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Meet Camilla Ainsworth, The Apprentice 2018 Finalist Camilla Ainsworth is the 22 year old from Lancashire that was 1 of 16 competing for the opportunity to become Lord Sugar’s Apprentice in 2018's series of The Apprentice. Who is Camilla Ainsworth? Camilla Ainsworth came to the British public's attention in 2018 after appearing on The Apprentice and battling her way through to the finals, coming 2nd place - with Sian Gabbidon taking the crown and most importantly, Lord Sugar's investment. However, speaking on Mike Winnet's podcast, Camilla admitted that she's glad she didn't win as the entrepreneur had spent months of pro-active work and had independently invested into Mylk Plus, so by the time the finals came around, Camilla had set up strong foundations. "I didn't actually want his investment at that stage - I didn't need it. When I didn't win, I was quite happy about it as you get full control" As well as having the business foundations set and the exposure of the show, the Mylk Plus founder also suggested that despite his success and business acumen, having Lord Sugar on board just wouldn't have been the right fit for her as not only did he not get Camilla's cheeky branding, but it would also slow down the reactiveness of the business. "He didn't really get the brand. When you're having to explain what sass is to a 73 year old, it's just not going to work - but ultimate respect to him." It's important to know that in business, not every opportunity is the right fit. But what was the origin story of Mylk Plus? Whilst working on a dairy farm in Australia, Camilla discovered her intolerance to dairy after coming up in rashes. This immediately sparked her entrepreneurial brain as the young farmer realised she had just spotted a gap in the market as she knew she could provide a new dairy-free drink that would stand out from the competition. So it wasn't long before Camilla took to the kitchen to create a low-sugar drink made from nut juice - yes, really. Using nuts such as almonds and cashews, the young entrepreneur had managed to create what we now know today as Mylk Plus. To add her own individual flare to the product, the Northern entrepreneur used a bright pink branding a cheeky graphics to truly make the brand distinct from the boring competition. Interview with Camilla Ainsworth If Only They Knew spoke to Camilla to get her advice for other young entrepreneurs. "My best advice for those getting involved in business is to take calculated risks, take advice and read books to inspire you. I also think that you need to make sacrifices in order to make progress, you need to be passionate about the business you’re starting and therefore you need to eat, sleep and breathe it". "Good things happen to those who hustle, not to those who wait! Don’t wait around expecting success to happen, you have to MAKE it happen” In 5 years time, Camilla sees herself “fuelling the the dairy free juggernaut further and being the CEO of the leading dairy free company in the UK“ “I will be in supermarkets nationwide and will hopefully have a range of dairy free gourmet desserts/ nut based facial scrubs! I would also love to become an angel investor in young people’s companies who’s ideas resonate with me and need capital to get off the ground! I love to support local businesses and young people in business”

Meet Maya Wager, the 11-year-old entrepreneur and owner of Maya Style, a company that sells pom pom-related accessories. Most entrepreneurs have a similar background of selling a few sweets in the playground or being very creative in class, but Maya Wager takes it to the next level as she is running a successful business at age 11! Maya Style is a brand that sells pom pom-related accessories up and down the country, with Maya being both the face of the brand as well as the brains behind it all. Being a "kidpreneur" (literally a kid that's an entrepreneur), Maya has begun to attract a lot of attention from those in the business world and will most definitely be the next big star to look out for. More recently, the (very) young entrepreneur walked the runway for London Kids Fashion Week 2020 and that confidence has clearly shaped her strong mindset as Maya once said "don't be at the back of the crowd, be the one the crowd's watching". "My ultimate aim is to inspire people all across the world. I want to show people that they can. achieve anything they put their minds to - I am living proof!" Speaking to If Only They Knew (the hub for young business minds), Maya reveals her future plans and advice for other young entrepreneurs. "In terms of future plans I am due to write a book and intend to start a Youtube channel about motivational speaking and how to achieve your dreams. I may do live streams as well! WATCH THIS SPACE!" "I would say that you should keep going even when you feel like there is no way you can reach your goals. The reason most entrepreneurs fail is because they don't believe in themselves. If business owners believe in their company's and most importantly themselves, then they can achieve anything with hard work and dedication. It's also essential that you have a well thought out marketing strategy and know your target audience fully. You also need to have a good understanding of the financials at all times (money coming in and money going out)". To follow Maya's journey, visit the links below: Website: https://mayawagerofficial.wixsite.com/info Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mayastyle_official/

