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Miracle Olatunji: Helping Students Discover their Passion

Posted by grossmanlj21

· Saturday, November 13th, 2021

· No Comments

Miracle Olatunji is the founder of an OpportuniMe, a platform to connect high schools with opportunities for career development. She started it as a high school student. Olatunji created OpporuntiMe because she wanted to “democratize the process of helping people find opportunities.” Though she knew such programs existed, they were typically too obscure to discover. Olatunji gained her passion for OpportuniMe when she participated in the University of Delaware’s Diamond Challenge. This competition allowed her to see the power of entrepreneurship and how it can be used to instigate fruitful change. Olatunji wanted to start OpportuniMe as soon and as simple as possible; hence, it began as a newsletter. She is now working towards a website that will provide even more resources.

Olatunji is an admirer of social entrepreneurship. As such, she is working on another project called MIRACLE. Although MIRACLE is her first name, each letter represents something unique: Making Impacts, Raising Awareness, and Creating Learning Experiences. She states, “The vision is to create this organization, and under the umbrella of the organization would be social enterprises that meet the goal of creating and launching social ventures that empower, enlighten and educate people.”

Olatunji’s mission for students is clear: discover your passion, execute, and make a difference. She also wants young entrepreneurs to be ambitious, refusing to let their age or background limit them. Olatunji tries to encourage this by adopting Steven Johnson’s idea of a “liquid network,” which permits ideas to collide, connect, and evolve. This idea is evident in her effort to connect students with mentorship and other entrepreneurs. In a Forbes article, she shared: “You can’t really take an idea off the ground without collaborating with people and having mentors.”

Clearly, Olatunji values social entrepreneurship. Her investment in students shows her appreciation of guidance and how anyone, regardless of their age, can be innovative.

https://youtu.be/Hk-XjgRFlvw

Sources

https://www.forbes.com/sites/samanthaharrington/2018/01/16/how-high-school-founder-miracle-olatunji-is-democratizing-opportunity/?sh=706d2fcb2154

The evolution of OpportuniMe, and founder Miracle Olatunji

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Categories : Entrepreneurship, Social Entrepreneur, Social Impact, Young Entrepreneur

Creating Temporary Housing from Origami

Posted by blendermannkj20

· Monday, October 25th, 2021

· 4 Comments

It’s amazing how the simple practice of folding paper has managed to find itself as the hobbies of many nowadays. Origami came from the ancient Japanese practice of folding paper into different shapes and figures. This seemingly simple idea of folding paper was the exact inspiration for Tina Hovsepian and her company.

Cardborigami is a combination of origami and cardboard. Tina’s idea for the company came to her during a senior design project when she was asked to rethink the idea of ‘temporary shelter.’ That’s when she made her first prototype of a temporary, foldable, and cardboard shelter for the homeless. It was immediately a hit, and she started her company in 2010 and it has been successfully running for the past 11 years. The Cardborigami website says, “Our centerpiece product provides immediate emergency shelter to homeless and/or disaster-impacted populations, allowing us to support the work of established partner organizations that offer transitional pathways into permanent housing and other long-term services.” This statement sums up Cardborigami very well and establishes what their goal is. Cardborigami even offers other programs like social enterprise, disaster preparedness, and pop-up homeless shelter sites in addition to their main product.

Carborigami’s mission supports the homeless, which is a big social issue nowadays, and their main product is very clever. Cardboard is biodegradable, so it’s healthy for the environment after it breaks down, and it’s foldable and easy to transport, so anyone can bring it with them for an easy and temporary roof over their heads. Tina even comments on design by saying, “Design fundamentally impacts the daily life of people. Architects are armed with aggressively creative ideas and innovative solutions to complex problems. With more designers taking leadership and focusing their talent on socially responsible design, the world would be a better place.” It is absolutely true that designers bring a lot to the table when it comes to coming up with new ideas and changing the world for the better. “Socially responsible design” could be this company’s mantra, and they are truly succeeding in their mission. It is a wonderful idea to address this issue in the world and I hope to see more Cardborigami products giving shelter to those in need.

