Sean Belnick started his entrepreneurial career when he was a kid. You could always find him making money whether it was mowing lawns or selling things on eBay. At the age of 14, his skills of being an entrepreneur grew into a big vision. Sean’s stepfather Gary was a manufacturer’s representative for office furniture. Sean paid close attention to the business and came to the conclusion that no personal selling was needed to sell the furniture. Hence, he saw the potential for an online furniture store. He taught himself how to code and created his own website that sold chairs to consumers. He called this website BizChair.com, and it became an instant success. His business cut out the unnecessary middleman and saved consumers money and quicken the buying process. He started his business not carrying inventory. It saved the company a lot of money and lessened the risks. Since the business grew so exponentially, he teamed up with his stepfather Gary, and they became business partners. With Sean’s natural entrepreneurial mind, and Gary’s 20 years of experience and connections, they made a great team. Gary grew the business while Sean attended school, and the company continued to grow. Sean became a millionaire at the age of 16. While in college Sean gained some popularity. Eventually his popularity led to being featured on The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. This media attention helped grew the business even further. Now, Sean has exited the business but still remains a full-time board member. He created SB Hillview Ventures, which is an investment firm, to help startups companies as an investor and advisor. He has already accomplished some amazing feats, and it doesn’t seem like he is going to stop anytime soon. His advice for young entrepreneurs is to take risks without fear. You have your whole life to succeed. Just make sure they are calculated and logical.
It is really fascinating that some people manage to make their fortunes taking advantage of an underserved market that other larger companies of the time seem to ignore. It is also cool to see an entrepreneur team up with someone in their family that already has business experience to really expand on their business when it grew larger.