The top 10 young entrepreneurs to watch in 2020 With 2020 well and truly underway, here (in no particular order) are the top 10 young entrepreneurs that you should be keeping your eye on this year. 1. Carrie Rose Hailing from the North of England, Carrie Rose is the owner of 'Rise at Seven', a specialist SEO and Digital PR agency who have worked with the likes of 'Missguided', 'Matalan', 'Halfords' and many others! As well as Carrie's business growing, the entrepreneur's personal brand is soaring, as people love her charisma and bubbliness. 2. Chris Jelev If you've been following 'If Only They Knew' for a while now, you would have seen Chris Jelev (CJ) multiple times across our page. From starting 'CJ Events' to then going on to create 'The Millennials Club' (a group dedicated to running events for young entrepreneurs), Chris has played a crucial part in helping the young entrepreneur scene - hence why he has such a solid 3. Ted Lawlor As the owner of 'If Only They Knew', Ted Lawlor has turned a personal project into a media company that produces content (from Podcasts to articles) with the aim of adding value to the lives of young business minds across the world. Since it's creation in late 2017, the values of the page have remained the same, but the content and branding has excelled rapidly, now in 2020, the company is looking as professional as ever and ready to take the scene by storm. 4. Joe Taylor/Elliott Rayne If you're wondering why 2 people take up this spot, it's because Joe Taylor and Elliott Rayne are the duo behind EJ Events, a premium event planning company that craft bespoke events for brands and individuals. The pair both have a very strong presence on social media, producing constant content and their company has worked with many great clients in the past few months. 5. Omari McQueen Omari McQueen is the young entrepreneur old who creates videos showing his audience how to cook and teaching them about the foods he is using, whilst also being the owner of Dipalicious - a company that sells great sauces. His radiant personality has led to him not only being the UK’s youngest award winning vegan chef, but also appearing in the media multiple times - from Blue Peter to many newspapers. 6. Grace Beverley Despite Grace Beverley’s enormous social media following (1m followers on Instagram alone), the fitness inspiration runs a gym-wear brand called ‘Tala’ (‘We Are Tala’) which is successful but has plenty of room for a lot more growth! From University graduate to entrepreneur, Grace clearly has the business mind that will more than likely see her evolve even more throughout 2020. 7. Jordan Adelekan Attracting the attention of huge names such at Tulisa, Maya Jama and more, Jordan Adelekan and his clothing brand 'Inspire Dynasty' have deservedly and successfully grown. More recently, Jordan has featured on Medium, which is a good sign that 2020 will be his year. 8. Lucia Aide The lovely Lucia Aide is the founder of 'Simplest Talks', a group that hosts great Podcasts with the aim of inspiring and empowering the audience. The Podcasts are on a roll at the moment, with the episodes (which are filmed) gaining real traction, 2020 looks great for Lucia. 9. Riccardo Iannucci-Dawson As well as being named UK BNB Young Entrepreneur of the year, Riccardo Iannuci-Dawson has been running Yourkeys, a company that he founded in 2017 to help make buying a property as easy an "one-click ordering on Amazon". Yourkeys has seen great success so far, recently reaching a milestone when they recently completed the UK's first fully digitised property purchase, therefore, 2020 will clearly be a great year for Riccardo and his team. 10. Omari Simpson Omari Simpson, AKA Mr ETM, is the owner of 'ETM Apparel', which is based on his current project 'Earn The Muscle' which is a movement that is on the edge of being brought into the world and will have a strong focus on gym and fitness - as Omari is a gym fanatic! There it is, the young entrepreneurs that you should be following this year, each one providing a different form of value in some way. To find out more stories from more young entrepreneurs, follow If Only They Knew - the hub for young business minds: Podcast Instagram Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Meet Suhit Amin, the 19-year-old entrepreneur and founder of Saulderson Media. Suhit Amin is the 19-year-old founder of Saulderson Media, a Premium Talent Management and Influencer Marketing Agency based in Scotland. But Suhit isn't your typical entrepreneur... At 16, a teenage Suhit was diagnosed with Stage 2A Hodgkin Lymphoma, a cancer that attacks the lymph nodes, but despite this, he battled through chemotherapy and deservedly achieved 6 A's in his Scottish Highers whilst remaining Deputy Head Boy at Hutcheson's Grammer School in Glasgow. But that wasn't enough for this inspiring young man, as his illness motivated