Cart is empty Over the years I have been asked where I got my drive to start my own business,exposure to people in my life who either had full blown,to part time businesses to others who had hobbies which payed for themselves.My mother was my greatest supporter.
My mother,and aunt,and uncle supported my reading habits.My mother and father,and a couple of others taught me how to draw.That was my young childhood,then I began to mow lawns in the summer and shovel sidewalks in the winter.Not long into my early teens I worked for a gentleman named Sonny,his business was cleaning out attics and basements,my first real job.
I have two uncles ,both who have run their own businesses who were very influential in my life,unbeknownst to them.One had a catering business with a couple of friends,to me he was happiest at that moment.I didn’t know much about running a business at the time,but knew he was very busy on a regular basis.The other uncle worked at a sports shop which he took over ,and opened another store in a different town.To me they are my influences to try my hand at starting a business,didn’t matter what just a business.
While in school I use to sell candy with a 15-20 cent mark up,after school I started a paper route.I enjoyed mowing lawns and painting houses and the such more,it gave me more time to draw and ride my bike.
My greatest influence in starting a business,Ed “Big Daddy”Roth creator of Rat Fink and other such characters,and some crazy custom cars and bikes.My mother being my monster drawing mentor,father for cars,custom and sports cars.I got to meet him at a World On Wheels car show,got a picture somewhere.
This was where I decided I would start my own clothing line,t-shirt designs in the 70’s and 80’s were wicked creative from cartoon characters,sci-fi,and surf/skate prints.Graffiti was a new medium for the youth at that time also,when our friends came back from overnight trips to New York,Philly,and other areas with graff rags,black and white newspaper printed magazines featuring different graffiti writers of the times.So my appetite for new techniques of this new style of art was practiced in my rap music filled bedroom.
There were many others who influenced me such as a Marine I knew in Okinawa Japan,he was a Amway man,but well spoken and intelligent in those pursuits.Mr. Shea back home,was into real estate and garages,intelligent and very on point with investing.Mr. McDermott whom I worked with for a short spell,he knew how to read the market and invest in different stocks,plus he was slowly building a home shop,machine business.
I feel for each one of my influences that I’ve been exposed to at different chapters of my life,have been great learning experiences,and I still need to learn more to get to where I want to be in life.
And to Mr. Letendre my high school guidance counselor who gave me the talk about the two directions in life I could from….up or down…I have been a firm believer in if you want to do something in your life you got to work at it,persistently,consistently,and believe you can……
Gato 21