07/ 25/ 2007
Congratulations to the 422 winners of the 2007 NFIB Young Entrepreneur Awards. Sponsored by the NFIB Young Entrepreneur Foundation, the scholarship program, which drew a record number of applicants this year, puts future small-business owners on the path to entrepreneurship. The winners each receive $1,000 in tuition assistance to use at the university, college, community college or vocational/technical institution of their choice. Since its debut in 2003, the award program has grown each year thanks to support from NFIB members and national corporate sponsors such as Visa USA, Wells Fargo and Salesgenie.com.
Receiving a $10,000 award, Henry Schwartz of Menomonie, Wis., is this year's NFIB/Visa USA Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Four national winners each get $5,000 awards. Keep reading to learn more about Schwartz and YEF's other national winners. Turn to your state MyVoice on page 25E to view a list of winners from your area. For a complete list of winners across the country and to learn more about the awards, go to www.NFIB.com/yef.
NFIB/Visa USAYoung Entrepreneur of the Year
Henry Schwartz
Menomonie, Wis.
Nominated by NFIB member Tonya Lehman
When Henry Schwartz walked into a skateboarding shop in Menomonie, Wis., three years ago looking for a job, he never intended to walk out as a small-business owner. His plans changed once he discovered the owner was selling the store.
"I'd been watching him run the place," Schwartz says, "and I thought, 'I should give it a shot.'"
The owner had hoped to hand over the shop to a local skateboarding enthusiast, but was going to sell to a buyer outside the area until the teen expressed his interest.
With his mom's help, Schwartz got a loan to buy the Board to Death Skate Shop, posted flyers announcing a new-ownership sale and obtained an interest-free credit card to purchase inventory.
Though he started small with basics like boards, wheels, trucks, belts, helmets, shoes and energy drinks, Schwartz has gradually expanded his offerings to include pants, headphones, backpacks and training videos. Since relocating to a bigger building near a local college, he's added snowboards, Frisbee golf and more brands of shoes and skateboards.
"I try to steer away from the mainstream and buy boards from Wisconsin companies," says Schwartz, who has joined the local chamber of commerce and connects with customers via MySpace and Facebook.
Since taking over, the teen has doubled the revenues for the shop to $50,000--all while participating in band, tennis and hockey at school. While the money is nice, improving the image of skateboarders is his top priority.
To promote the sport, Schwartz sponsors competitions at Menomonie's skate park as well as free clinics for kids. "A lot of people associate skateboarding with rough kids who are into drinking and drugs," he says. "The reality is, there are tons of smart, clean-cut kids who see it as a positive outlet." Schwartz also has donated money to construct another skate park in nearby Neillsville.
For Schwartz, who plans to sell his store when he leaves for the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater this month, the biggest payoff has been sharing his passion with customers. "I love helping kids who are just getting into skateboarding pick out the board and the shoes that work best for them and teaching them basic tricks," he says.
Meet the Finalists
Young Entrepreneur of the Year nominees from coast to coast share the stories behind their start-ups.
Carl Harper
Daphne, Ala.
Nominated by NFIB member Dianne Welch
As kids, Carl Harper and his big brother Abe pretended to run a business together; once they got older, they became real business partners. With an interest in electronics and help from family and friends, the brothers started the Mobile, Ala.-based Harper Technologies, which builds, repairs and customizes computers, installs security cameras and designs Web sites. Since opening in 2003, they've expanded their locations to Tallahassee and Pensacola, Fla. Owning a business since he was 13 has taught Harper lessons "that you can't pick up from a book," he says, including how to deal with customers, solve problems, stay motivated and set priorities. This fall, he'll hone his business and computer science skills at the University of Alabama--and open yet another branch of his business. "I can't imagine working for someone else," he says. "This is a job I want to keep for the rest of my life."
Trevor Shephard
Boise, Idaho
Nominated by NFIB member Bill Benkula
Trevor Shephard has always had a knack for making money. When his dad wouldn't buy fireworks for him in grade school, he earned the cash himself by picking cherries from a backyard tree and selling them in front of his Boise, Idaho, home. "I learned then there were creative ways to make money," Shephard says. That lesson stuck with him later on when, while writing a fictional business plan for a marketing club competition, he happened upon a shaved ice business for sale. Not only did he place first in the state and national competition, he bought the enterprise (thanks to a loan from Dad). Now in its second year, the Super Shavers Sno Shack grosses $12,000 and has shown him the value of commitment. "My friends are always inviting me to go kayaking, but when you own a seasonal business, you only make money when you're open," he says. Shephard, who calls this business "just a stepping stone," hopes to discover more ways to turn a profit at Boise State University this fall.
Ian Stuart-Hoff
Mt. Pleasant, Mich.
Nominated by NFIB member James Barnard
When Ian Stuart-Hoff got hooked on his first pair of juggling sticks at age seven, he never dreamed that he would make his own someday. But that's exactly what happened. "I saw people selling them at summer fairs, and I thought that I could do it better," says Stuart-Hoff, who started the Star Stix Juggling Company at 13. Early success selling to family and friends in Mt. Pleasant, Mich., convinced him to take his business on the road to Midwestern fairs. Stuart-Hoff, who orders his materials online, uses silicone instead of rubber to give his sticks a better grip and wraps their fiberglass core in colored electrical tape to give them a glow, capping the ends with fabric cut into slits for greater spinning. He says the most challenging part is "bringing in the pieces and making it work." The most rewarding part? Demonstrating his creation to fairgoers. "I love teaching people how to use them," says Stuart-Hoff, who'll juggle the growing demand for his sticks with engineering and economics studies at the University of Michigan this fall.
Daniel Lage
Coral Gables, Fla.
Nominated by NFIB member Greg Schwartzenberger
The son of Cuban immigrants, Daniel Lage knows how difficult adjusting to a new culture can be. That's why he uses proceeds from his business, Book Express Miami, which sells used textbooks online, to benefit disadvantaged children in the city's Little Havana neighborhood. Lage stumbled upon the idea a few years ago while cleaning out his closet. "My mom wanted me to get rid of my old textbooks, but I thought it was a shame to throw them away," he says. He decided instead to sell them through Amazon.com and other sites and soon found himself filling orders from as far as away as Australia. Wanting to share his wealth with a struggling after-school program where he volunteered, he recruited classmates to collect books through community-wide drives for the school, which was damaged by Hurricane Katrina. When he leaves Miami to pursue medicine and business administration studies at Harvard University this fall, Lage hopes to spread his idea to college campuses nationwide. "I've gained so much more than I could have ever received if I'd done this for my own profit," he says.