him to keep evolving and pursue his entrepreneurial dreams. So after spending some time working in influencer marketing at the world's biggest eSports company (ESL), he decided to risk it all to set up Saulderson Media in July 2018. "If I wasn’t alive in a years’ time, I would want to go out doing something big and what I love" The Saulderson team are exclusively managing a roster of high profile social influencers who rack up millions of impressions monthly! As well as this, they also help brands with creative campaigns to boost their presence, utilising an extensive list of influencers. Suhit's company initially started with a focus in the gaming and esports industries. Since then they have diversified and now span across all different types of influencer marketing verticals. All of which has seen the agency a become a 6 figure business within less than 6 months of starting up. However, the success doesn't end there as Suhit has gone on to win countless awards, from the 'UK's Young Social Media Marketer of the Year Award 2018', to the 'Most Promising New Entrepreneur in East Renfrewshire'. Naturally, this has attracted the attention of many media outlets, resulting in Suhit being featured on BBC Radio as well as having many appearances on the TV as well as in newspapers - such as The Times. Looking forward, the future definitely seems bright for this particular young entrepreneur as if he can battle through cancer, he can battle through any other hardships that come his way. Suhit is definitely one to watch... Speaking to If Only They Knew (the hub for young business minds), Suhit shared the following advice for other young entrepreneurs: "Every single young person has the capability to do amazing things. I truly believe that if you adjust your mindset to believe that you can do anything, you will find a way to do it. One thing I always say is, don’t let an experience, like the one I went through, be the reason you take action in your life or pursue something you want to do or are passionate about. Just do it. Whatever you believe to be holding you back is irrelevant. Go out of your comfort zone and try new things. Follow your dreams and your ambitions - not those of others. And don’t ever let anyone tell you that you cannot do something as if you stay resilient and really work for it, anything is possible." To follow Suhit's journey, visit the links below. Suhit https://www.linkedin.com/in/suhitamin/ https://twitter.com/suhitamin Saulderson Media LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/saulderson Twitter: https://twitter.com/Saulderson Website: https://www.saulderson.com/

Meet Dean Ahmad, Young entrepreneur & Candidate on The Apprentice 2019. Dean is the 21-year-old owner of a sports management agency (Fine Edge Cricket) which he founded at age 15 and is better known for appearing on BBC's The Apprentice 2019! It is therefore no surprise that Dean claims he is the “definition of an entrepreneur” and perhaps his success at such a young age has been down to his confidence & emotional intelligence being “off the charts”. This confidence is supported by his work as he has brokered over $2 million worth of deals in the sporting industry! Dean’s agency offers a unique service to the athlete representation market, offering an all-round service with legal representation, contract negotiation & lifestyle management - that’s big business! Dean’s work within the industry has led to both him & his agency becoming highly respected names within that industry - which is a crazy thing to achieve at such a young age. The young entrepreneur is one of the youngest candidates to appear on The Apprentice, so it was only right that we spoke to him to find out what advice he’d give to other young entrepreneurs. If Only They Knew: “Despite still being really young, is there one piece of advice that you wish you knew or wish that other people knew at an earlier stage in life?” Dean: “I think one of the key fundamentals to life is definitely self-awareness. Recognising what makes you happy, your strengths and who you are and then doubling down on them. Not trying to necessarily follow society main streams or what you’ve been told to do” IOTK: “At age 20, you have your life ahead of you, where do you see yourself in 5 years time?” Dean: “Hopefully continuing growth and having a successful talent management firm dominating various sports/entertainment industries” The young entrepreneur also stresses his values when it comes to money: “I pride my self on how I do business. I’ve always believed in ‘how you earn your money’ > ‘how much money you earn’ & if you do something you genuinely have a passion for, you are far more likely to be successful at it.” To find out more about Dean's story, advice for young entrepreneurs and how he found The Apprentice experience, watch the podcast below: Dean Ahmad: Instagram Twitter LinkedIn If Only They Knew: Instagram Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

