She grew up hearing family members dream about having their own businesses. She dreamed too, but she was leaning toward becoming a doctor until she signed up for an entrepreneurship program at Ferguson High in Miami, the rest is history.

Hello Jessica, how are you doing? Can you give me some background information about yourself?

My Name is Jessica Cervantes. I am 19 years old. I graduated with a 4.0 GPA from John A. Ferguson Senior High School. I am currently studying Biomedical Engineering at The Honors College of Miami Dade. I have aspirations to become a corporate lawyer.

I was born in Habana, Cuba. I came to the U.S in 1990 when I was 6 years old. I am an old child with an extended family.

Can you kindly tell the readers what you do? Tell us about your business?

I am the CEO/Founder of Popsy Cakes. I created my business when I was 16 years old as part of an entrepreneurial education program called NFTE.

Who inspired you to start your business? How did the process start?

NFTE and the Entrepreneurship academy at my high school inspired me to create my business. I began with my business plan as part of a class assignment and it took off from there.

When did you encounter your first entrepreneurial experience?

I think I’ve been business savvy from a young age. I remember when I was a child I would trick o treat duing Halloween, then wait a month and sell my candies at school (until one day I got in trouble). I would also sell my used books on Amazon when I was a child and I would make garage sales.

How did you fund your business?

The first $100 dollars I used to start my business was an investment from my parents. Later on I started competing in business plan competitions and with the prize money I would receive I would invest it into my company. Now I have an investor.

How are you coping with the pressure of being in the university and running a business?

It is insane! I try to stay focus and complete one task at a time. I first do all my homework before I start working on Popsy Cakes but it is very difficult. I also have a lot of support from my family and boyfriend who help me out with everything. I am also still in contact with NFTE and they are very supportive.

What has been your proudest moment so far?

My proudest moment was when I won First place in the 2008 NFTE National Business Plan competition out of 25,000 business students with my business plan Popsy Cakes.

Have you suffered any setbacks and how did you overcome it?

My major setback was time management. It came a time when I almost decided to stop producing Popsy Cakes because I had no time. Fortunately, I was able to come across an investor who has offered his time and staff and it’s been amazing ever since.

Who do you go for advice for business decisions?

I definitely rely on NFTE for their expert business advice. They have a lot of mentors who truly help the students. My mentor (and investor) Bill Hansen has helped me throughout my journey and I learn something new every day. I also rely on my parents a lot for their advice.

Apart from your business, what other business do you admire the most and why?

I truly admire BAWLS. I had the pleasure to meet and work with the owners. Their story is truly inspirational. Christina Staalstrom, the owner, is a great mentor.

What are your hobbies?

I love to dance! I wish I had the time to take some dance classes to learn about different styles and techniques. I am also a big animal lover. I love spending time with my dog Cindy. Unfortunately, I also love shopping! Worst hobby ever. I also love going to the beach and tanning.

What should we be expecting from you in the future?

I hope to grow and expand my business. I hope to have Popsy Cakes selling nationwide. I also hope to attend graduate school and become a corporate lawyer. You will see me on FORBES richest people pretty soon =)

I will be watching out for your name jessica

What advices would you give to young entrepreneurs out there?

I definitely believe you should first believe in yourself and be confident that your business will be very successful in the future. Also, use all your resources! Get in contact with entrepreneurs from around your area and ask for help. You will be surprised to see how many individuals are willing to help you become successful. Networking is key to expanding your business and move forward. Great connections will come in very handy at one point or another.

Thanks so much jessica, we wish you the best in the future.

Popsy Cakes Website

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Richard graduated in 2007 with a BA and MA in Economics from Yale University and deferred admission to Harvard Business School in order to start Academic Earth.

Please, kindly give the YHP Readers some background information about yourself and what you do?

I suppose I could be labelled as a “serial social entrepreneur.” While in college at Yale University, I started a national student organization to promote organ donor registration, and a non-profit economics magazine aimed at making new developments in the field of economics more accessible to a general audience. A few months after graduating in 2007, I began preparing to start Academic Earth.

Can you explain to us what your company does?

Academic Earth offers free access to full video courses from leading universities such as Harvard, Yale, Stanford, and MIT. We use the power of the internet to give people all over the world access to high-quality learning opportunities that previously were only available to a very small number of students.

What inspired you to start your company?

As a student, I used materials from MIT to supplement my own education, but I believed that consumers would benefit from an easy-to-use centralized repository that brought together free educational resources from many institutions.

How did you finance your business?

I raised a medium-sized round of angel/seed funding from a group of individuals including several Yale professors.

What plans do you have now to expand your business further?

I can’t yet talk about some of the growth opportunities I consider to be most exciting, but in the short-term we plan to add additional videos and course materials and make improvements to provide a great online learning experience.

