath mitts, pink and yellow, and turquoise and green, with white cuffs.

Her father Steve also just recently sold Magnolia Bakery in 2021, but it wasn’t till late 2022 that the both of them started thinking about continuing Tick Mitt and launching the idea. Both Olivia and her dad Steve have been bitten by ticks in the past, which made her want to continue with Tick Mitt. They both wanted to focus on reducing tick bites and tick-borne diseases. Olivia’s venture was funded with some money from the Magnolia sale and some of their media connections.

A yellow and a grey oven mitt on wooden background.

But what really is a Tick Mitt product? The Tick Mitt product is a mitt that can remove any loose ticks, while also being washable and reusable. The mitt is eco-friendly, non-toxic, reusable, and can be used for pets and humans. Steve and Olivia partnered up with a tick expert and product engineer to create the mitts to cling onto ticks. Olivia first focused more on pets in the beginning and then branched off to target camping, hiking, gardening, and other outdoor activities. Since they’ve expanded their target market, they’ve helped lots of people gain their freedom to the outdoors again without fearing ticks as often. Tick Mitt has been featured on Good Morning America and The View, which caused her products to be sold out immediately in the beginning. So far, the company has made around $450,000 in sales and has been sold in the U.S., Canada, South Korea, Sweden, and Norway. Tick Mitt has also won Product of the Year award at Outdoor Retailer, and more than 25,000 people have used it. The mitts come in many different colors and are easy to use and re-use!

You can check out her website here!

Sources:

TiCK MiTT – Tick Remover for People and Pets

Product of the Year Winner Tick Mitt Tackles the Tick Problem Hands-On – Outdoor Retailer’s The Daily

Female alumnae find entrepreneurial success – The Brown and White

Olivia Abrams

3 Comments
Categories : Animal, Apparel/Accessories, Business, Business::Entrepreneurs, Clothing, Dogs, eco-friendly, Enviornmental, Female Empowerment, Pets, Women Entrepreneurs

Daniela Koch: Shoko Clothing

Posted by Blythe Douglass 
· Saturday, December 7th, 2024 
· 2 Comments

Since its inception in 2009, Shoko has remained committed to being a sustainable and ethical clothing brand for women. Founded in Greece by Daniela Koch, the brand’s core mission revolves around responsible production and environmental consciousness. With a made-to-order business model, Shoko minimizes waste while ensuring that each item is crafted with intention. Their innovative approach extends to packaging, using compostable materials and environmentally friendly tags embedded with seeds of basil and tomatoes—encouraging customers to plant and nurture their own green space.

What truly sets Shoko apart is its dedication to supporting local communities. Operating in Athens, the brand minimizes its carbon footprint by sourcing materials and production locally—avoiding the environmental toll of international shipping. This proximity also fosters close-knit relationships with local artisans, ensuring fair wages and ethical working conditions. From the skilled hands of cutters and sewers to the creative minds behind the photography and design, every member of the Shoko team plays a vital role in creating high-quality, ethically made clothing that’s as kind to the planet as it is to its people.

2 Comments
Categories : Business, Business::Entrepreneurs, Clothing, eco-friendly, Entrepreneurship, Enviornmental, Fashion

Lily Born, Imagining a Better Future for Parkinson’s Patients One Sip at a Time

Posted by Ana Geike 
· Wednesday, December 4th, 2024 
· 1 Comment

Tremors occurring often in the hands, fingers, or feet are a common symptom of Parkinson’s, a nervous system disorder. This ailment can make even the simplest of tasks for some—such as drinking a glass of water—very difficult and accident-prone. This caught the eye of eight-year-old Lily Born, who was troubled by the struggle her grandfather went through as he spilt countless glasses of water because of his trembling hands.

Born dreamt up a more stable design for a cup, one capable of withstanding tremors. What she came up with was a simple design of adding three little legs to the cup that would provide this stability. Working the fruits of her imagination into a tangible prototype shaped from moldable plastic, she experimented until the cup was both functional and comfortable to her grandpa. It wasn’t long after that she made another model out of ceramic for her dad simply to save his computer from occasional spills of coffee.

Born’s dad recognized the value of her design to people across the board, with and without Parkinson’s, and encouraged her to pursue a business with what she deems the Kangaroo Cup. The two garnered financial support to pursue this venture through a few crowdfunding platforms and sought to perfect her design and being manufacturing in China, specifically a city known as China’s heart of ceramics, Jingdezhen.

Born’s business, Imagiroo LLC, produces both plastic and ceramic models in a plethora of sizes, colors, and artistry, and sports several other appealing features, including eliminating the need for coasters, being stackable with other Kangaroo cups, and of course being completely tip-proof. Born (now twelve years old) has sold tens of thousands of cups all over the globe, and her amazing ingenuity and confidence has been acclaimed by news broadcasters such as CBS News, Business Insider, and The Daily Mail (UK) as well as organizations like A Mighty Girl as a beacon to other young entrepreneurs.

