Founder’s story is all about inspiring others through the story of an amazing entrepreneur. We highlight their history, lessons learned and what advice they would give others. This week we have Nathan Massie.
Tell us about your childhood and where you grew up?
I grew up in Melbourne (Australia) the child of parents who divorced when I was 8. When I was 14 my father had lost all his money and we were living in government housing. Things were good but looking back we were completely broke most of my childhood.
How did you get started as an entrepreneur?
My first business was when I was 15 in high school, I used to buy 500ml flavored drinks and sell them for the same price as the 375ml cans the canteen would sell, I was able to use the money I made from this to pay for my travel ticket and lunches. Business took off, after a while, I had to take 3 bags to school to store all the drinks.
I saw the only chance of being in control of my life, was being in control of my future finance. I had a failed ventures in my early 20’s (that involved me in India with chronic food poisoning at 22). When I was 24 I took $50 and put it towards Adwords for my party entertainment business. We got lucky and things really took off, within 2 years we covered all of Australia.
What is one business lesson you would tell to a startup founder?
Drop your costs before you start and get used to living on less for the first 2 years, don’t try to live at the same standard you were before you went into business — move into share housing/back with your parents. Cancel every single subscription. If you need to exercise, buy a skipping rope and do pushups at home. Shop at sales, buy food from markets, and get used to home cooking. You need to put every $ you have back into your business to compound the benefits and drive growth.
