The invention of the Internet combined with the need to be successful and wealthy as quickly as possible has led to the development of the young entrepreneur.
The young entrepreneur is a direct product of their environment, born into the excess of the 1980s, cultivated by children programming that promoted high self-esteem and equipped with the latest technology. Young entrepreneurs are not waiting for anyone’s help in fulfilling the American dream.
Instead, these individuals, who have been cultivated by the stories of success that the media has provided for them, are now taking the reins and writing their own stories.
Throughout CSUN’s campus, you can hear the young Donald Trumps, Oprah Winfreys and Sean “P. Diddy” Combs scheming and brainstorming their ideas with their peers in the various hallways and food courts.
One of the trends that seem to be accompanying the young moguls in training is that of the clothing designer.
This fashion obsessed individuals are inspired by the designer labels that fill their closets. Drawing motivation from other young entrepreneurial-owned labels like BAPE and Supreme, young moguls are designing clothing lines that take very little start up money but immense amount of passion and patience.
These young Bill Gates and Warren Buffets are focusing on business ventures they are intensely familiar with and can easily identify a target audience for. Often the young entrepreneur is one step ahead of the larger commercial companies, as they rely on themselves and their peers as the test group for their pending product.
Music is another forum young business tycoons are attracted to and on which want to capitalize. With the use of blogs and MySpace, the next Clive Davis can upload his music or the music of a musician signed to his independent music label. These blogs and social networks cut out the middleman and they gain access to customers directly and offer valuable and free instant feedback.
Charles Kidd, a junior graphic design major and mini-mogul in the making, is among the upcoming entrepreneurs on campus. Kidd is not only a student; he is also co-founder of Girth Digital, a graphic design company he co-founded with another CSUN student, Byron Collins. Girth Digital is one stop shop for CD cover design, Web site design, fliers and photography.
Kidd’s next business has him diving into the fashion industry, as he launches his street ware label ELLDEVINE, which he draws inspiration from Los Angeles based street ware giant, The Hundreds.
Co-founder and CEO of Brotherhood Entertainment, Anre Anduha, 24, has never been a CSUN student, but nevertheless has had a prescene on campus for the last four years with his Brotherhood Entertainment company.
Like Kidd, Brotherhood Entertainment, a San Fernando Valley-based entertainment company which is comprised of a group of young businessmen, has also garnered success and notoriety at CSUN for their party promoting and fashion shows.
Brotherhood Entertainment is a multi-faceted company that serves as a promotion and marketing company, modeling agency and artist management. The companies hard work can be seen on MTV’s reality show, Rock the Cradle, where Lil’ Al B. Sure, an artist managed by Brotherhood Entertainment is currently competing for a music contract.
Not just concerned with the monetary rewards being a young entrepreneur provides, Anduha and Brotherhood Entertainment have for the past two years hosted Thanksgiving and Christmas charity events.
Kidd and Brotherhood Entertainment are a few examples of the young entrepreneurs making a name for themselves. Equipped with technology and vast knowledge on their various business ventures, young entrepreneurs are poised to succeed on campus and elsewhere.
