Ryan Hickman began his entrepreneurial career at the age of three when he realized the importance of recycling and the potential for earning money. Ryan began his journey by making a trip to a local recycling center and then being rewarded a few bucks. This passion for recycling has grown and developed into a much larger project. The three year old who is now a teenager has widened his vision and now is driven to help clean up the earth one person at a time. Ryan now sells merchandise promoting the message “Making the sea trash free.” The profits of this merchandise, as well as his recycling business, go to the organization Pacific Marine Mammal Center. This organization is a rescue sanctuary for sea lions and seals. Ryan has had a meaningful impact on the efforts of cleaning up the earth. He is very passionate about educating people about how important it is for people to recycle. Ryan believes that if everyone did just a little bit to help, then we would see a large impact on the health of the earth. I think Ryan’s story is incredible and very motivating. As simple as recycling may sound, his passion has driven him to something so meaningful in this world and he has become a part of something that is bigger than himself. I think it is fascinating to see the parallels between what we talk about in class with innovation and the process of growing a business to Ryan’s specific story. I think Ryan will inspire a lot of people to make an effort in doing their 1% and turning this world into a much better and healthier place.:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(webp)/RyanHickman.241761805_2205157866293027_9144110222269106971_n-d2d69da093094373b95972a207e340d5.jpg)
Archive for Environment – Page 2
Have you ever wanted to create your own flower bouquets?
Camden Kidwell is the leading example of a young entrepreneur. He is a recent homeschool high school graduate and instead of going to college this fall he took the entire spring and summer to create his own flower farm and bouquet business. He started Swallowdale Flowers in June of 2021, and named the business after swallows which nest in his family’s barn. Swallowdale Flowers is unlike any florist business due to the fact that the customers can walk around Camden’s garden and create their own bouquets using his flowers. He has provided his customers with the ability for them to customize their own bouquets, which is unlike any other flower farm or floral business since the vast majority offers only premade bouquet arrangements. He does make bouquets though, on a weekly basis which he sells at 6ixNorth, a local artisanal craft store in his hometown. Another unique feature is that he runs his business from home – outside – where customers can be in nature and experience what it is like to be on a farm.
Additionally, Camden has recently been asked by a local event planning company to collaborate with them on a wedding. An acquaintance asked Camden to make a corsage for his homecoming date at the local high school. Camden continues to grow his business and network through his community. He is an example of why one does not need to earn a degree to become an entrepreneur. Swallowdale Flowers is the definition of a startup business, because he never received any help beyond that from his father. Camden Kidwell’s story shows us that all it takes to become an entrepreneur is a willingness to be disciplined, take risks and have an imagination. He is an inspiration and a role-model.
Please find Swallowdale Flowers on Social Media:
@swallowdale.flowers
https://m.facebook.com/Swallowdale-Flowers-101528278889912/?refid=13&ref=page_internal&__tn__=%2Cg
As a sophomore in high school, Jason Li became a CEO. He cared about the planet and wanted to take action. He wanted to make people’s shift to sustainability rewarding. He came up with iReTon which allows people to sell their old technology for cash. He even went on Shark Tank, as a hi
gh school senior, and got a $100,000 investment from Mark Cuban and Barbara Corcoran. He has also started another social enterprise, UProspie. He was able to capitalize on his ideas at a young age which is really inspirational.
He targeted the problem of people not knowing what to do with their old devices and disposing of them in landfills. iReTron allows people to sell, upgrade, or recycle their old device which is ultimately better for the environment. People just have to find the device they have, ship it in, and get paid for their product. iReTron then refurbishes the old devices and sells them to people at a reduced cost benefitting the buyer and seller. He streamlined the electronic recycling process making it easy for customers and more appealing.
Jason Li is an exemplary young entrepreneur. He is driven by his passion for the environment, and he acts on this by making sure the recycling process is constantly being monitored for quality. Since he created a business off of what he is passionate about, customers are drawn to him and his product. Li does not allow the business to create money off of the recycling process which shows he truly cares about what he is doing. He also values customer’s time which makes the process quick and easy for customers. His imagination and follow through make him a good entrepreneur.
