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The business of sneakers: Q&A with teenage entrepreneur Noah Vitale - Anaheim High School Sports There's something unearthly magical about owning a pair of limited-edition, rare or highly sought-after sneakers. It comes the moment you crack open the lid for the quality-crafted shoebox, peel back the uncrinkled tissue paper and lay up your eyes on your fresh new kicks (don't even get me started about the glorious odor of new leather, combined with rubber and Velcro!). Pretty close to heaven, right? One person who knows this exact feeling is Noah Vitale, a sophomore at Los Osos High School in Rancho Cucamonga. The 16-year old finds a way to capture that piece of sneaker-heaven and produce it to sneakerheads all around the world through his upstart company, Vitale Kicks. Not only is Noah an honors student, maintaining a 4.5 GPA and an affiliate the Grizzlies' football team, he's also a consummate professional who is able to be found hours before school starts at his desk filling in orders, answering customer emails and searching for exclusive sneaks for a fanatical subculture of sneaker aficionados. In just six months time, Vitale Kicks has earned over $250,000 dollars in income, as a result of a low-supply-high-demand market and many hard work and commitment from Noah. Recently I sat down using the young entrepreneur to talk about how he turned his own sneaker obsession in a thriving business. Quesiton: I love your organization logo. Who designed it? Noah Vitale: My brother Nick designed it. He's 18 and a senior at Los Osos. We sat down together one day and just assemble it. People manage to like it therefore it worked out very well. Q: So what exactly is Vitale Kicks? Noah: Basically it's this - Nike and Jordan brands will to push out a series of limited shoes whether its shoes from Air Jordan or Nike Running or anything like this. And because they're limited, there'll be a huge need for them. So we find a means to buy them from shops and then mark them up even as have them in your hands. So, say we have a shoe that retails for $160 dollars, and it is sold out in shops all across the United States. We'll take that shoe and then sell it for maybe $230 dollars on our website. We are able to do this because there's such a massive demand and you can't go in a retail store and get them. So, the only choice is to acquire it from the so-called reseller, which is somebody like us. Q: So, if Nike drops a fixed edition Air Force 1, and I shouldn't sit before Undefeated for 2 days, I can phone you up? Noah: Yeah, exactly. We actually have people who do sit away from stores on release day and then once they obtain the shoes we'll sell them slightly over retail. So yeah, definitely any kind of shoe as an Air Force 1 we can do the same exact thing. Q: As a consumer, I think that's worth the mark-up immediately because that has the time for it to sit looking at a store for the days? Noah: Yeah, definitely. Q: So do you employ people by sitting out looking at stores? Noah: Yeah occasionally we do. I'll pay friends say $20 bucks for just one night to camp out with us. That's one of the many ways we're able to have the shoes. Q: What are some other ways? Noah: We purchase them online and direct from retailers like Footlocker or NikeTown. We'll enter raffles. They're not the easiest to get. It's a complicated process. Over time we've built up friends along with a network of people like store managers and such. Q: It actually sounds fun. Noah: It is fun because you're meeting new people and it's thrilling every weekend to try to acquire as many shoes as you possibly can and at the same time I'm with all of my friends. It's a good experience, along with making a good profit every weekend. Q: So basically, you've developed a business from the hobby. Noah: Definitely, because it all started with an interest during these type of limited-edition shoes. And then realizing that there is a big potential chance to create a business making a little money. But all of it originated as a spare time activity of collecting and wearing these footwear. So, it is a business as well as a hobby at the same time. Q: When do you start it and how old have you been? Noah: Well I was 20 years old and I started the company in April of 2013. Q: Do you remember the precise moment the idea sparked? Noah: It started when my pops and I were beyond a Finish Line one night, where these folks were doing a raffle so we were able to pick-up two pairs of Air Jordans. As soon even as we walked out with the store some people stopped us and offered us an enormous $150 dollars over-retail for them. We were like, 'Wow did that truly just happen'? It motivated my father too because usually once you tell a dad or mom about doing something such as this they might say, 'Nah, there is not any way! You can't go buy a shoe that's in a store and resell it for more.' But the moment somebody about the sidewalk stopped dad and said, "Hey, I'll take those for $280 dollars today," I think that actually kind of lit the spark for everything. Q: It really really helps to have your dad on your side right? Noah: Yeah it definitely did help to have my father on my side. When someone how old irrrve become is starting off they're not going to have the revenue to be able to purchase 100 pairs of shoes. So having my pops to help me out (and the credit card) was definitely a major help. But, my parents will always be supportive of whatever I do. When I told dad I wanted to accomplish this, he was all for it because when I was obviously a younger kid I had another business anf the husband saw how well I did with this. Q: What's the most expensive shoe you've sold? Noah: Nike includes a foundation with Doernbecher Children's Hospital in Portland, Oregon. At the first from the year they released a shoe known as the Nike Air Doernbecher that retailed for $250 dollars and we sold it for $1300 dollars. So that would be a very large profit. It was form of tough to locate a buyer so when we found one to the price it was satisfying. And we were able to have a couple pairs of those. That was definitely our biggest sale. Q: What's been one of the most interesting shoe you've sold? Noah: We're taking care of that today. We use a shoe known as the Nike Air Yeezy that's a collaboration involving the hip-hop artist Kanye West and Nike. The shoe retails at $250 dollars and it's really currently reselling with an average of about $4,000 to $5,000 dollars. We have one pair within our hands right now and now we're just waiting to discover the right buyer who'll pull the trigger. But that's definitely our most effective shoe that we've ever endured. Q: How do you begin selling a shoe that's worth much? It sounds almost dangerous. Noah: Right! We've had it in your possession a bit over a month and the challenge with a shoe similar to this is you must be careful about how you flip it because with such an enormous demand, it's