Today, many people dream of doing what they love and getting financial rewards for it, that is, turning a hobby into a source of income. Some manage to do this and earn decent money on home baking, knitting, embroidery, etc.
In modern conditions, turning a hobby into a source of income is much easier than it was 10 or 20 years ago, since we have the ability to easily acquire the raw materials necessary for the production of the same baked goods.
We can also use information technology (provide outsourcing, consulting services, engage in web development, etc.), almost everyone has a computer at home.
In our article you can find a list of 10 entrepreneurs who managed to make a fortune in their hobbies.
10. Robert Sternowski (Softronics)
This man spent his youth working for Rockwell Collins Corporation as an engineer in the space industry.
Robert Sternowski had a hobby, in his free time he liked to make crafts in the garage. Pursuing the invention of radio engineering, he found friends of interest, all together they decided to start a business and work for themselves.
The company was called “Softronics”, for a long time the employees did not have a decent office, work was done in a strange mode, they began to work about 12 days, and finished late at night.
The company was engaged in the production of excellent quality receivers, transmitters and other technical equipment, but it did not have a reputation, so things were tough with orders.
The manager introduced ISO quality standards into the work, forced his colleagues to put himself in order, rented a good office, and the result was not long in coming. The company began to fill up with orders; today its annual turnover is more than $ 20 million.
9. Anthony Beehive
A young businessman runs a company that earns $ 260,000 a year. He sets an example and instills confidence in those people who have limited opportunities in connection with serious illnesses, since he himself suffers from epilepsy and has mental retardation.
While still a boy, Anthony began to show interest in the life of bees, his parents helped him and bought a beehive, which they put on the backyard. After a couple of years, the family business began to flourish, honey production and trade became mutilated.
The young man is constantly studying, attends various courses and trainings. His company's products have beautiful packaging, they have a website, the company also produces related products, balms, scented candles and other products based on honey.
8. Marcus Person (Mojang)
The thirty-two-year-old Swede began to get involved in programming at a young age. Up to a certain age, a young man did not take his hobby seriously, he was engaged in freelance, participated in programming championships, etc., but did not develop his talent.
But once he was lucky and, inspired by ideas, Marcus created the video game "Minecraft". The first version of the game was written in a week. She was a resounding success with gamers, which allowed the young man to open his own business, which brought him more than four million dollars a year.
7. Tom Sazmore (Broadmoor Baker)
In the USA, the young man moved from South Africa in 1979, in 1981 he already opened his company. The company was engaged in optimization and selection of work space. But Tom did not like this activity, he wanted something else.
During this period, a young businessman was fond of baking, once he managed to bake excellent quality bread, which prompted the idea to change his occupation. He created Broadmoor Baker, which generates revenue of approximately $ 2 million per year.
6. Angelo Sotire (DeviantArt)
The company "DeviantArt" is a social network for artists, photographers, designers and other artists, it will bring together at least 14 million authors from all over the world.
The portal began to work in 2000, at that time its creator, Angelo Sotira, was only 19 years old. Ten years later, his project began to bring at least 19 million dollars a year. Today, company revenues are growing.
5. Anna-Maria Fayola (Bramble Berry)
Being a student Anna-Maria was fond of soap making, at the age of twenty she decided to make a business out of a hobby. She created Bramble Berry, which generates an income of about $ 3 million annually.
The company produces approximately 2500 products. The girl was helped to organize the business by her determination, the education of a marketer and the ability to advertise via social networks, and her products also had an interesting promotion concept.
4. Rachel Ray (30 Minute Meals)
The name Rachel Ray is known to many in America, as she is the host of her own television show, 30 Minute Meals.
From childhood, the TV presenter loved to cook, but this hobby is inherent in many, the unusual concept of her show attracted interest. It was created for those who do not show interest in cooking and do not want to spend more than half an hour in the kitchen.
In addition to this television show, Rachel leads several more, she is also the author of cookery books and advertises products. Her income is more than 15 million dollars a year.
3. Alan Ellis (Oink)
A student from England created a site for exchanging music files and named it “Oink”, it worked like torrents, but could last only three years, as it was closed in court.
The court also wanted to recover more than $ 300,000 from a young man; it was believed that they managed to earn exactly that amount on their project.
2. Joe Maddalena (Profiles in History)
Joe Maddalena was very fond of collecting; by the age of 14, he managed to collect baseball cards, celebrity autographs, paintings, and numerous comic book releases.
Then he sold his collection and opened the Profiles in History auction, which sells letters and other correspondence from Hollywood stars, papers of historical value, etc. The businessman’s fortune is estimated at about 2-3 million dollars.
1. David and Wendy Cast (ContemporaryCandles)
A married couple from America turned their hobby into a business through an experiment. They made various types of candles, gave them to their friends to use with a request to fill out a special form.
Familiar encouraged them, and the family began to large-scale production of hundreds of varieties of candles, coasters for them, bath accessories, etc. Their company's annual revenue is one million dollars.