To monetize their passions, some high school students started small businesses.
Drexel University student Hannah Woodbury founded her own card business called Hannah’s Greeting Cards.
“I’ve been [making cards] since 2020 and hand paint watercolor cards. I had a lot of free time, and I’ve always enjoyed art. I started making cards for a bunch of my mom’s friends for Mother’s Day and we drove around and gave them to a bunch of them,” Woodbury said.
According to Woodbury, her business started strong and she made a profit of over $4,000.
“I enjoy art and find it really relaxing and I also enjoy getting to be creative. Most of the cards that I make are adaptations of what people ask me,” Woodbury said.
Woodbury also founded the Entrepreneur Club during her time at Souderton, aiming to find a community of students with similar interests.
“I wanted to talk with other like-minded students because I knew a few people who had their businesses and were selling things. I realized that other clubs weren’t the best match for what I was looking for so I founded the club,” Woodbury said.
Woodbury’s advice is to research and make sure that they have the time and interest to run a small business.
“Give it a shot because you don’t know where different endeavors could take you. Look up some YouTube videos on profit margins and how different parts of the business go together so that you don’t go into it blind,” Woodbury said.
Woodbury also stresses the importance of forming lasting connections with the community in order to promote growth.
“ [You should also] make a lot of personal connections with a lot of people because they are more likely to be interested in your business and buy from you,” Woodbury said.
Another young entrepreneur, who found success through their ice cream business, is junior Chaya Thomas.
“It’s called the Sweet Freeze, and it’s a homemade ice cream business that I started in the summer of 2020,” Thomas said, “and I sell pints and individual scoops. I also donate 10% of profits to a local charity each season.”
According to Thomas, some of the challenges surrounding starting her business involved realizing that there are going to be many expenses in operating a small business, from costs of materials to the pricing of products.
Thomas recognizes that it is important to make sure that the value of the product is high enough to make the time and effort worth it.
Thomas advises that entrepreneurs should always keep a positive mindset and learn from everything that they do as they progress through their small business journey.
“Be confident in your product or the service that you are providing because that is going to give you something that’s going to help you,” Thomas said
For Thomas, the most important aspect of running a business is ensuring that you love what you’re doing.
“Whether you’re going to be making a product or offering a service, be passionate about it. If you are going to be taking time in addition to your extracurricular activities, if you want to take time to do a business, do something you enjoy,” Thomas said.