วันเสาร์ที่ 20 กรกฎาคม พ.ศ. 2556

The Evolution of a Young Entrepreneur


Do you know how long you have been an entrepreneur? Do you think of a young girl with a small pink purse as an entrepreneur? I was that little bright-eyed girl with a small pink purse and did not realize I was an entrepreneur. However, I liked to make money. Who does not want to make money? As an entrepreneur, I began at a young age and continued to evolve.

In fourth and fifth grade, I carried a petite pink purse full of an assortment of pencil erasers. Yes. My mom and teacher knew that I was carrying these erasers, and they were not upset. Because I sold my erasers, my mom told me she was no longer going to purchase them. My teacher told me I just could not sell them during lesson time. I had to sell the erasers before school, during morning and afternoon break or after school.

I bought pencil erasers in bulk for around $.05 each. Then, I would resell the pencil erasers for $.10. Because my erasers were cheaper and fancier, students purchased erasers from me before they would buy them from the school cart. When the eraser was the same price at $.10, they bought from me because I had an array of colors and designs. The school sold the small dark pink erasers for $.10 and Large Pink Eraser for $.15. Therefore, students wanted my erasers. I suppose you could say I knew a little about customer satisfaction because I would give a student another eraser if his/her eraser broke. However, none of them ever complained about not liking the eraser. Moreover, my prices never went up. Okay. I know I was not going to get rich, but I ran this business for two years until I entered Middle School.

When I entered seventh grade, I liked bubble gum and bought a variety pack. When a classmate saw the gum in my book bag, I sold the first piece of bubble gum. That day, I began my gum business. My mom bought the first pack, and I bought the rest. My mom and teachers knew I sold gum, but they told me not to chew or sell it during class. Therefore, the gum was never banned.

I bought a four pack of variety gum for around $1.50. Then, I would resell a single piece of gum for $.25. However, I noticed students began to buy the whole pack, so I gave a bargain to these students. Because each pack of gum contained five pieces, I could have sold the whole pack for $1. I gave them a bargain and sold the pack for $1.00. Moreover, I liked to chew gum, earned money from gum sales and reinvested the money on different flavors of bubble gum until I reached high school.

In high school, my intention was not to begin another business adventure. Nonetheless, it happened anyway. One day, I brought extra pencils to class. Then, it happened. I was introduced to "Pencil Wars". If you have seen boys and girls try to break pencils by flipping them with another pencil, you have witnessed "Pencil Wars."

I carried a pack of pencils in my book bag for personal use. One day, a student asked me if he could buy the whole pack. I sold the pack, but I added $.05 to each pencil. I bought another pack, and it sold quickly. The same group of students played "Pencil Wars", but I sold my pencils to any student that needed an extra one.

At a young age, I believe children can be entrepreneurs. I evolved from selling erasers to owning a construction company. Moreover, I will continue to evolve and strive to become a more successful entrepreneur. Nevertheless, I will always remember that little girl with a small pink purse.

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