Although he did not innovate recycling, he innovated the process for electronic recycling. He enforced the idea that you do not have to create a whole new thing in order to be an entrepreneur. An entrepreneur can stream line a process and create a new business cycle not just create new products. He showed that passion really does make a difference in a business. Ultimately, Jason Li is a star young entrepreneur, because he was able to create a change that benefitted the environment and is helpful to people.
Benjamin Stern decided he wanted to help the planet while in 9th grade. Stern was watching a documentary in his biology class about the effects of plastic waste. He was horrified by the impact of plastic and decided he wanted to change the way we package products. He created Nohbo, a company that creates plastic-free single-use shampoo packets. The product is in a pod where the casing dissolves to release the product when in water. Nohbo has expanded from just shampoo to now also including conditioner and body wash in the pod format. They did not stop there though. They have created films of soap that turn into foaming soap when added to water and leave no remains behind. Nohbo’s expansion shows how innovation of one product can lead to a bigger need.
Benjamin Stern went on Shark Tank at just 16 years old. He even won the Young Entrepreneur Award from the governor of Florida. His determination to better the environment through a new technology makes him an admirable young entrepreneur. Having a sustainability niche creates a target audience that is definitely growing, so his product has both a clear purpose and aim audience which makes a good business model. Nohbo seeks to provide quality, sustainable products with great performance. He does not want the eco-friendly nature of them to deter from what customers are used to the products doing. Benjamin Stern values having a quality product for his customers.
Stern is a unique entrepreneur, because he was able to create an innovative product to combat a environmental issue. His product is unlike any other shampoo packaging as they all come in large quantity plastic bottles. By changing this, he has challenged the standards of the industry by promoting the environment. He exemplifies what it means to be an entrepreneur by challenging norms and being passionate. He has inspired me to want to challenge the norms that often promote hazardous behavior. He has showed me that innovation does not have to be a whole new product but could be a twist on something like packaging that turns into a huge new idea. He taught me that norms do not have to be the only way and that you are never to young to start creating change. Overall, Stern is an inspiring young entrepreneur who is making huge advances with Nohbo and the eco-friendly market.
You can visit Nohbo’s website to learn more about the technology behind the product:http://nohbo.com
How many of you when you were young would create lemonade stands with your siblings or friends in the heat of summer? How many of you would make signs, set up tables, and make refreshing lemonade to quench the thirst of people and to make some extra spending money? In neighborhoods still today, children will sell iced cold lemonade to anyone who passes by for about $0.50 a cup. As a child did you ever think that you would run a successful lemonade business that sold lemonade worldwide? Have you ever thought that you could be the CEO of a start up business? Well, let me introduce you to someone who did. Her name is Mikaila Ulmer. 
Let me share her story. At age 4 she was stung by two bees within a week span. This made her scared of them, but fascinated by them. So, she began learning about them and discovered how important they are to our world, so she wanted to help them. Her great grandma sent her and her family a homemade recipe book and in it was her famous flaxseed lemonade, so Mikaila began selling her great grandma’s famous lemonade recipe to the neighbors in her hometown in Austin. Mikaila’s family at the time encouraged her to begin brainstorming product ideas to promote at the Acton Children’s Business Fair and Austin Lemonade Day. As she began to think, she wanted to incorporate bees into her product. She decided to mix helping bees with her great grandmas lemonade. So, she created lemonade that used honeybee’s honey instead of sugar, and some of the proceeds were donated to foundations who sought to save the bees. Mikaila would proudly declare, “Buy a Bottle…Save a Bee.” Then Mikaila had the opportunity to go on Shark Tank, and she struck a deal with Daymond John when she was only 11 years old. One is never too young to create and succeed. 