If Only They Knew Harry Hugo, the co-founder of Goat Harry Hugo co-founded Goat (a global social media and influencer marketing agency) in 2015 and has gone from strength to strength ever since, but what is his story? At age 16, a young Harry Hugo, like many other teens, felt that the academic life just wasn't for him as he wanted a "more direct and creative path to success". Therefore, he thought he'd get involved in the media industry, but was very quickly rejected by his local newspaper for being too young. However, this rejection didn't stop Harry as he then went on to work on his own project called Fresh Press, a football publishing group that started off as a website for Liverpool fans and then became very successful. After a couple of years, Fresh Press grew to over 60 websites and had a bigger digital writing team than the Daily Mail and this was all when Harry was just 18! After doing so well with Fresh Press, Harry then decided to test himself by joining the team at Sportslobster (a sports app startup) as their Social Media Manager after completing his A-Levels, it is here that he met his future co-founders of Goat, Arron Shepherd and Nick Cooke. After 3 years at the startup, the trio then started Goat in 2015, little did they know that were creating something HUGE! The team at Goat have seen great success, running great influencer campaigns for huge companies such as Lidl, British Airways, New Look and Chelsea FC. Not only has Goat worked with some greats names, but they have also made a great name for themselves through their exciting vlogs which showcase what life is like for the "herd" at Goat. LinkedIn seems to be a solid platform for both Harry and Goat, as the agency has gained over 17,000 followers and was currently listed as #8 on LinkedIn's 'Top Startups 2019' list. 2020 is set to be a great year for Harry and his team and we're sure they'll do even more great things throughout the year. To keep up with Harry's journey, visit: LinkedIn - Harry Hugo LinkedIn - The Goat Agency Twitter - @HarryHugoGoat Twitter - @TheGoatAgency Website - Goat

Meet Lewis Alexander Baxter, the award-winning 21-year-old social entrepreneur that is helping those with mental health issues Who is Lewis Baxter? Lewis Baxter is the award-winning 21-year-old social entrepreneur that is helping those with mental health issues after suffering with depression himself. Aged 17, Lewis battled with mental health issues that quickly accumulated into a period of depression. This period of time was so tough for Lewis that in March 2016, he attempted to take his life. Fortunately, he was helped out at the last minute, allowing him to live another day. Since then, Lewis ensures that he makes every day count. I found myself standing on a bridge. I felt helpless and with no escape. After this traumatic experience, Lewis opened up about his story, finding the courage to speak to his Sixth Form. This was the first time he shared his story, and certainly not his last. Speaking about my mental health for the first time felt really good – your “typical lads” or outwardly had a strong and determined exterior opened up afterwards about their mental health, so I thought maybe I could help more people. Today, Lewis regularly speaks at FTSE companies, various non-profit organisations, at events and conferences, at universities, and he completed his first TEDx talk in June 2019. His topic: "Mental health: where do we go from here?". In 2018, Lewis exercised his entrepreneurial mindset by forming The Blurred Line Group - the UK’s funding and support hub for local mental health. Their focus is on improving the nation’s mental health. The group has provided funding for many charities across the UK, with each charity being eligible for up to £750 each to help them with their work. After seeing great success with The Blurred Line Group, Lewis had another brainwave as to how he could help even more people during the isolation period. Therefore, in March 2020, chit-chat was born. chit-chat is a social enterprise that allows people to have a conversation, either anonymously on the phone or via social media. Their mission is to tackle loneliness and support peoples’ wellbeing in this unprecedented time. We want to tackle loneliness, isolation and bring some positivity to Britain As the Hub for young business minds, IOTK spoke to Lewis to find out more. IOTK: For people going through mental health battles, what advice would you give them? Lewis: The biggest challenge facing anyone with mental health struggles is acknowledging they need help. All too often, people can and do keep things bottled up. I'd encourage people to be as open and transparent as possible - it isn't easy, and you shouldn't rush this process. But coming to terms with the fact that you are struggling is extremely brave. Talking to someone objective, like a peer at school and university or a colleague at work can be really useful. IOTK: Looking forward, what do you aim to achieve with your projects? Lewis: My main ambition is to do things differently, to be innovative in my approach. Our focus with The Blurred Line Group is to support as many local mental health projects and charities as possible. With chit-chat, we want to provide a forum for our nation's most vulnerable to be able to have a chat with our volunteers and bring some joy to their life. These projects are all about communities and all about people - we want to positively shape people's lives.

