Moziah Bridges, 13, has created a booming business selling bow ties. In 2013, the then-12-year-old founder and CEO of Mo’s Bows, appeared on “Shark Tank,” where he won over investor Daymond John with his business savvy and fashion sense.
Since the launch of his business, the mini fashion guru has been to New York City for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week as well as networked with some of the industry’s biggest power players on a morning taping of CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” Last September, Bridges revealed to CNBC how he’s able to balance work and school at such a young age.
“Since I’m the CEO, I can do it when I feel like it,” Bridges said. “I have employees — my grandmother, she’s about like 80, and my mom works for me, and I have three more seamstresses.”
Yep, this Memphis, Tennessee-based whiz kid even employs seven workers (never mind if two of them are relatives … it still counts!).
The bow ties featured on Mo’s Bows website are very stylish, ranging from stripes and polka dots to patterns and plaids. And with a price point of just $40, they’re very affordable too. But the secret to this young entrepreneur’s business is its simple, to-the-point mission.
“I like to wear bow ties because they make me look good and feel good,” Bridges writes on his website. “Designing a colorful bow tie is just part of my vision to make the world a fun and happier place.”
Bridges was just 9 years old when he started his company. To date, Bridges, with the help of his mother, Tramica Morris, has racked up $200,000 in sales of his handmade accessories.
In exchange for 20 percent equity in the company, Bridges sought $50,000. By the time he taped his “Shark Tank” segment, Bridges had sold 2,000 bow ties, bringing in $55,000 in revenue. And while Kevin O’Leary offered the $50,000 in exchange for a $3 royalty per tie sold, Mark Cuban and John advised Bridges it was a bad deal.
“John says that when he saw Bridges up there with Morris, a single mother, he was reminded of his own situation growing up. He told Bridges that in 1989 he declined an offer of $10,000 for 40 percent of his hat company; 10 years later, that hat company had grown into FUBU and was valued at $100 million,” wrote Richard Feloni in an article about Daymond John and Bridges for Business Insider.