1 Comment
Categories : Bootstrap Business, Business::Entrepreneurs, Convenience, Cups, Young Entrepreneur

From Baseball to SamCart

Posted by orlandoam23 
· Monday, November 18th, 2024 
· 1 Comment

Scott Moran - SamCart | LinkedIn

Scott Moran was just a student at Grove City College when he started experimenting with his future career options. Scott studied marketing and management while in college. Scott’s career all started when one brother said to the other brother, “Hey, I want to sell stuff on the internet.” And just like that, they began to bring to life their ideas. In 2009, Scott and his brother Brian started an online company called Train Baseball. Train Baseball taught the two of them many valuable skills. Each of them learned how to use Facebook ads, control an online company, and overall, learn how to sell. At its best, Train Baseball made around $10k a month. Despite this success, the two brothers still wanted to grow. They began to develop ideas and recruit others to their business. They recognized that they needed employees who were skilled with software developing, so they hired two to help them build SamCart. SamCart was launched in September of 2016. SamCart is an e-commerce company that helps you grow. SamCart is successful because they capitalize on webinar registration. They spend around 25,000 dollars a day on advertising their company. The email lists are constantly growing and providing customers with the opportunity to expand their knowledge with SamCart. The second way SamCart rose to success is their webinar training. SamCart offers educationally packed, and wisdom filled advice for the consumer. At the end of the training, SamCart will be mentioned. This gives the company more advertisement and awareness of their brand. Lastly, SamCart rose because of its digital products. They offer a bundle to enhance customer purchase decisions. SamCart powers entrepreneurs to start their own company, and to do it correctly. Now, SamCart is used by over 75,000 customers who altogether sell more than 2.8 billion dollars in products. From Train Baseball to SamCart the two brothers have certainly put in the work to succeed in their business.

Check out the official website here!

1 Comment
Categories : Blogging, Building, Business, Business, Sales, Business::Entrepreneurs, Coaching, Content Entrepreneurs, eCommerce, Entrepreneurship

Fraser Doherty- Founder of SuperJams

Posted by krummelva24 
· Sunday, November 17th, 2024 
· No Comments

 

SuperJam 100% Fruit Jams + 100% Nut Butters - All Natural & Delicious

Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, Fraser Doherty’s successful entrepreneurial endeavors stem from his close relationships with his family, particularly his grandmother. As a young child, Doherty loved to make jam with his grandmother. It was from these sentimental memories that SuperJam was born. At the age of fourteen, he started recreating his grandmother’s recipes himself and selling the homemade jams door-to-door in his neighborhood. He soon expanded his small business by owning a stand at local Farmer’s Markets and making deliveries via his bicycle. Originally, his customers consisted mostly of neighbors and church friends, but as his business expanded, however, he began to receive more jam orders than he could fulfill. When Doherty was 16, he dropped out of school to work on his business full-time. He had to rent a factory for a few days each month to meet the demand of his customers.

Doherty set himself apart from competition in the jam industry by making SuperJam from 100% fruit with no added sugar or artificial ingredients. This caught the attention of many large grocery store chains in Europe. In 2007, for example, Doherty was approached by Waitrose, a high-end supermarket in the U.K. Within the next few months, jars of SuperJam were on the shelves of 184 Waitrose stores across the U.K. and Europe. Many other large companies have since followed in their footsteps. In 2009, SuperJam hit $1.2 million in sales, a 60% jump from 2007. By 2012, Doherty launched SuperJam in Korea and Japan, where they had also become hugely popular.

Doherty’s love of making jam with his grandmother proved to be a very successful business venture. By 2019, Doherty had sold his five-millionth jar of jam. He was also awarded an MBE medal for service to business in the U.K. by Queen Elizabeth II. Additionally, SuperJam is exhibited in the National Museum of Scotland as an “Iconic Scottish Brand.” Doherty’s entrepreneurial spirit has not only led him to become financially successful but has also proved to be a charitable success as well. SuperJam hosts hundreds of free tea parties in Scotland, England, and Wales for elderly people who live alone or in nursing homes. These volunteer-run events are a great way to bring the community together and connect people of all ages through live music, dancing, and drinks.

To learn more about Fraser Doherty and SuperJam, click here.

No Comments
Categories : Business::Entrepreneurs, Cooking, Food, Kid Entrepreneurs, Male Entrepreneurs

Da Bomb Bath – Caroline and Isabel Bercaw

Posted by Alayna Dorst 
· Saturday, November 16th, 2024 
· 1 Comment

Two young girls, Caroline and Isabel, grew up loving bath bombs. They were a fun mix of colors and made a regular bath a little more exciting. But, when the bath bomb dissolved, they were left with just some discolored water. Just like that, the bath bomb was gone. The Bercaw sisters wanted to make a bath bomb with lasting fun, even after it was long dissolved. Guided by the belief that everyone loves surprises, they created a line of bath bombs, experimenting with fizz, fragrance, and fun with a gift in the center of the ball like a toy, charm, message, piece of jewelry, and more.

These girls started making their product in their basement at the ages of 11 and 12 in 2012. Their business first started when they sold a few balls at their local fair in Minneapolis. By 2015, their product was in 30 shops in their area, and in 2016, after a business trip to Atlanta for an international trade show, they had stores across the country sell their product. At this point they were still producing in their basement – over 20,000 bath bombs a month!