Meet Yash Morar, the Young Entrepreneur that Started in Business at Age 12! London-born Yash has always been a self-sustaining, independent individual from a young age, so much so, that he started his own Design Consultancy in 2009 at age 12! 12 year old Yash was so good at what he did, that he managed to work with huge brands and influencers such as John Lewis & Partners and Matt Craig, who has over 3 million social media followers. Fast forward to University and the young entrepreneur received a full scholarship to study Computer Science at Queen Mary University of London, whilst also working full time as a Business Analyst with John Lewis. It was at this time that Yash secured funding for his first technology start-up (Motive) which led him to win the Queen Mary's Entrepreneur of the Year 2019 award. Since then, the active entrepreneur vows to be "the Tesla of luxury" with his new project in the sustainable luxury fashion world. Fortunately, this venture has the backing of the Ex-Director of French Connection. "I'm looking to be the Tesla of luxury!" Whilst working on this project, Yash is also working as a Product Owner at American Express, where he will be reimagining their whole customer experience with Membership Rewards. "Membership Rewards are arguably the biggest selling point for American Express credit cards, so it's quite an exciting time for me" Not only has he seen success with his business projects, but he has also seen success in the mentoring world, helping many people through his speaking appearances. Notably being invited to share his insights at a Microsoft Reactor x Foundervine event as well as being a guest panelist at a Microsoft Reactor x Studentpreneur event. As the Hub for young business minds, it was only right that If Only They Knew spoke to Yash to find out more. IOTK: "What would be your advice for other young people looking to work themselves?" Yash: "Starting a business isn’t always about working hard, it’s mainly about working smart. Don’t overwork yourself trying to build a business because you’ll make avoidable mistakes, poor judgement, and mainly fall out of love with what you’re trying to create. Always think about the end product and if the decisions you make are impacting the target market as intended; always ensure there is a gap in the market for what you’re trying to do by doing your research. Finally, believe in what you’re trying to do; doubt can crop up at any time and it’s important to recognise when it’s a practical worry or one that just stems from nervousness" IOTK: "What are your plans for the future?" Yash: "I’m aiming to build a sustainable luxury bag brand that aims to deliver innovation unseen in the luxury market - taking inspiration from how Tesla changed the car industry, and how Monzo disrupted the banking industry. On top of that, I want to continue mentoring and helping others realise their potential and abilities to think outside the box"

It’s always good to see entrepreneurs make money whilst also having a massive impact on communities and people’s life’s. This is exactly what former The Apprentice candidate, Sabrina Stocker is doing! In the following interview, Sabrina talks to If Only They knew to share more on her success story and her tips for young entrepreneurs. Before The Apprentice, Sabrina always had that entrepreneurial spirit, setting up a store selling retro sweets as part of the Young Enterprise scheme at just age 14. As well as having the business acumen, Sabrina says she can be quite crazy at times, which we saw a few times on the show. Sabrina’s bubbly character wasn’t just seen on the TV, but also seen by her friends on a consistent basis as she admits she often finds herself dancing - whether it be with Uber drivers or cabin crews, Sabrina will be the one to start a dance off! Perhaps it’s this mix of business acumen and confidence that has allowed Sabrina to reach the levels of success that she’s found herself hitting over the past few years. "I am a mix of Willy Wonka drinking an espresso martini...classy and sophisticated on the outside; inside, a little bit crazy and wacky but full of brilliant ideas" Speaking to If Only They Knew, Sabrina states that her best tip for young entrepreneurs is to follow your passion. “Find out what you love to do in your spare time & then think about how to make money. That way you’re building a business around something you are passionate about & therefore you’ll be more willing to put in the work.” Sabrina was fired in week 11 of the 12 week competition on The Apprentice, but there’s