Mikaila Ulmer who is now 15 years old has struck success in the Lemonade business, by selling her product called, Me & the Bees Lemonade. Her 5 different flavors are available at Whole Foods Market, The Fresh Market, World Market, H-E-B stores across Texas and Kroger stores in Houston as well as some restaurants and food trucks. Her story and more information can be found here: https://www.meandthebees.com/pages/about-us
You can find Mikaila and follow her progress and success on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MikailasBees or on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/mikailasbees/?hl=en It is so inspiring and exciting to witness young entrepreneurs find passion for something and pursue it and achieve it, and Mikaila Ulmer has definitely excelled in all of these areas.
Allbirds’ Story
Tim Brown is a New Zealand native who has long been involved in the merino wool industry. Brown was fascinated with this material due to its durability, sustainability, and comfortability. At one point, Brown realized that this material would be great for the shoe industry, and that’s when Allbirds was born. Tim Brown then teamed up with renewables expert Joey Zwillinger; together, they invented a whole new shoe that would forever change the footwear industry. Allbirds uses raw, all-natural materials comprised of four main elements trees, merino wool, sugar, and their patented Trino technology, a yarn-like material made from trees and wool. After much refining, Brown, and Zwillinger were ready to launch the
ir first product, the Wool Runners. The Allbirds Wool Runners were designed to bring comfort to the DNA of an everyday shoe. The Wool Runner was a great success and is the primary reason that the startup is in the position that it is in today. Allbirds later produced all different kinds of shoes, disrupting the industry even further. They created running, weatherproof, and boat shoes all of which use their natural ingredients.
More About Materials
First, let’s talk about Allbirds most important material, Merino Wool. Allbirds has teamed up with ZQ Merino to ensure that the sheep used are well kept and healthy. Also, Allbirds has a shearing process that uses up to 60% less energy than typical synthetic shoes. The Tree material used in Allbirds comes from tree farms that are located in South Africa. These farms rely on rainfall to water their farms, not irrigation. This lowers the carbon footprint of Allbirds even lower, and not to mention the packaging, laces, and insoles are made from recycled cardboard, bottles, and castor bean oil. Tim Browns Allbirds had truly done something that had never been done before and, for that, tremendously succeeded. Together with Joey Zwillinger, Brown had truly made a great product that was sustainable, fashionable, and comfortable.
Scott and Chelsea Sloan, son and daughter of Brent and Shauna Sloan (founders of Kid to Kid), grew up watching their parents’ children’s clothing resale enterprise grow and become successful. As young adults, they began to see the need for a similar enterprise for their own generation. This lead to the development of their own company – Uptown Cheapskate. Uptown Cheapskate represents a new approach to teen and young adult clothing resale. They wanted to provide a more cost effective clothing option while still appealing to current styles and a positive shopping experience. They did this by designing upscale, modern stores and creating a better system for buying used items for resale. When you walk into an Uptown Cheapskate, it doesn’t feel like you’re walking into a thrift store. It feels as though you’re walking into a mall, but without retail prices! Their buying process ensures that sellers receive fair payments for their gently used clothing while Uptown Cheapskate keeps their racks stocked with high value, in-style items at low prices. In addition to creating a better customer experience within the resale industry, Uptown Cheapskate also encourages support for the environment and sustainable fashion. They understand that the increased consumption of new clothing items creates large amounts of waste, and that most used clothing ends up in landfills. Selling used clothing to Uptown Cheapskates allows your clothes to have a new life instead of adding to pollution. In the same way, buying used clothing instead of new is a much more sustainable way to shop!
I think it is safe to say that most people remember their first bee sting as a painful experience. Getting stung is not pleasant and most of us learned from a young age to steer clear of bees. However, if you are a passionate, innovative 15-year-old named Mikaila Ulmer your first bee sting is a major factor in your story. 11 years before starting her business Mikaila was stung by a bee. The bee sting combined with the timely arrival of a family lemonade recipe catapulted her into action. Since that timely sting and via the encouragement of her family Mikaila has since grown her lemonade business exponentially over the last 11 years. What started as a fun way to make some spending money and help educate people about bees has become a growing enterprise for Mikaila. Nowadays, Mikaila’s lemonade comes in 6 different flavors and is sold in regional Whole Foods, Kroger’s, and restaurants near her home in Texas. So how did Mikaila become one of the most well-known young entrepreneurs in the country?