4 Comments

Categories : Business, Great Ideas, Millennial Enrepreneuers, Millennial Entrepreneurs, Social Entrepreneur, Youngest Entrepreneurs

Mark Sotomayor – Buy a Tea, Plant a Tree

Posted by dawsoncm21

· Wednesday, October 13th, 2021

· 1 Comment

Mark is a recent 2020 graduate from Grove City College where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Entrepreneurship. He started his business, Treecup Tea, during his sophomore year at Grove City College. Through a development process of his product, he learned a lot about branding and what it takes to start a business. He began selling samples of his grandmother’s chai tea recipe at local events and pop-up shops out of Dixie cups. He now has 4 different flavors of tea packaged in sleek glass bottles, and he sells it in large stores such as Whole Foods and local farmers markets. His success took time and hard work. Although Mark experienced setbacks and help along the way, that is what grew into the success he has today.

Mark’s tea business is especially unique due to his passion behind the cause he helps with. For each tea that is bought, a tree in Haiti is planted. This serves to combat deforestation in one of the most poverty-stricken places in the world. Mark accomplishes this through partnering with a foundation called Haiti Friends. Mark values transparency in marketing, so he feels strongly about sticking to this purpose behind the business.

Mark is driven by the commitment to “Jesus Christ and follows the leading of the Holy Spirit. He wants to manifest God’s will on earth as it is in Heaven.” Mark is led by the Lord in everything he does and does not focus on the money. His purpose is bigger than the profit he makes, and this is apparent in his business. I believe this is what makes Treecup Tea unique and a great idea. It can be hard to find businesses that truly stick to their cause and do not drift from their true mission when they are blinded by success as their sole purpose and fall into the trap of greed.

I find Mark’s story truly inspiring because even through setbacks, he found a way to work through them and dig deeper. I can apply this to my own life and future business career because it is important to keep in mind that setbacks are what help us learn and grow. I aim to have a Christ-centered focus in everything I do just as Mark does. As Mark puts it, “if your business isn’t about God then what is it all for?”

1 Comment

Categories : Business, Charity, Entrepreneurship, Enviornmental, Haiti, Handmade, Redemptive Entrepreneurship, Social Entrepreneur, Social Impact, Startups, Uncategorized

Athletic Wear for All Shapes and Sizes

Posted by blanktc21

· Friday, October 8th, 2021

· 1 Comment

Krescant Marie is the founder of Krescant Marie Athleisure, a woman’s fitness brand dedicated to creating stylish and body-positive workout clothes for girls of all shapes and sizes. The brand focuses to “not only look good, but feel good.” After experiencing trouble finding athletic wear to fit her size, Krescant saw a common need in the workout industry. Often times workout brands only create athleisure for a “fit” body type, this makes it hard for women to get into working out. Some even are discouraged by the matter, and give up working out all together.

One of the first products by Krescant Marie is the DOUBLE STRAP SAUNA WRAP- BLACK – Krescant Marie a device that stabilizes and heats to encourage good posture and fat burn during a workout session. Also added to the collection are satin hats that can be worn while working out without messing up your hair. In lack of better words, Krescant has eliminated the all too relatable ‘hat hair’.

Next week, Krescant Marie is launching a fall collection including workout leggings, pants, and shirts all ranging from sizes XS to 2X. One significant aspect of this year’s fall launch is the variety of clothing offered; ranging from cropped t-shirts to waist-length shirts, Krescant Marie fits all body types, and makes them look good.

And if you still aren’t sold, krecantmarie.com offers a full online store, where clothes can be ordered without the hassle of in person shopping. Alexicia, a satisfied customer, reviews that the set she received is “super stretchy, comfy and pretty.” Additionally Zandra shopped for her daughter who was oversized and was “very pleased with the product” she also emphasizes the amazing customer service and speedy delivery.

