10 Times They Found the Money Anyway

It’s easy to think that rich, famous entrepreneurs were always rich and famous. But of course they were not. One of the reasons I really love entrepreneurs is because they are bold enough, brave enough, crazy enough! to bet on themselves and the dream - even when they were broke.

Check it out -

1. Howard Schultz – Starbucks
Turned down by banks 242 times (crazy, see?) yet he raised $400K from friends to buy Starbucks.
Sometimes your circle is your seed fund.

2. Daymond John – FUBU
Daymond’s mom mortgaged her house for $100,000 to fund his first production run. She believed before anyone else did.
Now that is a mother’s love!

3. John Paul DeJoria – Paul Mitchell
Borrowed $700 while living in his car and teamed up with friend named . . . Paul Mitchell. DeJoria sold shampoo door to door to get started.
He built a billion-dollar brand with no address.

4. Janice Bryant Howroyd – ACT-1 Group
She started with $900, a fax machine, and borrowed office space and now runs a billion-dollar staffing firm as a Black woman pioneer.
Few of us start at the top.

5. Tony Robbins – Himself
Tony was in his early 20s, living in a cramped studio apartment, had a crappy job, and only $22 left in his wallet. But at the mall that day, he saw a young boy who wanted to buy his mom lunch, so Tony gave him $17. Tony received an unexpected check in the mail the next day.
Giving creates abundance.

6. Fred Smith – FedEx
With payroll looming and funds almost all gone, Fred Smith took the company’s last $5,000 to Vegas. he won $27K at blackjack and kept the planes flying.
High risk, high reward.

7. Sara Blakely – Spanx
Sara invested her $5,000 life savings into her novel apparel product and demonstrated it to a buyer in a Neiman Marcus bathroom. Sale!
The prototype was in her purse. Not her pitch deck.

8. Airbnb – The cereal stunt
The founders were broke, the idea wasn’t gelling, and they couldn’t make rent. In that election year, they instead sold election-themed cereal boxes for $40 each and made $30K. That kept the dream alive.
Doing what must be done.

9. Drew Houston – Dropbox
He had no product so he made a demo video . . . and it got 70,000 signups overnight.
Creativity trumps funding sometimes.

10. Phil Knight – Nike
Knight had no money to buy inventory, so he negotiated deferred payments with a Japanese supplier to get shoes before he had cash.
He bought time and that is what he needed.

Excu$e the Interruption

Normally, I do not plug me, my products, or my books in this newsletter, but today’s theme warrants a quick diversion. Registration for my new course on funding your business without a loan / with bad credit is open for another 48 hours. I personally have funded 3 businesses without a loan and with other people’s money. Let me show you how! You can learn more here.

OK, now back your regularly scheduled newsletter! 😀

The Takeaway

Lack of money is real, but it need not be the end. Instead, maybe it’s just another problem to solve. Every one of these founders had nothing, until they found a way to work through it.

And then they had more than enough.

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Steal This Strategy

📖 Book - The Power of Broke
Daymond John’s guide to using limited resources to fuel your entrepreneurial dreams.

🌐 Website – IFundWomen
Crowdfunding, coaching, and grants for women-owned startups.

📖 Book – The Messy Middle
Great ideas are not enough. This book is about navigating the hard parts, including money woes.

About Steve

Steve Strauss is the best-selling author of The Small Business Bible (and 17 other books), Inc.’s small business columnist, a lawyer (non-practicing), and an entrepreneur. He sold his last venture, TheSelfEmployed.com to Mark Cuban & Zen Business. Need a ghostwriter or a newsletter for your business? Contact Steve!