no doubt that the show has only helped to leverage her career. Going forward, the young entrepreneur plans to expand her Tennis events company (MyTennisEvents) internationally & perhaps launch some fitness related products. As well as this, Sabrina is using her bubbly personality well by creating great content on YouTube and would be willing to go into presenting kids TV. ”My personal ambition is to be in the Forbes 30 Under 30”. We are sure that this will definitely be possible for the young entrepreneur as Sabrina is following her passions, which makes the route to success easier. Sabrina appeared on The If Only They Knew Podcast to talk more about her story and advice for young people, to listen to this full conversation click here!

Meet Mae Yip & Samantha Hornsby, Founders of ERIC Remember those boring career fairs that our schools made us go to, where we would just go round looking for free pens and squishy things, with no interest in the plain-Jane companies that were exhibiting? Yes, sadly we do too. Fortunately for the younger generation, there is a team that is making finding a career path exciting, this team is called ERIC. But what is ERIC and who is behind this great brand? What is ERIC? ERIC is a group that puts on great career fairs that are fun, immersive and engaging festivals of creativity! Each event they put on is focused on a specific element of business, such as sustainability & wellbeing, allowing attendees to get a specific outcome with each fair. ERIC stands for four principles that embody the team's process: Empower Represent Immerse Create To find out more about the story of ERIC and the co-founders, listen to their conversation on the If Only They Knew Podcast here. Who founded ERIC? ERIC was founded in 2017 by long-term friends Mae Yip and Samantha Hornsby after feeling the frustration of traditional career fairs themselves. Because of this frustration, they wanted to test out a new style of career fairs in order to really empower the young people of today. Both Sam and Mae were brought up in Oxford, England and because they did not have any strong guidance as to what careers were available for them, they both ended up in both situations and jobs that did not truly allow their creativity to be shown. Sam studied Law as she loved a good argument, so thought she may as well learn how to do it well, but ended up dropping out after a year. Similarly, Mae studied accounting at university and went on to work in the accounting sector and much like Sam, Mae also wanted out! After spending a few years in the corporate world, the duo wanted to switch things up and created ERIC to help others that were in a similar position to them. Today, ERIC Festivals have helped to empower tens of thousands of young people. ERIC is now on a mission to disrupt the recruitment industry by highlighting that traditional methods are outdated as well as enabling brands to improve their own employer branding and recruitment. If you're a young person looking to find a career path that allows you to tap into your passion, get in touch with ERIC via: ERIC Website ERIC Instagram ERIC Twitter ERIC LinkedIn For more stories and interviews with young entrepreneurs, follow If Only They Knew - the hub for young business minds: Podcast Instagram Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Meet Alan Barratt, founder and CEO of Grenade - the worlds' fastest growing sports performance/weight management brand. West Midlands based Alan Barratt has always had a love for fitness, prioritising the gym over his school life at an early age - working in his local gym at just age 14. He also, much like his name (Barratt) suggests, has a love for the military, so it is no wonder that his company is called Grenade! But what is his story? Back in 1997, Alan became the manager of a gym called Future Fitness, then soon got into importing and distributing US sports nutrition products under the brand name 'Fusion'. However, very quickly, Alan got very tired of selling products that all looked and sounded the same. So in 2008, Fusion was sold and Alan turned his focus to 'Grenade' with the help of his wife Juliet, which really took off in 2010 and had dreams of emulating the success of Red Bull - with a lot more excitement than the products he was used to selling via Fusion. "I wanted us to be the Red Bull of sports nutrition. I still want our products to be sold everywhere in the UK where you can buy a Red Bull" The name Grenade stemmed from the feedback the team got from their first attempt at a weight-loss formula as a friend