The best-known young entrepreneurs we can name were Mark Zuckerburg of Facebook and Microsoft’s Bill Gates, who became self-made billionaires at ages 23 and 21, respectively. However, this is a trend that is becoming more and more common.

It’s a prevalent fallacy (and perhaps an excuse for some) that successful entrepreneurship takes years of hard work, long hours, and vast experience to develop. However, an increasing number of aspiring young entrepreneurs are demonstrating that neither is necessary in order to launch a lucrative endeavour. Before they have even graduated high school, this burgeoning group of aspiring young entrepreneurs starts firms from their bedrooms. Consider Zoe Sugg, the founder of Summly, who at the age of 17 sold her news app to Yahoo for a cool $30 million. 

The British beauty blogger, who started her own YouTube channel in 2009 and now reportedly makes $100,000 per month, and after Australian entrepreneur, Melanie Perkin’s Journey From A Design Teacher To An Entrepreneur, a wave of the so-called “startup generation” has emerged, which has inspired many Australian small businesses. Rather than partaking in the usual teen activities, these young entrepreneurs are well on their way to earning their first million, demonstrating that there is no better time than the present to realize your entrepreneurial aspirations. 

Being a free-thinking entrepreneur has many fantastic benefits, one of which is the ability to discover inspiration anywhere. Inspiration for a brilliant idea might strike anywhere and at any time, but it only succeeds if you’re paying attention and setting yourself up for success.

Similarly, 12-year-old “Bella Tipping” found out that hotels aren’t really kid-focused and primarily care about their adult guests when on a family vacation in the USA.

“Mum was filling out a TripAdvisor review and she liked a hotel where we had stayed and gave it a great review, but I really didn’t like it at all as it was so adult-focused,” she says.

Bella Tipping’s stay at certain hotels gave her the impression that most hotels didn’t take children into account while providing meals and housing. Bella Tipping launched Kidzcationz.com in 2015 with the help of her mother and web developers after coming to the conclusion that most kids probably go through this whilst on vacation.

Bella’s Kidzcationz

It’s kind of like a kid-friendly TripAdvisor and Expedia combined. Kidzcationz is a vacation review website geared for children, allowing them to assess hotels, restaurants, and attractions based on how well they serve their needs, not their parents. Bella dreams of the day when, no matter who is paying for the vacation, all hotels will treat children’s visitors the same as adults.

Children can visit Kidzcationz, select a location, and evaluate or rate it in addition to reading reviews about the location made by other children. Kidzcationz was designed by Bella Tipping with kids in mind; to ensure the safety of her young users online, the website allows them to browse using avatars that don’t require any personal information or images.

How It Started

In order to turn her entrepreneurial vision into a small business in Australia, Bella needed to locate a financier who would be open to seeing the possibilities in her business plan. Her parents agreed to invest $80,000 Australian dollars after she produced formal business plans that described the functioning of the website, who would be engaged, and an exit strategy in the event that her venture failed. Even though it wasn’t cheap to set Kidzcationz up, Bella wasn’t just given the money. She had to put in a lot of effort to win over her investors with her passion and commitment.

As Bella Tipping approaches her 19th birthday, Bella hopes that her website will inform both parents and children so that everyone can enjoy their holiday. Only the USA, New Zealand, and Australia are currently listed as destinations on the Kidzcationz website. Bella is now developing the website and is highly ambitious and aiming to make the site international. Bella Tipping aspires to improve family trips globally.

Bella Tipping has been named one of Fortune’s 18 Under 18. a collection of what the magazine termed the “most inventive and ambitious teens under the age of 18”

Bella’s Recent Interview

Describe Kidzcationz in your own words

Kidzcationz is a travel review website for kids. It’s a place where kids can share stories about their holidays and review hotels, restaurants, and attractions they have visited.

What encouraged you to start your own business?

I never considered myself an entrepreneur. In fact, at 11 years of age, I didn’t even know what an entrepreneur was. I just had an idea that I wanted to develop and did my best to make it happen.  It wasn’t until the site was launched that I heard the word “entrepreneur” for the first time.  I just considered myself a kid who wanted to help other kids and learn about business along the way.

How did you seek help starting and growing your business?

My parents have supported me every step of the way. They funded Kidzcationz to begin with and help me out with everything I need. They happily travel with me for meetings and are constantly supportive of everything I do.

What advice do you have for aspiring young entrepreneurs?

My motto in life is “if you can think it, you can do it”. If you have an idea and really put your mind to it, you can achieve something from it. Nothing is impossible, and it’s important to try to achieve your goals. But you have to be prepared to work hard and learn to take criticism and not let that criticism be the reason for not making things happen.

Which aspect of starting a business has been the best?

I think starting a business at such a young age helped me to realise that not everything happens when you want it and not everyone is going to like your idea, but if you believe in yourself, none of that matters. I can hear the word “no” and realise it is not the end of an idea but an opportunity to go back to the drawing board and develop my idea further.

What abilities have you gained since starting your own business?

A thick skin would be one skill but I have also learned how to listen and think before I jump into a new idea. I’ve learnt how to negotiate and how to market a product, I understand branding and consumer trends and I can confidently communicate with all people on all levels.

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