I learned about Nate Marles through keepMEcurrent.com, a daily and weekly news website for the Greater Portland Region.
Nate, a 17 year old entrepreneur, has a computer repair business called Current Computer Tech and has already found 65 customers who use his services to fix and upgrade computers.
In addition to being a high school junior, Nate is certified by Hewlett Packard, Intel and IBM to work on their computers. He is also a beta tester for Microsoft.
Nate started the business at 14 when he fixed computers for people in their homes. He says the biggest growth for him came when he moved from personal computers to working with small business customers.
“I have at least 10 or 15 business clients. I take courses on how to service their needs. These are businesses that have Web sites, and have their employees connected to servers.”
Although Nate owns the business, it has become a family affair where his father helps him with his taxes and his mother drove him to client sites before he got his own license to drive. His father, Greg, used to run two different business and has helped mentor Nate.
“I’ve taught him that if you don’t take care of your customers, you won’t keep them. You need to deliver what your customers want, not what you want them to have.”
The advice is paying off as Nate’s customers are happier than ever. According to Anne Telesco, one of his customers:
“Nate is just wonderful. I’ve got him on my speed dial under the name ‘computer god.’ Nate is very mature for his age. Quite frankly, he is very mature for someone 10 years older than he. My computer had flat-lined when I called Nate. He did the work really fast. He took my hard drive home, ran some diagnostics on it and fixed everything. I was relieved. This was something I could not do myself.”
Price has also been his competitive advantage. He charges $20 per hour where many computer repair technicians can charge up to $100 per hour.
“Charging a lot of money would be too stressful. I try to do what is reasonable. I may have scheduled two hours to be at a client’s house or business to fix one problem. What if I find other problems and it takes me four hours? Then I am charging that person $400. That’s quite a bit of money.”
The money he’s made so far is going towards his college education as well as a new laptop that he just purchased and his cell phone bills.
“This is an exciting time for my company. More businesses are finding out that I can do major repairs but at a lower cost than the competitors. I’m flexible too. I put out proposals that fit the clients instead of telling them this is what I can do.”
What’s next for Nate? He’s planning on going retail to start selling electronics and warranties. He has also recently created an online accounting section on his website where his clients can see price quotes online, access their invoices, and pay their bills.
This is a good idea. If I ever lose my job, I could consider this. It’s interesting that Nate is staying very close to his customers. The only problem with this business is that it’s limited to location. Nate cannot fix computers for customers that live too far from his house and gas prices are also a hinder. The best place for this business it to live next to a business district.
I really enjoy reading about young people starting a business and I wish Nate the best of luck. I think his father gave him excellent advice when he said “you need to deliver what your customers want, not what you want them to have.” So often the business owner thnks he always knows best and becomes too pushy. I have “gently suggested” to customers” but never have been pushy. I would suggest to Nate that as he gets experienced and grows out of his teen years not to make price his major competitve advantage. That can be very dangerous.
Is this a business or a job?
It sounds to me like he’s just a freelancer, and that his money is directly tied to his time invested. That’s a job.
All the best to you, Nate. I’m sure you all agree that we need to hear more about people doing their own thing. If I ever get the nerve to get my own dream going I will have to use theprofessional software Glyphius as well as Nate’s blog for my inspirations. I know I will then be well on my way….
Its quite ironic, I am pretty much in the same position as Nate, but I own and operate my own website design and development firm, plus I am 16 years old.
I just started my second venture: B2 Business Network (www.b2.ca).
Great job Nate, we need more teenagers in business!
Great for Nate, I wish him all the best. I too did a home based computer business while I was 16 and loved it. Then moving and college pursuits changed that, none-the-less a good business idea. Keep up the good work.
It’s awesome to see a “kid” launching his own company.
I agree with the comment that is is a job, not a business. But most businesses start (without funding) by the entrepreneur investing their only resources… their time.
Then once their investment starts to bear fruit, the entrepeneur needs to shift to working on the business, not in it.
I think that the world will soon stop and notice young entrepreneurs and make room for them! Wow!
I love seeing kids start successful businesses. We’re trying to teach our kids these values. My son (15) has run pet sitting and lawn care businesses. We’re working with his to build a business this summer. His goal is to earn 3X what his friends make at McDonald’s.
That’s the great thing about technology services. There are SO many small business owners out there who have no idea how to manage their IT, and there are so many young, tech savvy folks who see an opportunity there.
It seems another helpful tool in young a entrepreneurs arsenal is supportive parents. Without his mom and dad’s help, young Nate wouldn’t have gotten too far.
I’ve recently started my own computer repair/consulting company, as well as a blog to track my progress, and it really is the easiest way to get a taste for the entrupreneur’s life.