described the results as explosive (just like a grenade). For those who think that there is a right moment where everything will be in your favour to start a business, this is rarely true as Alan started his business during a recession, having less than £30 in his bank account at the time. However, the company did come about in a time where men's health was moving away from the typical excessive bodybuilding image. But, how did Grenade stand out? Before people could actually trust the brand enough to try Grenade products, the first step that Alan had to complete was great branding. As the majority of their competition had products in white, medical-looking tubs, Grenade went in bold with innovative packaging and marketing, showing that these types of products can have personality. Grenade will always be bold and colourful - and we make no apologies for it either! Going beyond the packaging and the products, Alan ensured that Grenade's actions were just as explosive as the name suggests, once driving a tank into a trade show as they couldn't afford a booth. These wacky, outlandish stunts have been part of the reasoning (as well as the great products) as to why the brand now has customers in over 80 countries and was valued at over £72 million in 2017! Keep an eye out for both their products and their bright orange tank - which may be coming to a town near you! If you'd like to follow the journey of both Alan and Grenade, visit: Alan Barratt - LinkedIn Alan Barratt - Instagram Grenade - Instagram Grenade - LinkedIn Grenade - Twitter Grenade - Website For more stories and interviews with young entrepreneurs, follow If Only They Knew - the hub for young business minds: Podcast Instagram Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Meet Jay Williams, owner of Hoodrich, an urban clothing brand based in Birmingham Hoodrich is a clothing company that was founded by Birmingham-based Jay Williams in 2014 as a way of utilising Jay's strong musical influences and passion for underground streetwear. Using his own £200, Jay made the first 30 tees, starting what would go on to be a hugely successful brand nation-wide. The brand has been connected with so many big names such as Birmingham-based Jaykae and Mist, to London-based Dizzee Rascal and Giggs and even 50 Cent! Yes, you read that right, 50 Cent. After Jay had a conversation with his PR, he managed to get an address to send some clothes to 50 Cent's stylist, not knowing whether the US rapper would wear it or not. 50 Cent then went on to be seen wearing Hoodrich clothing not once, but twice! Despite this monumental milestone, Jay stays humble about the situation: "It doesn't mean just because 50 Cent wore it, that you're going to see a mad spike in sales, it just gives the brand a bit of clout and credibility" After 4 years of grinding, in 2018, Hoodrich was picked up by large retail store FootAsylum, which stocks major brands such as Nike and Adidas. Jay admits that he had stumbled on the personal development side of business at a later stage in his career, finding motivational Podcasts and books that have since helped him to focus on empowering his mindset. "I just started to work on my mindset and just build it up from there" "Once you start applying things, you start to see results and then you get more experience, which builds confidence - then you want to do it again." In 2019, Hoodrich hit another milestone as they collaborated with JD Sports, allowing the brand to reach an even wider audience in both the UK and Europe. "Going into JD, you've got to give it 12 months before anything really happens, the customers need to get used to seeing the brand. We're early in JD, but it's going well" Speaking on the Dreamers Club Podcast, the young entrepreneur shares some great advice for other young business minds looking to get involved in business. "You've got to ask yourself, are you really passionate about this? It's not going to be easy, so you need something that's going to get you through and keep you going" Looking forward, Jay aims to take the brand to a place that is bigger than it is now, creating something that allows the brand to help the youth of today. But for now, the exact form of this development is a secret, but all will be revealed soon. To follow Jay's journey with Hoodrich, you can follow them via the following: Hoodrich UK Instagram Hoodrich UK Twitter Hoodrich UK Website Jay Instagram To hear more stories from young entrepreneurs, follow If Only They Knew - the hub for young business minds: Podcast Instagram Twitter LinkedIn Facebook