Generation Z is bringing a whole new and different mindset to the business world as employers, employees and customers.
In the last 10 years we have seen many businesses started by Generation Z. Previous generation (millennial) entrepreneurs started heir businesses while they were in college. However, the new entrepreneurship is skewing towards the younger ages. Investors and sponsors are also more willing to support and be a part of young people’s businesses rather than the older ones.
A Recent Gallup Poll found that 40 % of students from grades 5 to 12 stated they wanted to have their own businesses, and 24 % said they have already started their ventures!
Nowadays, in the business world, the “Kid CEOs” are becoming the new normal. There are plenty of examples throughout the globe. Moziah Bridges, who started Moziah’s Bows at the age of 9 and rapidly grew it, is now earning over $150,000 per year. Trey Brown, founded SPERGO, a boutique fashion business, at the age of 14. Caroline and Isabel Bercaw, co-founders of Da Bomb Bath, is another good example for this. They started their business at the ages of 11 and 12 in 2012 and grew it to $20 million annually on the basis of being different.
Mentorship is a significant contributor for successful entrepreneurs young or old. While this fact has not changed, Generation Z entrepreneurs are not getting their mentorship like the older entrepreneurs do. They are mostly self-taught and use almost all existing digital platforms very effectively.
Entrepreneurs who branded their businesses on the “identity entrepreneurship” themes like race or religion had always existed. Yet, these practices were considered to be divisive. Generation Z, however, has been able to find ways to apply this concept of "identity entrepreneurship" to their businesses through some smart approaches successfully. The end result has been that their businesses have been producing much greater returns than the previous generations’ businesses. A good example for this is Young Black Entrepreneurs (YBE’s) or Young Latino Entrepreneurs.
In net, mind-sets of the Generation Z entrepreneurs are very different. They base their decisions on disruption. "If it is not different, it is not cool" is their mantra. Just like with Alihan Beba and his Paint Your Own Canvas apparel brand that he founded at the age of 17 creating wearable art. We must be aware that change is happening in all aspects of life and more is to come with the Generation Z.
(*) Born between 1997 and 2012, are currently between 9 and 24 years old (nearly 68 million in the U.S.)
Ref: Chidikie Samuelson, November 24, 2020