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How This Entrepreneur Turned $800 Into $12 Million
$12 MILLION COMPANY How One Entrepreneur Turned $800 Into a
level and create a web-based service, they didn’t hop on board. But like most successful businesspeople, Harris knew he had a good idea and stuck with it. With $800 in his bank account, Harris struck out on his own, going full weeks without leaving his apartment while he developed the business. Teaching himself web design and learning on the go, he was able to turn his idea into a multimillion-dollar company — all without taking out any loans. What can other entrepreneurs and even successful businesses learn from Amir Harris’ story? First of all, when obstacles appear, look at them as opportunities in disguise. You’ve discovered a consumer need that other businesses are QRWIXOoOOLQJVRIXOoOOLW6HFRQGO\EHOLHYHLQ\RXULGHDV3HRSOHZLOOWU\WR tell you they aren’t going to work, but if you know you have something worthwhile, follow through with it. Finally, don’t reinvent the wheel. Instead of buying buses, Harris partnered with existing bus companies and put their underutilized buses to use. He took an existing service and made it better. $WWKHHQGRIWKHGD\LI\RXIXOoOODPDUNHWQHHGDQGGRLWEHWWHUWKDQDQ\RQH else, you’re going to have the most popular lemonade stand on the block. Harris says, “We want to capture the market by providing better service.” Looks like it’s working.
When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade, or so the saying goes. That’s exactly what Amir Harris did to turn a potential roadblock into a $12 million enterprise. Harris is the man behind Shofur, the bus chartering service currently favored by the likes of Facebook and the
NFL. But the business didn’t start out with those clients. It was a humble family endeavor founded by his uncle. Then the Democratic National Convention came to town, and the small business had nowhere near enough buses to PHHWWKHWUDQVSRUWDWLRQQHHGVRIWKHLQpX[RIYLVLWRUV+RZHYHU+DUULVVDZD silver lining. Instead of turning down what he knew would be a huge money- making opportunity, he called neighboring towns and even states and asked to borrow their buses. Thanks to Harris’ determination, his family’s company was able to make thousands of dollars off the event.
Like many entrepreneurs, Harris faced a lot of early pushback from friends and family. When he told them he wanted to take the company to the next
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