14-year-old entrepreneur Henry Burner is the creator of Buttonsmith, Inc., a business that started from a fourth-grade class project on trading in 2013. Henry made pinback buttons to sell to his classmates and that summer moved to selling them at local farmers markets. In 2014, Burner moved online to sell his products via his website and Amazon. The product catalog grew to include buttons, magnets, lanyards, fixed-top badge reels, and his newest product: Tinker Reels, badge reels with swappable tops, which he currently has a patent pending on the design.
Henry suffered from dyslexia which caused him to have trouble in school, but he didn’t let that stop him from pursuing his button idea. It started in the spring of his fourth-grade year when he had a trading post for frontier life. His mom asked if he wanted to bake cupcakes or cookies to sell, but he thought that market was too overpopulated and wanted to sell something unique. That’s when he pulled out his mom’s old button maker and started making buttons. That was the first time that Henry really felt successful at school, and he wanted to continue selling.
The company now sells products on their website, Amazon, and they are in over 1,600 Walmart stores. Online sales are by-far the company’s largest platform for making money. They currently offer lanyards, dog collars, leashes, business cards, banners, etc. and are working to expand the existing offerings.
Henry overcame challenges to become one of the youngest ‘Forbes 30 Under 30’ title winners and has established a multi-million-dollar empire. His goal is to expand into Europe and make Buttonsmith a known name across the globe.
Kaitlyn Kuscevic
Henry’s story is amazing! Fitting into our school’s curriculum with a learning disability is such a challenge. Learning looks different for everyone. It’s great to hear such an inspiring story like Henry’s where he was successful in his own way (and I would say, much for successful than his more academically-inclined peers). His skills lie beyond the classroom. Great post!
Henry sounds like a really amazing dude! I hope to be as dedicated and cool as him one day. I really liked how bold this brother was in selling buttons to his fellow classmates in only fourth grade. He used dyslexia to his advantage to think outside the box and create a company that sought a new line of trinkets. Going against the grain is a very hard thing to do and Henry tackled this challenge with intense bravery and absurd strength. Go Henry!