What systems have you used to automate your business to give you more time for business planning and development?

We have utilized outsourced work through sites such as eLance when we need assistance on large-scale repetitive projects.

How do you market your products or services?

We don’t spend much on marketing. Rather, bloggers and reporters have found the site and written about it, and most of our growth comes from word-of-mouth and social media sharing.

Do you believe business has any obligation to make the world a better place?

Academic Earth was founded with a social mission to extend educational opportunities to the world, but I don’t impose any altruistic obligations on businesses in general. So long as they are behaving responsibly (for example with regards to the environment and their workers), I think many businesses add value to society simply by meeting consumers’ desires, even if they don’t have what would generally be considered altruistic objectives.

How does your business “give back” to the community or to society?

Academic Earth provides free high-quality learning opportunities to people around the globe.

Do you believe there is some sort of pattern or formula to becoming a successful entrepreneur?

I have seen entrepreneurs follow many paths to success, but one thing I have noticed is that the romanticized notion of the entrepreneur as a risk-loving maverick doesn’t necessarily hold up. Most successful entrepreneurs I have observed are very intelligent people who pursue opportunities methodically and find ways to systematically reduce risk.

What have been some of your failures, and what have you learned from them?

I don’t have one or two big failures that make for a great story, but behind nearly every success I’ve ever had are a series of small failures along the way. I believe the key is to focus on getting better every day. Over a period of several years, the sum of all the small improvements you make to small failures adds up to very valuable progression.

If you had the chance to start your career over again, what would you do differently?

I’m not far into my career, but if I were to go back to when I first started Academic Earth, I would have invested more time learning about web programming so I could have been more hands on with the development of the site. I am just now beginning to do so.

What qualities have you developed as a result of running your business?

As an early stage entrepreneur I’ve had to wear many hats. I’ve raised money, determined our legal structure, hired, marketed, designed web pages, and more. The main quality I’ve developed is a confidence in my ability to learn the knowledge or skills needed to tackle a new challenge.

In your opinion, what is the most important quality an entrepreneur should possess?

Assertiveness.

In one word, characterize your life as an entrepreneur?

Unpredictable.

What are your hobbies? What do you do in your non-work time?

I’m a huge basketball fan and follow the NBA obsessively, in addition to playing the sport recreationally.

Excluding yours, what company or business do you admire the most and why?

I’m very impressed with Mint.com, which was recently acquired by Intuit. Their product provides a very clear value proposition to consumers, and their execution has always been superb.

Thanks for your time Richard, we wish you the best in the future.

Richard Ludlow: Academic Earth
Richard Ludlow on LinkedIN

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When he was 15, Spyros started working at a local radio station where he managed advertising campaigns and took an active role in production. He received his bachelor of Recording Arts from Middlesex University. Spyros conducted a lot of freelance work as a sound editor and music composer for radio and TV in the UK.

At the age of 23, Spyros was accepted to the Kingston University Business School to pursue an MBA and follow his career pursuits in the entertainment industry. In order to pay for his degree, Spyros came up with TheTextPage.com, the first ever pay per character advertising that consists of 100% text. TheTextPage has received international coverage and Spyros has raised the full amount of £17.000 to pay for his tuition costs.

Hey Spyros, Welcome to YHP, How are you doing?Spyros, YOU’RE one of the youngest students ever to be offered an MBA course at Kingston’s business school, how do you feel about that? Why did you decide to study your MBA at Kingston?

I feel great and honoured to be offered a place into an MBA course at my age. Kingston University run the MBA course for the past 25 years, I think it is a very clever choice, considering other MBA courses available. The University is very welcoming and in a very nice location.

Can you quickly give us some background information about yourself?

I am 24 year, very motivated to do things and passionate about it. My work experience moves from entertainment industry (music, film) to broadcast media (radio, TV) where I actually developed marketing and advertising skills and mentality. Business came by to combine what was already there and only make it better.

My bio http://www.linkedin.com/in/SpyrosPyrgiotis

Tell us about your company?

Thetextpage is the only website on the net that consists of 100% text, offering low cost high return advertising optimized for search engines. Advertisers can choose the text that best describes their company, which may be a slogan or a selling point. They can also choose their colour and their font. Thetextpage will stay online for 3 years (but it may more at no extra cost to advertisers). Advertisers can choose and purchase their text from thetextpage.info, as thetextpage.com should be consisting of only text. Thetextpage.info is all the information, my blog, testimonials and my press list.

You studied sound engineering, how were you able to put up such a site?

I have a bachelor in Recording Arts, other than that I am a very creative person and generally I’m getting involved with many things from a young age like photography, graphics, film but I also have a basic web design knowledge, enough knowledge to motivate me and make me go ahead. So with a lot of will and some help from friends in some technical aspects I managed to built the website.