One of the biggest factors in Mikaila’s success has been the support of her family. Entrepreneurs often have good family and friends who encourage them to take risks and keep their head up when things aren’t going well in business. This was true in the case of Mikaila. Another important trait I noticed when reading about Mikaila is her desire to care for the environment. Most individuals do not start a business that helps support one of their biggest fears. When Mikaila was stung she began researching all about bees and decided to start a business to support healthy bee colonies. Creating spaces for bees to safely produce honey can prevent them from making nests near residential areas. Mikaila is helping bees thrive by selling a product she loves and believes in. She is a young entrepreneur full of drive and desire. Her lemonade business is just the beginning of her entrepreneurial career.
Do you like getting your vegetables shipped right to the door? Maybe you are a fan of how Amazon or other stores are shipping vegetables to homes around the nation. Are you passionate about helping the environment and limiting food waste? Well Abhi Ramesh is here to make that a reality. In 2018, Ramesh founded Misfits Market, becoming so successful he was featured on Forbe’s 30 under 30.
At many supermarkets and grocery stores around the United States, produce is wasted because it looks “weird” or due to overstock. These stores also give farmers guidelines for how produce should look, and if it does not line up, then the farmers toss it into a different pile, a pile of waste. Misfits Market fights the food waste problem by outsourcing produce that is extra or is a “misfit” veggie from local farmers. These misfit veggies are sometimes misshapen or discolored, however they taste just as good as a normal looking veggie from the grocery store.
Misfits is a subscription based service, you can choose how often you want veggies delivered and how much produce you want. Because farming is a seasonal occupation, at different times of the year, the boxes come with different veggies. There is a large variety of fruits and veggies that Misfits sends with each box.
Customers can put suggestions in for what they want or do not want, but for the most part, receiving the boxes are a fun mystery. With Misfits, my family has been able to try a lot of new fruits and veggies I had never heard of before. Some are great, and others are not. Misfits also provides some recipes for how to cook some of the more interesting and less common veggies.
Ramesh took a prevalent problem and made a great product. He identified the problem (food waste), and who the target customers were, and then created a service that provides vegetables at the click of a button.
https://www.misfitsmarket.com/
What started as a plan to earn money for candy, turned into a 6 figure/ year income for a teenager from Colorado. RJ Duarte was 8 years only when he began his entrepreneurial journey, with a red wagon, a lawnmower, and 5 neighborhood clients RJ began his business. Over time the venture grew, and soon he had a whole trailer park worth of clients. At this point RJ could not keep up with the work on his own. That is when a friend named Owen Johnson became the second member of the workforce. Now on weekends RJ could do more work which increased his income.
For marketing RJ relied on a simple “word of mouth” technique to get new customers on board. And in 2014 the two decided they would take it to the next step and create a legitimate business. They named it GreenWorx. After the hire of another employee, and another big season coming up they decided to try a new marketing technique. After many failed attempts, their story was picked up by a local newsletter that was sent to over 19,000 residents in the area. Let us just say it was a good season for them after that!
By the end of 2016, Green Worx was 300% bigger than the year before. Going into 2017, Green Worx has expanded its team, adding two new labor consultants to help with increasing demand. At this point the two were making six figures a year and growing. After more than five years of working with Green Worx Landscaping, Owen decided to part ways with the company in order to go off to college, but RJ had other plans. He had built something far more than that young 8-year-old in need of candy ever imagined. He decided not to go to college and stuck with the business.
Now with four trucks, an
d fifteen employees during season the company is bringing in annual revenues close to $750,000/ yr. Thanks to his work ethic, and some strokes of luck, RJ has built a business that will support him for years to come.