Overall, Krescant Marie saw a need and jumped into action. She demonstrates empathy for those who find it hard to shop for workout clothes, and positively created a brand out of it. She is an inspiration to up and rising entrepreneurs that if something is inconvenient, we need to find a way to make it convenient.

St. Louis entrepreneur creates new fitness-based lifestyle brand | FOX 2 (fox2now.com)

1 Comment

Categories : Apparel/Accessories, athletic wear, Beauty, Business, Social Entrepreneur, woman

Shreyansh Gupta- Youngest Entrepreneur in India

Posted by blanktc21

· Friday, October 8th, 2021

· 4 Comments

Shreyansh Gupta- Digital Marketing Expert

Shreyansh Gupta became an astonishing entrepreneur by the ripe age of 14 and growing up he loved the idea of being his own boss and running his own business, but he wasn’t sure of how to make that possible. He gained a strong motive to learn, and he sought information on social media, online promotions, and web design. He started his own blog post and website based on the knowledge he gained from personal research. From there, he saw a need in digital marketing and focused his studies there.

Soon enough, the digital marketing field expanded, and it became a need in the workforce. Often times, Shreynash saw that brands would prefer digital marketing over traditional marketing. He started DevelopXmedia and expanded his business both nationally and internationally. Shreyansh Gupta became a “digital marketing expert” along with the youngest entrepreneur in India at that time. He is an inspiration to young entrepreneurs all around, that no matter your age, if you see a need in the community, pursue it. During an interview Shreyansh gives very insightful advice to up and rising entrepreneurs, “don’t wait for anything to happen as it is only you who has the potential to create and change a life.” What he means by this is that, if you have an idea, don’t wait for someone else to make the change, be the change yourself. Don’t procrastinate your projects and innovations, “I would suggest starting today” he says.

Shreyansh is a prime example of having the correct mindset. He did not start his business for the sole purpose of money, he started it because of an interest he had. This interest fueled his motivation and success in his business. He had many setbacks on the way and he says that those setbacks are what helped him to push forward and learn from his failure. “Success will definitely knock on your doorstep if you work with honesty,” he encourages to stray away from shortcuts that lead to quick and unlasting success; trust the process and do it right, then you will succeed.

Shreyansh Gupta (itsshreyansh.com)

Digital Entrepreneur Shreyansh Gupta: One of the Youngest Social Media Marketers | 711web

4 Comments

Categories : Business, Great Ideas, Millennial Enrepreneuers, Millennial Entrepreneurs, Social Entrepreneur, Technology, Youngest Entrepreneurs

Young Entrepreneurs: Sanil Chawla

Posted by daviden19

· Tuesday, September 28th, 2021

· 2 Comments

Sanil Chawla is the founder of Hack+, a nonprofit to help young entrepreneurs easily move through the barriers presented by all the legal hurdles when starting a business. Sanil, a young entrepreneur himself realized through personal experience that there are so many legal obstacles to maneuver that it makes it intimidating and frustrating to get started.

To solve this problem, Sanil developed software that would create an automated process for all the legal paperwork needed to begin a nonprofit venture. When Hack+ was launched, the primary purpose was to provide a fiscal sponsor to charitable organizations that are being developed by students. Large companies like Amazon and Google have come alongside Sanil to help provide resources for the company that is directed to students which include business to business assistance. Sanil has garnered over $1 million with his team of 12 and has helped almost 1,000 students with his company.

Sanil has created an amazing tool for young entrepreneurs, there are so many young entrepreneurs with wonderful ideas. However, not many students have the resources or knowledge to get through all the legal paperwork and processes needed to get started on sharing their mission with others. This is a wonderful example of innovation, Sanil saw a gap that needed to be filled. He developed a company that provided a service for students that wasn’t offered anywhere else and made it accessible.

An entrepreneurial trait seen in Sanil is that his motivation was not found in profit. He started a nonprofit venture to help students launch their own nonprofit ventures. We see that Sanil’s motivation is found in service to others and seeking to push others toward success. Sanil presents a model for entrepreneurs starting any venture, what is your motivation? Sanil created a service that truly served its purpose, opening the door for entrepreneurship in young students.