How have you been able to maintain balance in your education and work?

I motivate myself as much as possible and I’m going with it. It can be very hard sometimes but considering that what you do is your passion, motivates you even more. I’m very good in prioritizing things and I don’t waste time. I take action immediately and I cope with it.

How did you come up with the consent? What inspired you?

There were 3 main reasons that made me come up with the thetextpage.

First, the way our brains adapt to new media. It is what I call the keyword-effect. Quite often we do not read but we scan the text and being attracted by keywords. There is so much content and internet is so fast. The phenomenon can be easily realized on twitter. We often scan over tweets to find what interest us based on keywords and that happens almost subconsiously.

The second reason I set up thetextpage was to establish Pay Per Character advertising (Textvertising). Text and links is the way we get and we share information online. The increasing popularity of twitter and search engines, that attract billions searches per week makes the phenomenon clear. We get information through text and we go where we want to go through google or other search engines. A Text Link has started to seem and perceived more as information rather than advertisement and we feel familiar with it.

The third reason was the impact that thetextpage will have in search engine optimization. Advertisers can place and optimize their text at a very low cost for display at thetextpage.com but the same time they taking advantage of the popularity of thetextpage as a brand. Google indexes thetextpage very often and that said it indexes also all the links that are within it.

How has the entrepreneurial journey been so far?

All the journey was very educational and rewarding. I gained so much that will help me in my future prospects. It had its ups and its downs but it was all a great experience.

What has been your most memorable moment so far?

There are so many memorable moments, the day I was called for a national interview is sure one of the most memorable.

Did you have any disappointments and how were you able to bounce back from them?

I did have my downs. It was a very hard task to establish and make people realize the potential of such an unconventional idea. I knew the potential was there, I never stop believing and I found no reason to do so. That would bounce me back to work every time.

How is the business doing so far? How many adverts have been sold?

The business is going great. I have so far sold more than 13000 characters and made my fees. However, now thetextpage is getting more successful and more people have started talking about it. Google indexes 200+ results for thetextpage every day. The low price but also the advantage of search engine optimization has helped in making thetextpage a success. The individuality and the artistic side of it is something that makes people wanna be part of it.

Have you or are you looking to secure any investments for the site?

No thoughts at the time being.

What should we be expecting next from you?

I’m following my passion when it comes down to whether I should do something or not. I am working on different ideas already but over the next year I will focus first on my studies.

What is the most valuable lesson that you’ve learnt so far?

Being able to think big is not enough, you have to do big. “Think big, do big” is the saying for me. Thinking big without taking action is often daydreaming. Regardless the difficulties and your fears you much go ahead. It takes action to make the impossible seem possible, hard work to make it probable and harder work to make it happen. Determination is the most important requirement.

Thanks Spyros, We wish you the best

Check out Thetextpage
Spyros On LinkedIn
Spyros on Twitter
Spyros on Facebook

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Juliette speaks to YHP about her business, family and life.

Hello Juliette, how are you doing? Great to have you here on YHP, Can you give us some information about yourself and what you do?

I’m 20 years old and junior in college. I started a company when I was ten years old called miss O and Friends, which helps young girls to build self-esteem.

What inspires a 10 year old to start a business? i mean you could easily just play with your Barbie without the stress of starting a business at that age? How did you come up with the concept?

Miss O and Friends started when I was ten years old. My family and I were coming back from a summer vacation and I was really bored on the way home. I started doodling these girls that I called “cool girls,” which became the foundation for the Miss O girls today. My mom, who is a graphic designer, took the girls that I drew and put them on the computer making Juliette and “Miss O” characters. My mom, sister and I would play around on the computer having the characters do different activities that my sister and I liked to do. A few years later, for my sisters 8th birthday party, my mom made Miss O-like girls for all of her friends. My sisters friends went crazy for the girls and that is when we started thinking that girls like what we’ve been creating. I was just entering into my teen years and my sister and her friends were just entering their tween years. There was nothing for my friends and I when we were tweens and I figured what better way to help tween girls than with these characters I had created.

How many hours do you work a day on average?

Miss O work depends on the week and what is due and who I have interviews or meetings with.

Describe/outline your typical day?

Wake up, class from about 10-3 or 5 depending on the day. Maybe make it to the gym. Dinner, homework, Miss O work, bed. On the weekends I have fun though, don’t worry I’m not a hermit.

So at age 10, how did you run the website and when did you realise it could become something of value and could be monetized?

Not at all! Like I said, it was just something fun for my mom, sister and I to do.

How do you find people to bring into your organization that truly care about the organization the way you do?

It’s hard to find people to be as passionate about your company as you are. Our whole team though is so dedicated and they are what make our company run.

How has being an entrepreneur affected your family life?

