The world’s biggest companies created by the young
by James P. Outreach & PR ExecutiveMany people dream to become their own boss one day. A study
conducted in the UK discovered that 82% of 16-to-21-year-olds have a desire to
set up their own business. Indeed, there were estimations that just over 3
million Brits would be their own boss in 2018, with females more likely to take
the chance and follow their ambition in order to secure that valuable work/life
balance.
On occasion, setting up a successful business can take nearly
a lifetime to achieve. Take KFC founder Colonel Sanders, for example. He didn’t
have a single penny to his name at the age of 65. Subsequently and shortly
after retiring, the Colonel decided to share his fried chicken recipe, door to
door. As his creation grew in popularity, the need to open his own restaurant became
increasingly apparent and in 1964, when Sanders was 74, he made the decision to
sell his company for $2 million USD at a time when there were 600 franchised
outlets peddling his trademark chicken to the masses.
It must be noted however, that not every entrepreneur has
taken such a lengthy time found and run their business. In this article, we highlight
a few of the largest companies on the planet that had young creators behind
them.
Subway
One day, a 17-year-old going by the name Fred De Luca, set
out on a mission to pay for his college tuition by means of revenue from a
sandwich shop. Borrowing $1,000 USD in 1965 from family friend Peter Buck, he
opened a restaurant in Boston, serving fresh and affordable sandwiches made to
order. Nearly 10 years later, Buck and De Luca owned 16 of the sandwich shops
throughout Connecticut and began franchising their brand to help grow the
business.
Jump 50 years to today the sandwich shop, known as Subway,
enjoys an annual turnover in excess of $9 billion USD with the chain serving
customers at 40,000 locations worldwide. The pair also set up Franchise Brands
– a resource which helped franchisors and entrepreneurs gain the knowledge
needed to grow their brands, just as Subway did and continue to do. At the time
of his death in 2015, De Luca was said to have a net worth of $2.5 billion USD.
Renault
In 2018 the French carmaker celebrated 120 years on the road.
At 21-years-old, Louis Renault, alongside his brothers Fernand and Marcel,
built the company’s first automobile in France and formed automobile firm
Renault Frères. By 1902, the company had developed its first two-cylinder
engine and produced a lightweight car that won the Paris-Vienna race. Staying
in the racing game, a place where Louis Renault felt the business could best
make its name, Renault also won the first French Grand Prix in 1906 as the
company continued its expansion.
Part way through World War One, France’s War Ministry
requested Renault to mobilize their production and handed them contracts to
include field ambulances and engines for aircraft. They provided ‘taxis’ to
transport men to the front line and went down in history as ‘taxis de la
Marne’.
In 2016, Renault was claimed to be the ninth largest car manufacturer
globally by production volume and is still widely recognised for its
participation in motor racing, particularly rally driving, Formula 1 and
Formula E. In Britain, the Renault Clio remains
one of the most popular cars on the road, after first hitting UK roads in the
1990s.
Facebook
Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook in 2004 from his Harvard
University dorm room when was just 19 years old. The social media platform was
originally solely for Harvard students, but it quickly grew and acquired one
million users in its first year. After its second year, Zuckerberg’s company
had received a $12.7million USD investment by venture capital firm Accel
Partners and expanded to more than 5.5 million users.
The world-renowned Time Magazine named Zuckerberg ‘Person of
the Year’ in 2010, a year which also saw his net sitting at a cool $6.9 billion
USD. In December of the same year he signed the ‘Giving Pledge’ in which he
promised to donate at least half of his wealth to charity over his lifetime.
At present, Facebook’s user count has reached over a billion
the company owning millions of subsidiaries, including photo-sharing app Instagram
and WhatsApp messenger. In 2018, Zuckerberg is estimated to have a net worth of
$82 billion USD.
As shown, it’s clear to see that in business, age is merely just
a number. If you have an idea, potential funding, and the passion to succeed,
you too could find yourself sitting on a fortune no matter how old or young you
are.
Sources
https://www.bmmagazine.co.uk/news/43488/
http://smallbusiness.co.uk/working-brits-consider-starting-business-2017-2536327/
https://www.biography.com/people/mark-zuckerberg-507402
https://www.techwyse.com/blog/infographics/facebook-acquisitions-the-complete-list-infographic/
https://www.subway.com/en-us/aboutus/history
https://www.motoringresearch.com/car-news/most-popular-cars-in-britain-2017/
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Created on Dec 19th 2019 10:39. Viewed 819 times.