It doesn’t take everyone a lifetime to build wealth — some are well on their way to hefty bank accounts before they even turn 20.
Just consider the teenagers below. Whether aged 13 or 19, or somewhere in between, they’re all busy running their own companies, creating their own apps, or starring in their own YouTube channels. Some even began their business before their teen years — two on this list got to work at age nine.
That’s quite a lot of responsibility for an age group that typically has to balance other priorities like school and homework, but it often reaps monetary benefits.
From creating million-dollar online retailers to launching product lines with Target and Whole Foods, see how these entrepreneurial teens are making money.
Age: 13
Mikaila Ulmer’s lemonade business dates back to age four. What was once simple lemonade at her lemonade stand in Texas has evolved into lemonade with honey and flaxseed — and an entire company called Me & the Bees Lemonade.
Ulmer appeared on the TV Show “Shark Tank,” where she received a $60,000 investment from Daymond John. But that’s not her only high-profile investor — 10 NFL players have invested more than $800,000.
Me & the Bees Lemonade was eventually picked up by Whole Foods in an $11 million deal. Ulmer is the co-CEO of her company along with her parents, and they travel around the country speaking at entrepreneurship and leadership conferences.
Age: 18
Zandra Cunningham began her all-natural skincare line, Zandra’s Beauty, by making her own lip balm in her family’s kitchen when she was nine years old. She began selling lip balms and whipped shea butter at local farmers markets.
Today, Zandra’s Beauty is worth nearly $500,000 and has more than 40 products. Cunningham recently landed a line of three of her products — hand and body lotion, exfoliating sugar scrub, and lip and body balm — at Target.
Age: 17
Noa Mintz launched Nannies by Noa, which pairs families with caretakers, when she was only 12 years old.
The matchmaking childcare service takes a percentage of the overall rate for nannies, which, in New York City where Nannies by Noa is based, is about $50,000, Mintz told CNN. It also charges a $5 flat fee for each babysitting job. In 2015, Nannies by Noa had reported revenues of $375,000, according to TIME.
The business has been so successful that Mintz was named one of Fortune’s “18 Under 18 Innovators Who Are Changing the World,” and made Crain’s New York Business “20 Under 20” list.
Age: 19
Four years ago, Abby Kircher wanted to eat healthier but realized many peanut butter brands were loaded with sugar and oils. She created her own nut butter that was healthy and naturally-sweetened and, thus, Abby’s Better Nut Butter was born.
It originally made $4,000 in sales when sold at farmer’s markets. Now, Abby’s Better Nut Butter is sold in grocery stores. It saw sales of $80,000 in 2017, according to Forbes.
The brand offers five distinct nut butters — date pecan, coconut cashew, coffee almond, strawberry cashew, and honey almond — and has expanded to merchandise and snack bars.
Age: 17
Moziah Bridges is the President and Creative Director of Mo’s Bows, his own bow tie brand that sells bow ties, neckties, pocket squares, and other apparel.
Bridges, who launched his company when he was nine, was named on TIME’s list of most influential teens and also appeared on “Shark Tank”, securing Daymond John’s mentorship for free.
In 2017, he signed a seven-figure, one-year licensing deal with the NBA, and is only planning to grow from there. As of 2018, he sold more than $600,000 worth of product through Mo’s Bows website and partnerships with retail stores, Bridges told Inc.
Age: 19
Ben Pasternak is the brains behind a number of smartphone apps, including gaming apps Impossible Rush and Impossible Dial — the latter of which was sold for $85,000, reported the Sydney Morning Herald.
At age 15, Pasternak launched peer-to-peer app Flogg with nearly $1 million in funding from Binary Capital and Greycroft Partner’s, according to Crain’s New York. The app enables teens to browse and purchase secondhand sneakers, video games, and electronics from Facebook friends.
He also co-founded video chat app Monkey, which he recently sold to rival app HOLLA so he could direct time and effort to a new project.
Ages: 18 (Kate) and 16 (Annie)
At ages 14 and 13, sisters Annie and Kate Madden founded FenuHealth in 2015, which produces supplements to prevent stomach ulcers in horses.
FenuHealth began as a winning project for BT Young Scientist, a science and tech exhibition. The sisters got their big break when they attended the world’s biggest equestrian trade fair, Equitana, a few months later and introduced their branded feed.
While the Maddens don’t disclose turnover or profit, revenue growth in 2018 was around 52%, reported The Irish Times. Product prices range from $50 (€45) to $2,032 (€1,800). And according to BBC News, FenuHealth is used by five royal families.
Age: 18
Brennan Agranoff founded HoopSwagg, an online custom-design sock company, in 2013. Today, HoopSwagg has more than 200 original designs and generates annual sales of more than $1 million, with socks priced at $14.99, according to CNN.
As of April 2017, when Agranoff was 17, HoopSwagg was shipping 70 to 100 orders a day to clients aged six to 80. Since then, he’s expanded products to include accessories like shoelaces and ties.
HoopSwagg was originally run out of Agranoff’s garage, but it’s expanded so much that his parents built a 1,500-square-foot building in their backyard for the business.
Age: 19
Rachel Zietz is the founder and CEO of online sportswear company Gladiator Lacrosse. A lacrosse player herself, Zietz began the company at age 13 after attending The Young Entrepreneurs Academy in Boca Raton, Florida where she raised $2,700 in start-up funds, according to the Sun Sentinel. She also received a $30,000 loan from her parents — she’s since paid it back.
In its first year, Gladiator Lacrosse generated $200,000 in sales. By the end of its second year, the company was on track to exceed $1 million in revenue. Gladiator Lacrosse most recently acquired All Ball Pro, which will help expand its reach to sports beyond lacrosse.
Age: 13
Makenna Kelly is behind the YouTube channel “Life With MaK,” which has 1.3 million subscribers. It’s dedicated to ASMR, or autonomous sensory meridian response, videos which create “a calming, pleasurable feeling often accompanied by a tingling sensation,” triggered by sounds like whispers.
Kelly makes a reported $1,000 a day or more just through her advertising revenue, Business Insider previously reported, citing data from YouTube tracking site SocialBlade.
She also makes money through viewer requests: She was once paid $50 for a 10-minute video in which she chewed honeycombs.
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