There has definitely been tensions between family and work since we all do work and usually live together when I’m not at college. It has made us much closer though because not only do we rely on each other as a family, but we have a larger partnership than that.

What would you base as the main reason of your success?

It’s cliche, but never giving up.

Who is your favourite young entrepreneur at the moment?

Ashley Cook and Danielle Dankner. They started a company cleverly called Ash&Dans and they make the cutest scarfs, headbands, and shawls. SOOOO cute!

What sacrifices did you have to make to be a successful entrepreneur?

At 10,starting and growing a successful, you must have had to sacrifice few things along the way?

What are your hobbies? What do you do in your non-work time?

I work at the St. Louis Children’s hospital, I’m very involved in my sorority, I love photography and I love dance parties.

What book has inspired you the most? (OR What is your favorite book?)

My favorite book is The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James. I used to be an English major so I had to read all these old books that I thought I would hate and ended up absolutely loving.

What three pieces of advice would you give to college students who want to become entrepreneurs?

1. Have the support of your family
2. Surround yourself with passionate and positive people
3. Seriously don’t give up- things take time and you need to be patient.
Thanks for your time Juliette.

Thanks Juliette for your time, we wish you the best in the future.

Check out her Website: Miss O and Friends

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Maddie is currently working on their latest project known as Snap Caps, which lets girls swap out the bottle caps to suit their outfit and mood. Each necklace sells for $14-15, and you can buy bottle caps separately (perfect for decorating the inside of lockers, too).

Snap Caps can be worn on necklaces, in hairpins, or as bracelets.

Snap Caps was featured at the Teen Choice Awards and now bring in $1.6 million in revenue.

Hello Maddie, Thanks for taking time to do this interview, i know you must be busy with homework, how are you doing?

I am great! I was rehearsing a lot last week for a school play, it turned out really well.

What inspired you to start? How did the business start?

I wanted to create something fun, magnetic, and easy to use for my locker. My uncle had an old-fashioned coke machine, and I started taking all the bottle caps and making drawings inside them and putting magnets on the back. My friends asked me to make them for their lockers as well. We traded them back and forth so much I knew I was onto something. That was when I decided to make “wearable art” and I created my first necklace.

How is it going so far?

We are very lucky; SNAP CAPS ® has been very successful. I have received many emails from other teens all over the world that have heard of SNAP CAPS ® and are inspired by the business

How did you finance your business?

I invested $300 of my own money, my mom matched it. To date, our business is 100% debt free

How many employees do you have?

30

What do you enjoy the most about running a business and also your dislikes?

Traveling and learning life lessons that most 13 year old’s can’t experience.

How do you cope with your school work and running a business?

I only draw the original artwork and our team reproduces it and handpaints all of the bottle caps. I still make time to hang out with my friends and do regular things

How do you cope with the pressure?

Pressure? My business doesn’t cause me pressure. I love to draw. I find it very relaxing .

What’s been the most valuable lesson you’ve learnt so far?

The importance of community and giving back.

What are your hobbies?

I love to play sports, and have fun with my friends! I am on the Lacrosse team; I swim, and play tennis. I like to go to movies and listen to music as well

Who is your role model?

Albert Einstein and my parents

Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years?

Hopefully, my freshman year at Princeton.

Why did you name the company M3 girl design? Who picked out the name?

M3 stands for Maddie, my sister Margot and my mom. I picked it out.

What advice do you have for teens your age that have any idea?

Follow your dream; ask your parents for help, and make sure that what you do is fun. Because if it is fun, it is not really work!

Thanks Maddie for your time

Maddie will be appearing on the Nationally syndicated ABC Talk show THE VIEW This Friday (20th), and in San Diego this Saturday (21st) at a special signing at legendary toy store Geppetto.

Find out more about M3 Girl Designs

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Southern has appeared as a red carpet host for (2008 Grammys, 2007 Golden Globes, 2006 Young Hollywood Awards), and as the face for Cosmopolitan Magazine’s website.

Although she was first introduced to the public in 2004 when she made American Idol season three’s Top 50, she also became the face for Cosmopolitan.com, and starred in series and specials for CBS.com, MySpace, and MSN. On her own time, Taryn continued writing and producing videos, including a spoof of THE GOLDEN GLOBES for TVGuide.com, NOT MY SOCK with Jamie Kennedy for T-Mobile, and more.

Shortly thereafter, she was featured in Maxim Magazine as one of the top internet celebrities of the year, and won Spike TV’s 2008 Guy’s Choice Award for her Hott4Hill video.

In the film world, she played a supporting role in Senior Skip Day opposite Jackson Rathbone. She also was one of the leads alongside Jessica Lee Rose and Mikaela Hoover, in Warner Brother’s first ever web series, Sorority Forever. The series debuted on September 8th, 2008 on theWB.com.