2 Comments

Categories : Business, fiscal sponsorships, Great Ideas, Millennial Enrepreneuers, Nonprofit, Social Entrepreneur, Youngest Entrepreneurs

The Bridge to Success

Posted by NoahIversen

· Monday, September 27th, 2021

· 2 Comments

Social media has been building bridges to new ways of innovation and entrepreneurship ever since it began. Those who have capitalized on it when it began, however, are the ones making all the money and gaining the most fame. Felix Kjellberg, or better known to some as “Pewdiepie,” created his youtube account only one year after the website was released. It wasn’t until 2011, though, that he began to post on what would become the largest account on the platform ever (owned by one person). He began by posting quite short and relatively boring videos on his account purely for the entertainment of his friends and himself. As time went on, more people began to find his account, subscribing to it, and Felix’s fanbase grew. Less than a year later he had surpassed the 1 million subscriber mark. He began to post more and more and only a year after that was at 10 million. It was safe to say that he was on the right track.

Pewdiepie began to create merch such as shirts, chairs, headsets, and eventually his own game on the app store. He was rapidly gaining fans and in the spring of 2019, the creator finally reached an astonishing 100 million followers, which meant that 1 in 15 people who used youtube was subscribed to his account. This may not seem like much, however, almost half of the country uses this platform. He is still creating to this day and after selling many products and featuring in other videos and ads, he has accumulated roughly a cool $45,000,000 from online interactions alone. Felix will forever be remembered in the industry of videomaking and for revolutionizing the world by his assistance in bridging the gap between the real and digital worlds of entrepreneurship.

2 Comments

Fixing Financial Planning

Posted by blendermannkj20

· Monday, September 27th, 2021

· 6 Comments

Do you know how to pay off student loans? Buy a home? Pay taxes? Well, that’s exactly what Rebecca Liebman was concerned about when she started LearnLux.

Personal finance isn’t covered in school, so young entrepreneur Rebecca Liebman came up with a solution to teach people about how to manage your money. LearnLux was started back in 2015 and is an online learning tool to explain different aspects of personal finance to anyone wanting to learn. Rebecca and her brother, both co-founders, came up with this solution after graduating college and wanting to relieve the stress that came with developing a financial plan. On the LearnLux website, it talks about their customers and says, “They are navigating the murky waters of the financial system alone, falling prey to predatory practices, and sinking deep into the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle.” This demonstrates that many people are worrying about finance in the modern world and shows the lack of education regarding this issue.

Their services include understanding equity compensation, funding emergency savings, building credit, and more. LearnLux also offers 1 on 1 calls with a certified Financial Planner in an unbiased manner. They advertise unbiased guidance, a configurable learning experience, and holistic teaching environment. They even have high quality lessons with digital planning for your financial plans, interactive content, and incentive and reward tools to keep you coming back!

Overall, this is a very clever idea and benefits both a common social problem as well as being a for-profit model that aims to make money. Rebecca saw a very clear need in the world and, along with her brother, developed a simple solution to help. Their primary drive was the lack of education regarding financial planning and how to communicate about these issues. Not only is LearnLux a creative solution to a common problem, but it includes different features to keep customers coming back and engaging with their product.

LearnLux is a great example of innovation and having entrepreneurial impact on the world. Rebecca saw a social problem, addressed it, and came up with an original way to help fix it. Everyone needs to learn how to manage finance, so maybe I’ll start using LearnLux too!

6 Comments

Categories : eCommerce, Education, Millennial Enrepreneuers, Social Entrepreneur

Mikaila Ulmer – CEO of Saving Bees One Lemonade at a Time

Posted by dawsoncm21

· Sunday, September 19th, 2021

· 2 Comments

Curiosity is the birthplace of all creation and innovation. Lack of curiosity limits us in what we can achieve. Mikaila Ulmer, a 15-year-old entrepreneur, not only had the curiosity but had the drive and courage to turn her idea into an award-winning, multi-million-dollar company.

