Jeremy Ellens, 26
COMPANY NAME: Yazamo YEAR FOUNDED: 2012 WHAT IT IS: A digital marketing company that counts names like Arianna Huffington as clients. INFO: www.yazamo.com What inspired you to found this? I spent my senior year in college sleeping on a broken air mattress. I started my business out of a necessity to survive. What was the most difficult challenge you faced? About a year ago we grew too fast and discovered we didn’t have a scalable and repeatable business model. We lost a few customers and a huge chunk of our revenue. What was the biggest lesson you learned? It’s critical to find ways to manage and deal with stress. My favorites are exercise, nutrition, meditation, prioritizing tasks, and growing a thicker skin.
PHOTO BY CARL SCHULTZ
What is one thing you wish people had told you? I wish someone drilled into me the need to set aside money for taxes! What do you hope is the future of the company? Our goal is to connect 20 million consumers with companies that will provide value and leave a positive impact on them over the next five years.
NOVEMBER 2015 |
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