In November 2008, Southern and her producing partner, Jessica Rose, launched Webutantes, a new media studio.

Also in 2008, Southern wrote/produced her first comedic musical web series, Private High Musical, which was released across various viral platforms. The project was produced in association with 60Frames’ Red Band. In 2009, Taryn sold “Private High Musical” to MTV and teamed up “Family Guy” executive producer David Zuckerman to write the half-hour comedy script.

How are you doing?

I’m great, thanks! Just had my morning latte.

Can you let our readers know what you do?

I still don’t quite know exactly. By definition, I’m an actress, writer, producer, and TV host – but most days I just feel like I’m playing a giant game of Hollywood chess.

Describe/outline your typical day?

Sometimes I wish I had a “typical” day! Every day is different. Some days I’m filming, which means crazy call times and long hours on a set. Other days are spent auditioning (which in LA, means hours in a car), pitching TV or web series concepts for financing or distribution, writing, reading scripts, and lots of general meetings with studio execs, actors, writers, and producers.

You’re one of the co-hosts for the official American Music Awards pre-show that pretty cool right? I hope I’m getting some backstage tickets *Laughs*

Haha, I’ll let you know if I get any extra tickets! Yes, I’m extremely excited about co-hosting this year’s AMA awards. I co-hosted the red carpet of the Golden Globe Awards for Dick Clark Productions back in 2007, so I was so excited that they asked me back to be a part of their official AMA pre-show. The best part about this year’s show is that it’s completely interactive. So no matter where you are in the world, you can watch the pre-show live from my Facebook page – www.facebook.com/tarynsouthern , as well as tweet me questions you want me to ask your favorite celebs (Direct questions to @tarynsouthern -). Being able to connect fans to celebrities on the red carpet, LIVE, isn’t something I’ve ever been able to do before!

I mean you’ve worked with a lot of celebrities, you’re kind of considered a celebrity yourself, How does it feel? How has the journey been so far?

Ha, well, I definitely don’t consider myself a celebrity. I’m not exactly sure at what point someone is considered a “celebrity” – perhaps when they can’t leave the house without being pestered by paparazzi? That’s definitely not me.

Regardless, my journey in entertainment over the past few years has been an absolute adventure. I feel blessed to have been able to do so many different kinds of things. One day I’m in Washington DC talking to Chris Matthews about politics on MSNBC, the next day I’m playing dress up in a ridiculous comedy film, the next day I’m travelling to Europe to host a travel show. I never know what’s around the corner…every day is a surprise.

What is the name of the most interesting place you’ve been to and why?

I think Istanbul tops my list. Not only is it one of the most beautiful cities I’ve been to, but it lies on the border between Asia and Europe, so the culture draws from so many different influences. The town of Iquitos, Peru comes in at a close #2. One of the most incredible months of my life was when I was working on my senior thesis along the Amazon River. I stayed with locals in the rainforest and learned about all kinds of indigenous plants and rituals. It was fascinating.

I was actually watching Senior Skip Day and was thinking “Do you actually swear that much?” How was the experience being in the movie?

Senior Skip Day was actually my first movie – and so much fun! And no, I definitely don’t swear like Isha does. She really liked the F word.

My favorite part about Senior Skip Day was the cast. We were all such goofballs together. Now Jackson Rathbone’s in Twilight and Kayla Ewell is on the CW’s hit series Vampire Diaries. I love seeing my friends succeed. I’m like a proud mother.

O yeah, I will definitely be watching the new twilight movie; I’m a huge of vampire diaries.

What’s your biggest distraction?

My biggest distraction is not having a schedule. Since I don’t work for anyone, I only answer to myself, which requires a lot of focus and optimism. The hardest part of my job is that you just have to work really hard and then wait for that “pivotal moment.” Sometimes it’s a phone call that you got the part, other times, it’s the anti-climatic close of a six-month long negotiation. Every few months I have to take a step back from the minute details and appreciate the creative freedom I have.

What have been some of your failures, and what have you learned from them?

As long as you put forth effort, and do your work with passion and love, then I believe there is no such thing as failure. Everything is a learning experience. I’m a highly critical person, so I’m always critiquing myself. The growing never stops, the ideas never stop; it’s all cyclical.

If you had the chance to start your career over again, what would you do differently?

The older you get, the tougher it can be to find work in Hollywood, especially as an actor. I used to wish that I had started pursuing my career at a younger age, to have the “head start” that so many others had. Now, I’m so glad I didn’t! Without my experiences studying anthropology in college, I wouldn’t have the other passions I do now – for music, travel, cooking, culture. It’s never too late to do what you love. Don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise.

What has been your most satisfying moment so far?

Hearing from someone that I brightened their day, made them laugh, or inspired them to do something outside of their comfort zone – those letters and emails make it all worth it.