dangerous to meet up for the shoe that's worth $4,000 dollars. So you should be careful. But we're definitely keeping it safe until we discover the right buyer. That will be nice even as let that go. Q: Nice payday! What do you generally do while using profits you get? Noah: I'll occasionally buy myself clothes but most in the money is set aside in my checking account and secured for college. Also, I just bought myself an Audi. So, that's one helluva first car for me. But other than that, I just input it away for college. Q: How amazed are you if you sit back and see the success you've been able to create from reselling sneakers? Noah: It's amazing. When I was driving home from buying my Audi, I was just thinking, 'Wow! This thing that I'm doing has ended in me possessing this car.' It's just great to see work pay off. Q: What do your friends think about Vitale Kicks? Noah: You know my buddies are actually the ones that I'll bring beside me to pick up shoes and I'll pay them back for coming with me at night. I'll text them some nights and say, 'Hey all of you down to visit Los Angeles when camping this weekend to grab some shoes? I'm paying everybody so-and-so level of dollars.' And sometimes, they do not even desire to be paid as it's merely a thrilling experience to go as a result of these populated areas and be around these individuals who are crazy for sneakers. And it's fun simply to walk out with the stores with exclusive shoes and everybody's considering us saying, "Oh look, look, look, they got that or this." So my girlfriends have definitely reduced the problem be where I am today and possess been a source of support and have taught me to be throughout everything. And an important feature about it is, some of my buddies have actually started their unique sneaker reselling businesses with a smaller level. It's cool to see that influence spread throughout each of the group of my pals and to view them have success too in doing what they're doing. Sometimes they'll ask me for help and I'm delighted to help them. Q: Are your customers surprised after they find out you're a senior high school kid? Noah: Well, I only tell people I'm all-around but when I do say to them I'm 16, they're very surprised. If anything they believe it's really cool that somebody younger than them could be doing something similar to this. Q: The testimonial page on your website is definitely photo after photo of super-stoked people exposing the shoes they purchased from you. How satisfying is always that? Noah: The customer appreciation is quite cool. That's one from the best parts is to see the customer testimonials. They're really a huge help to our organization and its rewarding when we get those back. Sometimes we'll even provide discounts if customers post a testimonial because that draws a lot of other people that haven't purchased from us. People will look at that and say, 'Oh those guys are legit ' they understand what they actually do.' Q: What's the biggest challenge you've faced being a young entrepreneur? Noah: My biggest challenge is maintaining school and the organization at the same time frame. I'm taking all AP and Honors classes and hold a 4.5 GPA. When I get back I usually have 3-hours of homework and when I'm playing soccer I won't return home until 5 p.m. Then I'll have 40,000 people on social media that are emailing and contacting me relating to order or about the sneakers that are developing and asking if I'm getting certain shoes. So that's definitely hard wanting to balance all of that. But I think I've sort of found that balance. I take some time out with a certain hour to deal to emails, to obtain back to customers, and also to post up on social websites. Then of course, I remove other time to do school work and other things which might be more important. Q: Time management happens to be a skill isn't it? Noah: Yeah, it's something I've learned to complete. Q: What are your plans after high school graduation? Noah: I don't know what college I want to head to yet, but I plan to travel right in to a 4-year school. I also plan on hopefully running multiple businesses when I'm out of senior high school. But I definitely will go to college with sometimes a Business or Computer Science Major and hopefully have other businesses on my hands during those times. Q: Who are a number of your influences or individuals who have inspirited you? Noah: I would say operator like Mark Cuban. Or if you watch the show Shark Tank, dozens of people on the. It's inspiring to view how successful they are and exactly how they're able to help people out with businesses and stuff. Q. Ever take into consideration taking Vitale Kicks on Shark Tank? Noah: Not really. You know, there's over 10,000 people who do the same exact thing as Vitale Kicks. It's not like we're some unique thing. We've just found a way to be successful. Q: What have you learned is probably the most important part of creating a successful at-home business? Noah: How big social media marketing is in relation to its how it can help a company. I started a year ago with one follower on Instagram now I have over 40,000 followers. Social media has really helped grow my business and it is definitely one of the most important factors for almost any business currently. Also the need for good customer service is huge. Like I said earlier, because the shoes are so expensive, folks are sometimes afraid to spend a lot money. I will be nervous too if I was spending $400 dollars or more. When you communicate with a customer, you are making them feel comfortable regarding purchase. So, without a doubt social networking and good customer support are the two most critical things in having a company. Q: A lot of young people take into consideration starting their particular business or doing something entrepreneurial as you. What form of advice can you give a young individual that has a fantastic idea and wants to get it to the next level? Noah: I would tell others to appear around and see what other everyone is doing. Because when I was starting the company, I explored to other resellers and learned at their store. So one of the most important things would be to take advice and examine other coffee shops and build upon that. And also, do not be afraid of just getting started. Get out there and have it going. Because you can have numerous thoughts when creating an enterprise and be thinking, 'I want to do this and I want to perform that.' But you just have to travel and undertake it. Eventually all this works out. So my advice will be learn and take advice from others and believe in yourself and do not be afraid to simply start. Take a chance and start. Q: Just undertake it! As the famous shoemaker says! Noah: Exactly! Just take action! To find out more on Vitale Kicks and also to take a look at their extensive assortment of limited-edition shoes, have a look at Vitalekicks.com. And connect with Vitale Kicks on Twitter and Instagram. |