Owning a business can be quite a challenging and time-consuming task for most people. As of 2013, 16% of all business owners were under the age of 35, but these young entrepreneurs are only 18 and have been running businesses since the tender age of 10. Jordan Williams and Brandon Iverson of Atlanta, Georgia, are 2 college students who successfully run a dope clothing line together with an incredible message and travel the country teaching young people about money making and investing while also encouraging them to become entrepreneurs.
“Wear Your Story” is the motto of Young Moguls Brand, the clothing line these young men created in the summer of 2014. Jordan, a freshman at the University of Pennsylvania, describes it as an urban clothing line that will visibly appeal to young people while promoting the message of youth entrepreneurship and chasing your dreams. But this was not their first step in the world of business. At the age of 10, Brandon and Jordan created Kids Toys Inc. Picture it as the Craigslist for toys. They would take all their old toys and games that they no longer wanted or didn't used and would sell them to other kids on their online store. They even enlisted the help of other kids and created a newspaper at school to help promote the business. Then at 13, they decided to share their knowledge when they started a teen financial education company called Making Money for Teens. They traveled the country speaking to teens at schools, churches, and youth programs sharing information and teaching the kids about making money, investing in the stock market and most importantly how to save! This led them to write a book, “Who Needs An Allowance? A Teen's Guide to Starting Their Own Business” They are basically teaching children to become independent and turn their interests into money-making business ideas. They share tips, quotes, and experiences to show readers how to become successful entrepreneurs.
Fast forward to age 20, Jordan and Brandon have been building their clothing line from the ground up and they have been quite successful. With over 3000 followers on Instagram and more than 4500 followers on Twitter, these 2 young men have created quite the buzz for their clothing line which is headed into its 5 year of operation. Since the summer of 2014 when the line was created, they have released over 15 different pieces and designs including t-shirts, hoodies, windbreakers, joggers, and hats; all in some way baring the word ‘Mogul”. When asked why they decided to create a clothing line, the 2 co-owners explained that they both shared a love for fashion and they wanted to create a product that they could market and sell to young people and it would be relatable. They wanted their brand to have cool designs, be fashionable while also carrying a positive message. Entrepreneurship is not something that is widely promoted to the youth, so with the “Wear Your Story” motto, they are encouraging kids to remember the journey they are on and work hard towards future goals.
Running a business is not easy work no matter what age you are, so the fact that this is a partnership helps take off some of the burdens. It takes a lot of effort to run a business and there are a lot of day to day things that go into making things run smoothly, including running the website, shipping orders, managing inventory, maintaining the social media pages and so much more. They get to split the responsibilities between each other and collaborate on the ideas. Jordan handles most of the marketing, press, design, and production while Brandon takes care of the website, social media, and shipping, but when it comes to creating new clothing ideas, it's a combination of both of their ideas.
Both young men have participated in a Disney program called “Disney Dreamers”. With the help of this mentorship type program, they were introduced to like-minded young people who were motivated to achieve more. They attended workshops hosted by different business professionals in all areas and got to speak one on one with them and ask questions. Brandon expressed how the opportunity was a great networking opportunity to bounce ideas of the other participants while Jordan mentions how much the workshops were helpful in unlocking your fullest potential and gave him the confidence to dream outside of the box.
While this is only the beginning for both Brandon and Jordon, they are both focusing on conquering college just like they conquer the world of business. The young moguls of Young Moguls Brand are great inspirations for young people all over the world to strive for greatness and achieve more. They have created a business with a positive message while showing that age is just a number and the possibilities are endless.
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