As a teen, I turned a two-week business idea into a $200k dessert shop—with no loans, no credit, and no experience. Here’s how I made it happen.

Sep 25 in Other

Okay, I’ll admit it—we haven’t quite hit $200k yet. But if we stay on track, we will! This isn’t my first business, and it’s definitely not my top sales month (I once made $35k in ecom), but this has been the wildest and toughest ride so far. While I’m grateful for everything I’ve learned, I wouldn’t recommend doing it exactly this way. My story is meant to inspire. If a teenager can open a dessert-style restaurant/activity center with less than $10k, no loans, no credit, and a two-week-old business idea—all while working another job—then so can you.

Here’s how it went down:

This wasn’t my first rodeo. I got into ecom at 16 during COVID, sold blue light glasses, and scaled to $35k/month with one product and one ad. But being young and distracted, I shut the business down after I hit my first problem—and spent all my money when the world opened up. Still, that experience lit a fire in me for entrepreneurship, and I knew I never wanted to work for anyone else again.

Fast forward—I started a custom t-shirt business at local fairs, and while preparing for another fair, my girlfriend and I discovered freeze-dried candy. It was a hit, so we bought a freeze dryer and sold candy at the fair, making just under $10k in four days. People kept asking if we had a storefront. After hearing that enough times, we thought, "Why not?"

Despite a realtor telling us we needed $80-100k and years of experience, we said, “Screw that!” and signed a lease eight days later. We had less than $10k, no loans, no credit, and barely any experience. But we pitched our landlords on our vision and somehow made it work. We turned an old church into a dessert lounge and kitchen and added viral treats like rolled ice cream. Every day brought a new problem, but when you have no choice, you figure it out.

We built up hype on social media, quit our jobs, and never looked back. It’s been almost a year, and while we’re still going strong, I’ve realized the restaurant business isn’t for me. It’s not as scalable as I’d like, and it’s a grind! But the lessons have been invaluable—product creation, management, advertising, customer relationships, and, most importantly, how to really work hard.

Now, I’m looking to sell the business and build a community of young entrepreneurs who want to create meaningful lives through their own ventures. I’m not an expert, but I’ve had success in ecom, social media, and brick-and-mortar businesses. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that resourcefulness is everything.

Want to chat or hear more? Drop a comment below—I’d love to hear your story too!

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