What is the most crucial decision you’ve made so far regarding your career?

When I decided to ignore the critics. My first year in LA, I found a lot of work as a TV host and even produced my own TV show. I was immediately placed in the “host/producer box,” but I wanted so badly to act and write. So instead of listening to all the people who told me that I should just focus on hosting, I started writing, producing, and acting in my own online material, which led to several roles in films and selling my first scripted TV show. There’s always going to be people telling you that you can’t do something…so you just have to go do it. Prove yourself. Now I am fortunate to have a team of people who support me in all areas – writing, producing, acting, hosting. Three years ago I would have never imagined that I’d have that.

On those impossible days, what motivates you to keep going?

Coffee? Ha. Sometimes it’s as simple as that. Seriously though, most days, it’s an idea I have that inspires me to wake up every morning. A little voice inside that says you have to tell this story.

Describe yourself in 5 words?

Intuitive, joyful, sensitive, driven, practical

What do you in your non-work times?

I love the arts – writing music, painting, photography – and long hikes in the Los Angeles hills. I also try to take about 4 weeks off every year to travel. Last year I took an extended holiday vacation and went to New York, Dubai, Jordan, Istanbul, and Mexico. It was such an odd trip but amazingly refreshing. I really want to see Africa and Cambodia next.

What music artists do you like at the moment?

I’m inspired by so many different types of music. The Jackson 5, Lady Gaga, Kings of Leon, Michael Buble, and the Rock of Ages Broadway soundtrack are on my current work out playlist.

What is your favourite film at the moment?

My favorite film this year was the Pixar animated Up (I couldn’t stop talking about it!), but whenever I need a little inspiration, I turn on The Wizard of Oz or Amelie.

What are you currently working on now?

A bunch of different projects (as usual!) I’ve got the American Music Awards coming up this month, but I’m also consulting for a web site launch in November and writing two web series that I plan to produce next year. I just finished acting in a movie in September, so hopefully I’ll see a cut of that soon. And in December, I’m producing my first feature – it’s a passion-project thriller that I co-wrote with a friend.

Wow, That’s great Taryn.

Where do you see in yourself and your career in the next 5 years?

I have very specific goals – I want to make a movie musical. Publish a book. Run my own new media content studio for up and coming talent to test out ideas. Learn aerial acrobatics. I’m not really sure what all this adds up to. I’m not looking to win any awards – as long as I’m having fun, that’s all that matters.

If you were conducting this interview, what question would you be dying for someone to ask you?

That’s a trick question! Haha. I’m a pretty open book, so if anyone has any questions for me, they can just send me a twitter message – www.twitter.com/tarynsouthern – or post a message on one of my blog forums at www.taryntogo.com.

Thanks for your time Taryn, we wish the best in the future.

Connect with Taryn on twitter – www.twitter.com/tarynsouthern
Find out more updates on her website – www.taryntogo.com
IMDB
More on Taryn
Wikipedia

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Hi Michael, Can you give us some background information about you and what you do?

I grew up on Long Island, NY, where I caught the entrepreneurial ‘bug’ at an early age. I organized ski tours, started a car detailing business, a mortgage business, sold lots of stuff on eBay, and always had interesting jobs as a kid.

What were you doing before you started your company?

I was a student at Babson College- near Boston- it’s sort of a hub of entrepreneurial activity in many regards. I had been working as a mortgage broker during the summer months from the time I was a senior in HS through my junior year of college. Telephone sales, learning the basics of marketing and selling. During the summer after my junior year, I landed an internship with Roll, a Los Angeles based private equity company. I was assigned to FIJI Water, one of their subsidiary businesses that was recently acquired. I took a great liking to the business for several reasons- it’s a great product (the water really does taste better, and it comes from the most pristine place on earth- so packaging/branding aside, it’s authentic), the marketing and branding strategy is very clever, and most importantly, the company is socially conscious and helps their employees in Fiji with all sorts of great community development projects (clean drinking water, schools, healthcare, etc.).

Was that your first company?

My first company was technically a ski tour marketing business- I loved snowboarding, but my parents were unwilling to drive me to Vermont (which is 5+ hours north of Long Island). The only way I could go snowboarding on the weekends was to A.) mooch a trip with friends who had homes up north, or B.) find a ski tour operator and go on a 1 day trip, which usually cost between $60 – , $70. I quickly realized that many of my friends were in the same situation, and as I built up a “customer base” of friends and friends of friends, I was able to start marketing my own ski trips. Before I knew it, I was setting up weekend long ski trips and grossing $10,000 per trip. It all sort of happened by accident, and I was more interested in going skiing for free than I was in making a career out of operating ski tours. In hindsight, I made a lot of money for the travel agent that brokered us the ski tours during those winter months.

Have you always been environmental conscious?