The idea of Mikaila’s company, “Me & the Bees Lemonade”, began when she was just 4 years old and got stung by bees twice in one week. Stemming from her anger around getting stung, she was curious as to why bees even existed. She was intrigued to discover truly how much of an impact bees have on the environment. In preparation for some children’s business competitions, she wanted to combine finding a way to help bees not go extinct with her grandma’s lemonade recipe in her business idea. This is how “Me & the Bees Lemonade” was born. She decided to make her own variation to her grandma’s lemonade recipe with honey and donate a percent of profits to “local and international organizations fighting hard to save the honeybees”. Since she started the business, it has shown unbelievable growth and she now is selling her lemonade in multiple major markets and stores.

Although some may think that a lemonade business is mundane and not worth investment, Mikaila clearly proved this wrong. Mikaila’s lemonade business stands out among the rest. How? She has a drive and meaning behind it. She has a clear purpose and vision for her mission as a CEO. She wants to help the environment at the same time as spreading joy by saving the bees and sharing her grandma’s lemonade recipe with the world. Her passion for the cause and her personal tie to the business is what makes Mikaila unique and what makes her idea great. In the social entrepreneurship arena, we can learn from Mikaila. Whether involving the environment, people, technology, etc., entrepreneurs like Mikaila should inspire us to replicate her passion and courage to change the world for the better.

Mikaila also has a desire to share her story of being a social entrepreneur with others, which she does through speaking at events, leading workshops, and participating in social entrepreneurship panels. She clearly values inspiring others in a way that shows them that they can also make a difference if they are willing to take the chance and apply their passion to a cause. Personally, I am inspired by Mikaila’s story because she is the epitome of young entrepreneurs that achieve success by filling a need that makes a difference and that people care about with no fear. Her story reiterates to me the importance of running with a vision. Mikaila says herself, “My generation-we’re the future. When we grow up, we’re going to be the people who are the presidents and the leaders of the world…If we start at a young age making a difference, donating back, giving back, when we grow up, we can do that on a larger scale.” This quote encourages me that even at a young age, we have the opportunity and potential to make the world a better place. If we capture our dreams and transform them into reality, then there is nothing we cannot do.

2 Comments

Categories : Beverages, Blog, Business, Business::Entrepreneurs, Great Ideas, Lemonade, Millennial Enrepreneuers, Positivity, Social Entrepreneur, Women Entrepreneurs, Young Entrepreneur

The brains behind Clicks Talent

Posted by danielblose

· Saturday, September 18th, 2021

· 1 Comment

Abraham Lieberman a veteran for the Israeli military used his time when not in service to start working on his dreams. He took advantage of the rising need for social media consultants amongst US companies and used that to start up his business, Clicks Talent. He saw the pain of many influencers that they might not have even realized or noticed. These influencers weren’t using their full talent in the ability to push and promote social media apps. While he was originally from Israel he knew that there was an open market in the US and took a break from his college education to pursue this opportunity. Abraham was very quick to see that new apps needed big name influencers and creators to promote their apps. He continues to diversify his company and pivot as new apps come out reaching those apps with different influencers that related to those apps. Abraham has really taken advantage of the rise in short-form videos such as Tik Tok and other apps that are now adding these videos into their portfolio. He has now expanded his company into a global powerhouse now reaching a variety of countries and apps within those countries. He believes that diversifying oneself in cultures allows them to grow and thrive in the current marketplace. A key aspect that I took from this article is Abraham’s emphasis of collaborating with people that have more experience than you and will be able to open your mind to different ideas. Personally, Abraham inspires me to think outside the normal box of products or services and to look for areas in the marketplace that no one has thought of or looked for. I think that using social media in the current time period is something that I took from this. I believe that social media will continue to open more and more areas of opportunity in the marketplace of the future.