Soon enough, Target wanted to sell their product in 1,800 stores all over the U.S. This prompted them to move their production to a warehouse near them. Their school allowed them time in school to work on their business, supporting them in their entrepreneurial endeavors. Today, this family business generates over $20 million in revenue per year and remains self-funded!

Da Bomb also seeks to give back to people around the globe, focusing their donations on The Water Project which provides rural communities in Africa clean drinking water. With every purchase of an “Earth Bomb”, contributions are made to this cause. So far, the business has helped to provide “clean drinking water and rainwater containment systems that serve over 10,000 people in 20 communities” (Da Bomb, 2024).

The Bercaw sisters have an inspiring entrepreneurial story. They saw a problem, they innovated, found a solution, and provided value to consumers across the country. And, because of their hard work and generous hearts, thousands of people now have access to clean water where they did not before.

 

Da Bomb Bath Fizzers: Handmade Bath Bombs With A Surprise Inside! (dabombfizzers.com)

1 Comment
Categories : Bath, Business::Entrepreneurs, Charity, Clean water, Creating, Handmade

Matt Mullenweg: WordPress

Posted by kierajennings 
· Tuesday, November 12th, 2024 
· No Comments

Matt Mullenweg, the CEO of Automattic and co-founder of WordPress, is a name worth knowing if you’re interested in tech, entrepreneurship, or just the power of an idea. Back in 2003, Matt was a 19-year-old college student who loved blogging but was frustrated with the limitations of the blogging platforms available. He saw gaps in design, flexibility, and control over content, so, like any true entrepreneur, he decided to create his own solution. He collaborated with Mike Little, a fellow programmer, to develop what would become WordPress, an open-source platform that anyone could use, customize, and improve. Their vision? To democratize publishing so that anyone, regardless of tech skills or budget, could share their ideas with the world.

WordPress’s appeal spread fast. Instead of just another blogging tool, it became a go-to for building websites of all kinds, eventually powering nearly half of the websites on the internet today. But it wasn’t just luck that made WordPress the giant it is—it was Matt’s belief in keeping it open-source. Open-source means the platform isn’t locked down by one company or hidden behind paywalls. It’s free for anyone to use and build upon, creating a vast community of developers, designers, and users all contributing to its growth. This community aspect has been one of the most significant forces behind WordPress’s success, helping it evolve from a simple blogging tool into a full-fledged website-building powerhouse.

Matt’s journey with WordPress isn’t just a story about building a product; it’s a lesson in entrepreneurship itself. For him, entrepreneurship wasn’t just about making money—it was about solving a problem he cared about and empowering others. Automattic, the parent company he founded, now oversees WordPress.com and other products, and it continues to grow based on the values he established: flexibility, freedom, and community. Matt’s journey shows that sometimes the best businesses start with a simple frustration and a vision to make things better. In his case, what started as a personal project to fix a problem has changed the internet forever. It’s a reminder that the best entrepreneurial ideas often come from a genuine need and the courage to create a solution, even if you’re just a college kid with a laptop and a dream.

No Comments
Categories : Business, Business::Entrepreneurs, Technology

John Collison: The Landscape of Tech

Posted by kierajennings 
· Tuesday, November 12th, 2024 
· 2 Comments

John Collison, Stripe’s co-founder, stands out as one of tech’s most down-to-earth visionaries. Hailing from rural Ireland, John wasn’t raised in the bustling tech hubs of Silicon Valley. He was a curious kid with big ideas, inspired by the endless possibilities of technology and determined to see what he and his older brother, Patrick, could build with it. By their teenage years, they launched their first successful venture, Auctomatic—a tool to help eBay sellers handle inventory. Not only did it work, but it caught fire. A Canadian company snatched it up in 2008 for $5 million, a small fortune for two young guys barely old enough to vote. But this win wasn’t the Collison brothers’ finish line—it was the spark.

Their big “aha!” moment came when they noticed a frustrating issue plaguing every online business: the painfully complicated process of setting up payments. Most companies, especially small startups, struggled to even begin accepting money online. So in 2010, the Collisons took on this problem and launched Stripe. Their approach was simple yet radical: let businesses start accepting payments with just a few lines of code. Stripe became a game-changer, cutting through red tape and technical barriers like a hot knife through butter. Startups, mom-and-pop shops, and eventually giants like Amazon and Google flocked to Stripe because, suddenly, getting paid was no longer a months-long ordeal—it took minutes.

John’s rapid rise to billionaire status is impressive, but it’s not really the point. His story isn’t just about wealth; it’s about reshaping what it means to be an entrepreneur. John and Patrick didn’t start with piles of cash or flashy marketing. They started with a mission to solve a real, persistent problem. Their journey shows that you don’t need to be flashy to be revolutionary—focus, persistence, and timing can be enough. John’s success reminds us that big change often starts with one well-executed idea and a willingness to build it step by step.

2 Comments
Categories : App, App development, Business, Sales, Business::Entrepreneurs, eCommerce, Entrepreneurship, Technology
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