I have never been a “tree hugger” but at the same time, I don’t litter, in fact, I will pick up trash if I see it on the beach. I love the outdoors and will do whatever I can to keep the earth clean. Always.

What inspired to start the company?

Those who know me best will tell you that I started VIVO Natural Products because I shower a lot. I have exceptional hygiene, no doubt. However, this is not the sole reason for my founding VNP. Having worked for a mid-sized consumer products company, I came to realize that there are no “major” players in the natural products space. In mainstream CPG’s we have Unilever, Kraft, Coca Cola, etc. Companies that do billions of dollars in sales, globally. However, for the most part, their products are bad for the people who consume them and even worse for the environment and the economies that produce them. My belief (which still remains in-tact) is that a new group of major-players in the CPG space will emerge- their brand portfolios will consist of high quality natural products (food, beverages, beauty care, household, etc.). I hope VIVO Natural Products bar soap will serve our little company (and my big plans) the same way bar soap served the Lever brothers.

Who are your target markets?

Our target markets are retailers. You’re probably thinking I forgot a precursor to retailers, but I didn’t. Drug, grocery, mass, beauty, natural, etc. all of these types of retailers should carry our bar soap (and the other products that we’ll be launching in early 2010). Our soap (and the rest of our product offerings, for that matter) is affordable, made with the highest quality ingredients, environmentally friendly, and best of all, made with ingredients that we source from entrepreneurs in underdeveloped countries helping those who need it most earn a fair living.

So what do you think gives you an edge against your competitors? What is USP?

We have a few USP’s- the best one we’ve got going with our existing product offering, which consists of 5 bar soap SKUs is the fact that we use this amazing, fresh shea butter from women farmers in Africa. This is what makes our soap incredibly rich and nourishing for the skin- it is filled with vitamins that naturally heal your skin. It makes you look and feel healthier. Plus, we buy this shea butter from women in Africa who are now able to earn a fair living, support their families and send their children to schools, feed them, etc. It’s meaningful- far more meaningful (in my humble opinion) than donating a percentage of sales to a charity that I have nothing to do with.

How did you finance your business?

I financed the startup of VIVO Natural Products with my own money- I worked my butt off and constantly reinvested in the business. Start small, make sales, reinvest, and repeat.

How do you market your products or services?

It’s funny you should ask this- we don’t. So far, we haven’t spent a dime on “traditional” marketing. Our only “marketing” spend is on samples. We often do demos at stores and give away free bar soap so people can try the product. Nothing sells our soap better than a free sample. Our customer retention rate is off the charts; something the major players are very envious of.

What’s the worst business advice you’ve ever received?

I’m not sure I can answer this question- I’d like to think that i’ve received mostly sound advice from those around me. Even the bad advice is good because it serves as a learning experience.

What are your hobbies? What do you do in your non-work time?

I travel a lot, eat out, read, exercise, spend as much time at the beach as possible. I’m very interested in business, though, so even while i’m traveling, it’s usually business related. When i’m eating at a restaurant, i’m admiring their decor, or plates, or furniture, etc for the business behind each component. When i’m in a supermarket buying food, that’s completely business. Much of what I read is business related, though, not all of it.

How do you build a successful customer base?

Make a great product, set a fair price, and explain the benefits as clearly as possible.

Where do you see in yourself and your business in the next 5 years?

In 5 years (or less) we will have a number of other products- beyond beauty. We’ll be selling our products to retailers like Wal-Mart and Target, and also to Whole Foods and independent companies, too.

Great Interview Michael, Thanks for your time.

For more information VNP: Website
Twitter: http://twitter.com/mtalve

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Matt, Briefly give us some background information about yourself and what you do?

My name is Matt Lovett, I run an Internet marketing company. I have been running my own business since I was about 13 whilst I was still at school.

Kindly tell the YHP readers what you do?

I am the Managing Director of WOW Media an international marketing company. The company runs a massive range of different online websites and we have recently got into the mobile game industry with our new game Mafia Life.

So what is your main income stream even though its seems that you have many income stream online?

Our main income is from our affiliate network, Trienta Affiliates. Which is an affiliate network and it gives the ability for people that have their own sites or are start sites up to place our adverts on their sites and earn money from.

Seeing that online is where you make your money, what would be doing if the internet never existed?

Good question, I think maybe I would have started my own magazine or newspaper.

Matt do you have any plans to get young people to work in your company?

WOW Media and our partner company have recently started taking on apprentices and we plan to take more on in the future.

What is your business model?

We are an internet marketing company, we run a range of online websites including cashback rewards, voucher code sites and much more.

Who are target markets?

Its hard to say really we run so many different businesses in many different sectors.

Who are your competitors and how do you compete against them?

As I mentioned earlier we run a huge range of websites, so we have a lot of different competitors, our biggest competitor is most likely Quidco which are a huge cashback site, paying 100% commission to users.

