March 10th 2008
When were you bitten?
When I was nine or ten years old, I started my first business.
Growing up in an oceanfront home on PEI, I spent many hours on the beach collecting sea shells and beach glass. I can’t tell you how much I miss the smell of that salty shore…
Anyway, I don’t remember what inspired me, but I started gathering small pieces of driftwood, tiny little shells and beach glass, and turning them into custom pieces of jewelry. I made broaches and earrings, and I remember they were actually pretty nice.
After I created the pieces, I would coat them with shellac so they were nice and shiny. Of course, I also had custom cards I would attach them to, and they were ready to sell.
Believe it or not, I actually had craft stores take them on consignment and they sold them for me.
All it cost me for that little venture was the actual hardware for the broaches and earrings, a couple of drill bits and a can of shellac. Who knows what it totaled…probably less than $10. (When you’re nine years old, you’re not really busy doing much else, so my time wasn’t as valuable as it is now.)
At the end of the summer, when we went around to the shops to pick up the pieces that didn’t sell, and collect my fortune, I was astonished to have made a little over $300. I might as well have been handed a cheque for a million dollars. Talk about proud!
I believe I did the same thing the following year, but then I took another job picking strawberries…then it was baby sitting…and so on and so forth.
I will never forget how it felt to create something and put it out there in the world, then have someone buy it. Actually spend their hard earned money on it. I still feel that way each time I get a new client.
I had three meetings with three great people today who will hopefully turn into new clients. I am as pleased as I was then when I was nine years old. There has always been an entrepreneur inside of me, and I’m so glad she’s free!
When did you know you were a true entrepreneur? What prompted you to take this path? When did the entrepreneurial bug bite you?!
3 Comments »
Maureen Kerr on 16 Mar 2008 at 10:44 am #
Jaime! This is a great post! I knew I was a true entrepreneur when I was starting my first business in 1999. It felt so right and exciting. In the same year I also met my birth dad who, while I was getting a seed capital loan for $12k, he was getting one for $250k for a new business endeavor and has been a very successful entrepreneur throughout his life. I grew up in a military family and don’t think the entrepreneur inside of me felt comfortable enough to come out until I was 24 and living on PEI. It is rumoured that my grandfather who I never met was the first bootlegger on PEI to accept credit cards, so I think innovation is in my blood also, lol.
Nicole on 09 Jun 2008 at 3:50 pm #
Hi,
We are planning a trip to PEI within the next month or so and would like to know where are the best beaches for collecting sea glass. We were told anywhere along the east coast between Murray Harbour and Souris. But we were hoping that you could narrow this down for us.
Tks in advance,
Nicole
Jaime Mann on 09 Jun 2008 at 4:02 pm #
Gosh, Nicole, it’s been so long since I’ve looked for beach glass.
The best beaches are those that aren’t overly sandy. I grew up in Rollo Bay and there used to be lots. It’s becoming really rare since it’s so valuable now the beaches are picked pretty clean. You might check out Sheep Pond Beach or the beach right in Souris.
Sorry can’t be of much more help. One of the beach glass jewelers on the Island could probably tell you more.
Happy hunting!
Jaime