If you have a business idea that you are currently working on then we have some amazing stories of startup successes that can inspire you to take your business to the next level. It is well documented just how many startups fail each year but what is not so documented is those who have gone on to achieve spellbinding success. Together with businesswoman Leslie Hocker, we have put together just a few examples of startups which have gone on to achieve dizzying levels of success.
Pierre Omidyar
In 1995, Pierre Omidyar, a computer programer decided to sell some of his personal belongings and began website called AuctionWeb in order to do so. The flow of internet traffic which the site received in its first few months forced Omidyar to open a business Internet account in order to cope with the volume of people on his site and Omidyar began to charge people fees to pay for the upgrade. The website that once started off as a personal project called AuctionWeb is currently operating under a new name…eBay.
Howard Schultz
A young Howard Schultz went on a trip to Milan whilst working in is first position as a bean roaster. Schultz fell in love with the Italian cafe scene and decided that he wanted to take a slice of it back to Seattle with him. The result of this decision became the very first Starbucks and the rest as they say, is history. Starbucks now feature on pretty much every street corner in the world and they have set the precedent for almost every coffee shop that has opened its doors ever since.
Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs
Two college dropouts that went on to find enormous success are Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs, the pair began working together at Atari on nightshift where they were exposed to a great amount of gaming and computer software. Following their time at Atari, the pair would go on to create a brand new computer company, Apple, a company which has since gone on to find incredible levels of success across the world and changed the way that we view technology.
Joe Coulombe
Joe Coulombe started opening small convenience stores in southern California back in 1958. Coulombe was working for the franchise unit Pronto Market which were modeled on the 7-11 stores, a competitor which Coulombe soon decided was not worth fighting. Instead of competing with 7-11, the intelligent founder of Trader Joe’s decided that he would change the model of his convenience stores and began stocking health foods and fine quality goods, and placing his stores on the edge of university campuses. The company went form strength to strength and Trader Joe’s now turns over annual revenue of around $13 billion, an incredible success story.
If you have a startup there is nothing at all to suggest that you cannot find the same success that these business owners have throughout their careers.