How do we compete with them?

Can’t reveal that yet however we have huge plans in November to compete massively with them.

Is this your first business or have started any company previously?

No this is not my first business, I had little business ventures at school, which I mention more later on and also had a cashback site with my friend before WOW Media, called GF-Cash.co.uk

Were you exposed to entrepreneurship as a child or is it something you just picked along the way?

Something I picked up along the way, I just learned everything whilst I was running my business and learned from my mistakes, I did not even take Business at school. So sometimes I had to do a lot of research into things.

How did you finance your business? What have been your most effective sources of financing over the years?

I got no bank loans, no money given to me. I started out with a few pound from pocket money which I used to sell sweets at school after about a month me and my friend had made £20 profit, we used this to start out first website 10 months later we were making over a £1,000 a month at about 14.

What are the revenues of the business?

The company currently turns over about £25,000 – £30,000 a month.

How many employees do you have?

We currently have about 6 members of staff, we are always considering recruiting more people.

How has your market changed in the past few years? How has your business changed to keep pace?

Over the years the market has changed massively and I am constantly coming up with new ideas and new business ventures to keep up with the market and to expand into new areas.

How have sales grown in the last few years?

Obviously since going into my business full time after leaving school, it has really helped the business as I have been able to spend more time on it. This year we have almost doubled the size of the company.

What are the most crucial things you have done to grow your business?

Going into new areas, growing the business is vital. We are constantly launching new sites, services, companies and even buying existing sites or companies to constantly try and grow the business.

What has been your most effective marketing tactic or technique?

Internet Marketing…However I would say that as that’s what we do.

What are your advices to young entrepreneurs starting up their business?

My advice is don’t give up. Try and try again. Over the years I have run loads and loads of websites, some failed, some were huge successes.

I guess it also comes down to persistence and determination, thank you matt, we wish you the very best in the future.

For more info on Wow Media: Wow Media
Matt on twitter: Matt Lovett

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How is it going Ben?

Good, busy working hard as always, enjoying the Florida sun!

The projects that you guys are involved in are pretty exciting right?

I only get involved in exciting projects, life is too short to be board!

I mean one thing i am really looking forward is seeing how the web 3.0 evolves, i mean is it something you think every technology-driven company should and invest in? Tell our readers what we should we expecting from web 3.0, what is web 3.0?

Web 3.0? Web 2.0? The funny thing is that web 2.0 does not really exist it is more like a collection of ideas about the way the web is going. Web 3.0 as a concept will be moving from a read and write web to a self structuring, more intelligent web; or in other words the semantic web.
This will allow the user to manipulate data and build and play with information in any way they want.

What project are you involved in, heavily at this moment?

We currently have 17 active business, and a few more are about to launch, so there is always something to keep me busy!

Wow, thats a lot, you guys are investing in everything innovation, everything to do with future technology? What standout technology do you think we should watch out for in the next 5 years?

Robotics without a doubt is one of the most interesting fields, we are probably about where the personal computer was 15 years ago with robotics the next 10 years will be increadble.

Dyslexia? I mean they are tons of entrepreneurs that have had Dyslexia and have managed to accomplish a great deal and be successful, what has your experience being diagnosed with Dyslexia?

I see Dyslexia as one of my greatest advantages, it allows me to think in a unique way!

I mean you started your business at 15, raised £25 million at age 19 that is not a small amount of money at age 19; did you feel extra pressure to succeed?

Very much, I was very scared of failure; but actually now I have experienced failure I see it as an important part of the learning experience.

Can you tell us how you to overcome failure in business, especially after you lost a lot of money, what should entrepreneurs learn from that? How can they avoid that? And also if entrepreneurs find themselves in that situation what can they do to get out the situation?

Sometimes you cant avoid it, sometimes knowing when to quit is the best skill! Failure is not a bad thing, it is not a nice thing but something that entrepreneurs have to expect at some time; I mean if it was that easy everyone would do it right!

If you were starting a new business in a new industry what would it be?

Again robotics, and I will be!

Where do you see in yourself and your business in the next 5 years?

These days the most important thing for me is generate wealth for other people and having a good quality of life so as long as I motivate people and help people achieve there dreams I would not want anything else.

What is the most crucial decision you’ve made so far regarding your business?

Not having a business partner, it is a mixed blessing but I need to work alone.

Excluding yours, what company or business do you admire the most?

Boston Dynamics they are developing scary but kick ass technology, it’s the kind of company I would love to run.

What sacrifices did you have to make to be a successful entrepreneur?

You have to grow up very quickly, be as happy without money as you are with money, and above all take risks.

Thanks Ben for your time.

For more information on Ben’s company: MakinGrain
For more information about Ben: Ben Way

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