Almost every teenager probably idled on a Google tab and searched “How to make money fast as a teen” – likely due to a greater demand for independence. Despite such a strong desire, this independence is generally limited due to one major problem: money. However, it is observed that teenagers nowadays have started making their mark in the vast realm of digital commerce and business. Conducting business online is no longer a trend but rather a movement. Today’s teens have access to tools and resources previously available only to large businesses and professionals. Platforms like Shopify, Etsy, and social media channels have revolutionized this field of business. Now, teenagers can easily set up and grow their business ideas. Well, how are these same teenagers, not only, redefining online business but doing so while making huge profits well before they even receive their driving licenses?
What is E-Commerce?
E-commerce is defined by which products or services are bought and sold over the Internet. It involves digital marketing knowledge, creativity, and a way of reaching your audience. Most e-commerce websites will have original features to build and design the site and, at the same time allow the person doing business to set their shipping rates to ideally match their marketing strategy. Besides, e-commerce allows various youths to ship products directly to consumers. For instance, one can do so with Shopify, which you can tweak, to deliver to the customer right from the supplier. What makes E-commerce especially unique is the wide range of products that can be sold and marketed to make a profit. Many products that have shown significant success in the digital business world are Device Accessories, Technology, and everyday-use products. What makes it increasingly popular is not just the sheer ease of getting started, but the number of options one has to set up and run their digital store. Stores can be set up online very easily with platforms that include Etsy, Wix, and Shopify because they facilitate the quick building and efficient management of orders.
How has E-Commerce Grown?
E-commerce had solid growth and adoption rates driven primarily during the COVID-19 pandemic, which left most physical stores closed to customers due to the virus. The world of e-commerce expanded further as store owners sought digital alternatives to sell products, which some argue ended up being more convenient than traditional stores. According to Forbes, each year fewer and fewer people are shopping in physical stores, Forbes estimates 20.1% of ALL retail purchases are expected to take place online. So along with the ever-growing number of people who prefer to shop online, store owners also find it easier to sell goods online as well. An additional key factor in the sudden popularity of e-commerce is its ease, facilitated by powerful tools presented through AI and the Internet. With these resources, young entrepreneurs are not only taking part in online business but reinventing it. They are applying creative marketing strategies and incorporating digital tools at an incredible speed and opening the path to what will be a future in digital commerce.
Online Businesses among Teens
While many more examples of e-commerce exist, as mentioned earlier, teens have seen much success with dropshipping. Dropshipping is a retail fulfillment method where a store doesn’t keep the products it sells in stock, instead purchasing the item from a third party and having it shipped directly to the customer. Teens have particularly seen much success with dropshipping clothing and apparel, which is one of the strongest and most prosperous product segments for this business model. Another simple yet successful dropshipping niche is the selling of basic products. It can include small fidget toys or something that is needed for school or working life, depending on one’s target market. Such products are bought in bulk from suppliers such as Alibaba and then sold at a higher price, known as a markup. Reselling is another striking part of e-commerce. It is the act of buying a luxury brand’s products and reselling them at a higher price. Reselling is primarily common with products such as rare sneakers or branded clothing. Lastly, courses or services make up a huge part of e-commerce as well. Many young entrepreneurs have skills that they specialize in and they display them through their online businesses. They tend to teach others through the use of video guides or courses, for which they sell access to for a small fee. These diverse segments showcase the multitude of opportunities in e-commerce, which are enough for young entrepreneurs to be successful and innovative in the digital marketplace.
Steps to Success
One of the major segments mentioned earlier was clothing apparel. One incredible example of a young entrepreneur who sought great success through this is Trey Brown—a young entrepreneur who proved this at the age of fifteen, as he appeared with his mom on Shark Tank. On Shark Tank, Trey, along with his mother, pitched his business idea of a clothing brand named “Spergo”. Not only did he secure the deal on Shark Tank, but now has scaled the company to a multi-million dollar empire. But all this started years back, as Trey had already discovered his passion for clothing and apparel at twelve years old. His passion sparked when he first sold a few shirts in his neighborhood to encourage his peers to stay out of trouble. When he started in the e-commerce industry, he would test out new designs and order more shirts while constantly seeking feedback from peers. By rinsing and repeating this process while reaching out and networking with other entrepreneurs, Brown grew his digital empire. He diversified his inventory and now sells a wide variety of clothing. He now is in charge of a multimillion-dollar empire that he built from the ground up (https://spergo.com/pages/about-us).
The Future
Teen entrepreneurs are changing the scope of e-commerce, pioneering innovative ways to start and scale businesses with new, advanced digital tools and platforms like Shopify and Etsy. And they’re doing it through dropshipping, reselling, and digital courses, with many young entrepreneurs bringing in vast profits well before they even receive their driver’s licenses. Here we can see how determination, joined with digital opportunities, worked out for Armaan Hussain. More teens will further develop e-commerce and drive innovation to prove to all that age should not be a deterrent to success, and that the digital marketplace is a fertile ground for youthful ingenuity and ambition.
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