Hey guys,
I'm in high school right now and had a bit of an FTE, I seriously can't possibly imagine myself taking the traditional route of university and then a 9-5 job.
I've had various side hustles and built up about a 2-3k/month income, which I think is okay but I'm not satisfied. I've done sneaker reselling, web design and crypto trading to make this money. However, my issue is that these aren't technically business models and instead just side hustles (they don't follow the CENTS principles as well).
I want to start taking action immediately, but I'm not sure what route to go down.
A few things to keep in mind:
- I only have like 7k capital to invest in this
- I'm 16 so some ideas are definitely limited as some platforms don't allow under 18 (shopify for example)
Here are my ideas:
1. Ecom agency
Basically, since I already have experience with web design I was thinking of pairing this with SEO, advertising etc. to form an ecommerce agency. I would outsource the work that I couldn't do myself (eventually all of it) and just focus on gettng clients, which I've found I'm not too bad at (already managed to get 7 clients for web design, not using fivver, upwork etc. btw).
Pros:
- Already have experience with a smaller version of this I guess
- Doesn't really require much money at all to start
- Pretty scalable
- Always big demand for ecommerce work with the amount of ecom businesses at the moment
Cons:
- Very saturated - tons of people trying to start SMMA because of people like Iman Gadzhi
- Lots of ecom businesses have had bad experiences with scammy agencies giving all agencies a bad rep
- Lowish barrier to entry - I mean anyone can really start one especially if they're outsourcing
2. Selling a Course
Most likely for web design, but potentially also sneaker reselling. It seems ideal since once I put all my effort into making the course then I only have to focus on advertising aspect. This also seems very saturated and has a fairly low barrier to entry so may not be the most ideal, just putting it here anyway.
3. A Tutor finder website/app
This one is a bit more specific, but essentially since I'm in high school I've always struggled to find a tutor in my region as most of the time the platforms are either scams, overpriced, or some kind of agency/company instead of an actual tutor. I was thinking of creating a platform where, in my region, tutors can post their profiles and students are able to look through and find a tutor which suits their needs. However, every transaction or payment will go through my platform, to keep both parties safe, incurring a small fee that I receive.
Pros:
- Lots of work to set up but eventually should almost run itself
- Solves a real problem which I've struggled with myself - there's actually a gap in the market
Cons
- Crazy expensive and/or time consuming to setup (developing this kind of website/app)
- Would take quite a while to start gaining traction and would require a lot of advertising/SEO work
- A couple other websites out there doing something similar (but not very well)
4. Shopify Dropshipping (but with sneakers)
Same premise as normal dropshipping except with hyped sneakers. I'll list pairs that I can source for cheaper and take the profit between. I'm very good at making shopify websites, but not so much at advertising, so that would have to be something to learn.
Pros:
- already have experience with shopify
- good margins (at least $100 profit/pair)
Cons:
- very saturated and competitive, loads of stores either doing the same or without the dropshipping element
- really low barrier to entry (just have to know how to make a shopify website)
- Doesn't follow CENTS
- would have to run store under parents name since I'm under 18
Those are the 4 ideas I've thought of so far, personally leaning towards idea 1. Would appreciate some feedback on these, so I can just pick an idea and start taking action. I've failed with other ideas in the past so I'm sure whatever I pick it'll be a good learning lesson.
Thanks so much
I'm in high school right now and had a bit of an FTE, I seriously can't possibly imagine myself taking the traditional route of university and then a 9-5 job.
I've had various side hustles and built up about a 2-3k/month income, which I think is okay but I'm not satisfied. I've done sneaker reselling, web design and crypto trading to make this money. However, my issue is that these aren't technically business models and instead just side hustles (they don't follow the CENTS principles as well).
I want to start taking action immediately, but I'm not sure what route to go down.
A few things to keep in mind:
- I only have like 7k capital to invest in this
- I'm 16 so some ideas are definitely limited as some platforms don't allow under 18 (shopify for example)
Here are my ideas:
1. Ecom agency
Basically, since I already have experience with web design I was thinking of pairing this with SEO, advertising etc. to form an ecommerce agency. I would outsource the work that I couldn't do myself (eventually all of it) and just focus on gettng clients, which I've found I'm not too bad at (already managed to get 7 clients for web design, not using fivver, upwork etc. btw).
Pros:
- Already have experience with a smaller version of this I guess
- Doesn't really require much money at all to start
- Pretty scalable
- Always big demand for ecommerce work with the amount of ecom businesses at the moment
Cons:
- Very saturated - tons of people trying to start SMMA because of people like Iman Gadzhi
- Lots of ecom businesses have had bad experiences with scammy agencies giving all agencies a bad rep
- Lowish barrier to entry - I mean anyone can really start one especially if they're outsourcing
2. Selling a Course
Most likely for web design, but potentially also sneaker reselling. It seems ideal since once I put all my effort into making the course then I only have to focus on advertising aspect. This also seems very saturated and has a fairly low barrier to entry so may not be the most ideal, just putting it here anyway.
3. A Tutor finder website/app
This one is a bit more specific, but essentially since I'm in high school I've always struggled to find a tutor in my region as most of the time the platforms are either scams, overpriced, or some kind of agency/company instead of an actual tutor. I was thinking of creating a platform where, in my region, tutors can post their profiles and students are able to look through and find a tutor which suits their needs. However, every transaction or payment will go through my platform, to keep both parties safe, incurring a small fee that I receive.
Pros:
- Lots of work to set up but eventually should almost run itself
- Solves a real problem which I've struggled with myself - there's actually a gap in the market
Cons
- Crazy expensive and/or time consuming to setup (developing this kind of website/app)
- Would take quite a while to start gaining traction and would require a lot of advertising/SEO work
- A couple other websites out there doing something similar (but not very well)
4. Shopify Dropshipping (but with sneakers)
Same premise as normal dropshipping except with hyped sneakers. I'll list pairs that I can source for cheaper and take the profit between. I'm very good at making shopify websites, but not so much at advertising, so that would have to be something to learn.
Pros:
- already have experience with shopify
- good margins (at least $100 profit/pair)
Cons:
- very saturated and competitive, loads of stores either doing the same or without the dropshipping element
- really low barrier to entry (just have to know how to make a shopify website)
- Doesn't follow CENTS
- would have to run store under parents name since I'm under 18
Those are the 4 ideas I've thought of so far, personally leaning towards idea 1. Would appreciate some feedback on these, so I can just pick an idea and start taking action. I've failed with other ideas in the past so I'm sure whatever I pick it'll be a good learning lesson.
Thanks so much
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