PayPal Stories Archive

 

Here at PayPal, we’re paying attention to the millennial generation’s impact on global commerce. From their online and cross-border buying habits to the way they approach credit and financing, one thing is certainly clear: this aspirational, digitally native generation – the largest in history, and spending $200 billion annually starting in 2017 – sees the world very differently than their parents. And this is forcing businesses large and small to adapt to their pace and perspective.

 

The millennial economy is defined not just by how this generation spends money, but also how they’re approaching the world of business. By 2025, millennials will have grown to encompass 44 percent of the workforce, but they’re sidestepping the conventional career paths of their parents: a recent study from Deloitte found that 70 percent of millennials would reject traditional business to work independently. In a separate study, 1 in 5 said they want to quit their current jobs and start their own projects.

 

Would you rather be making the rules than following them? Raising funds instead of raising your hand?  You might be a budding entrepreneur – even if you don’t have an idea for a company (yet!).

 

Not sure where to start? No problem – we spoke with successful millennial entrepreneurs to learn how they found their niche in the global economy.

 

If you’re a rebel without a cause, the first step on your path might begin with an actual journey -- like the one Jeff Malkoon took. “I got the idea [for my company] at 24-years-old while living in Montevideo, Uruguay. I was backpacking and spent two months working with an NGO called A Roof for My Country [like Habitat for Humanity’]. I noticed that, though peanuts are cultivated there, parents fed their children dulce de leche on everything. It’s delicious but has no nutritional value. The people of Uruguay were not familiar with nut butters. So, I decided to do something about it. You can ask my friend, Steve - I started grinding nuts right there in Uruguay!” Today, at the age of 29, Jeff operates PB Americano, a successful nut butter company out of Arizona that donates its proceeds back to A Roof for My Country and similar ventures.

 

For Jeff, a chance encounter gave him a business and a purpose. “People always ask me if I wanted to be a chef growing up. No! Most people don’t know what they want to be, and that’s the gamble of entrepreneurship. You have to be open to possibilities.”

 

You don’t have to leave the house to find a great idea, though. “The Smart Baker was an accidental business,” says founder Daniel Rensing, 30. “It fell into our laps.” Daniel, a graphic designer, and his wife Stephanie conjured up a great idea in their very own kitchen. “We would host parties and while cooking, Stephanie would get eggs and flour all over the laptop and always needed a conversion table. I design graphics and signs so it was natural for me to take a blank apron and add a conversion to the bottom.” From there they sold it online internationally.

 

“That same year, Food Network Magazine listed the apron as one of the ‘Top Ten Gifts in the Kitchen.’ That’s when we knew to take it seriously.” Daniel and Stephanie now sell globally to targeted markets, and have some advice, “Don’t force a product, but find a niche you can solve. Make it useful and from there you can start a growth path.”

 

Jeff Becker, 27, and Helmut Wyzisk III, 27, knew they had a winning idea with Earhoox, a company that makes silicone covers for earbuds. “We always wanted to start a business together. As college friends, we tossed around ideas all the time. When Earhoox came up, we both identified with the problem, and it was one of the first ideas that felt incredibly tangible and achievable. We found a designer and manufacturer and just like that, Earhoox was born.”

 

For Jeff and Helmut the key to success has been finding the right support. “Realize what you can learn and what you will spin your wheels trying to learn. Web development, as an example—I can do it, but my web designer can do it infinitely better. Surround yourself with amazing people—things will get done faster and your ROI will hit much more quickly.” Today Jeff and Helmut have shipped over 100,000 earbuds to more than 84 countries and their business continues to grow.

 

Ask three different entrepreneurs what success looks like and you’ll get three different answers.

 

“Success to me isn’t a finite thing, it’s in the eye of the beholder,” says Daniel of The Smart Baker.

 

Success to Jeff at PB Americano, is perception from the community: “What people remember most is what you give, not what you take. If I am successful, then maybe that means that I have given something of value. You are only successful in proportion to what you give,” he says.

 

For the Earhoox team, success “all comes back to relationships: good talent, good friends, strong partners, and most importantly—cool customers.”

 

“Party harder,” jests Jeff at PB Americano. “My advice for others is to find something you enjoy and find inspiring. You don’t necessarily need a degree. Look around, find what is interesting—my favorite quote is from Howard Thurman, ‘Don’t ask what the world needs, ask what makes you come alive and go do that, because the world needs people who have come alive.’”

 

“There is always somewhere to start,” says Daniel at The Smart Baker, “It doesn’t have to be planned as long as you are willing to put yourself out there. Also, make sure you have some kind of support system in place that you can bounce ideas off of. It is very important to talk to people smarter than yourself. Put yourself out there—you are not the smartest person in the room.”

 

“Do it sooner—there is a learning curve,” says Jeff of Earhoox. “Jump in and do something—when you do, you will notice you can make an impact on the world, even if it’s tiny, and you’ll inspire yourself to keep going. If all else fails, you will have learned incredible amounts along the way.”

 

So, ready to take the leap and follow the success of your millennial peers? What business will you start?