“She likes baking cookies and I like making money,” Riley Wayt joked when asked about the creation of Houdini Cookies, a business run by him and his partner, Piper Chen. Chen laughed and responded, “I’m always carrying around a box of cookies and people are always like ‘I want one of those!’ So we thought maybe we could make a profit off of it.” 

Juniors Chen and Wayt started Houdini Cookies in July and have kept it running through the start of the school year. To maintain their business, they’ve had to keep up with managing requests, costs, and school work. They’re not alone; many other LASA students found businesses to make a profit while doing things they enjoy. According to student business owners, the work of creating a business plan, spreading knowledge, and tracking orders offers them experience in finance and leadership. 

Sonya Kraizman, a LASA sophomore, runs a clothing business. She utilizes apps like Instagram and Notes to keep track of her orders and sell her old clothes.

“I knew people sold clothes on Depop, but I thought it would be easier to sell on Instagram,” Kraizman explained. “I keep track of orders in my notes app and make a list of people who want to buy the clothing. I go down the list if the person doesn’t wish to buy.” 

Sophomore Carson Lackey also runs a clothing business called Ginger in Texas. She uses Poshmark to help her mother sell clothes for a part of the profit.

“I created the business to help my mom sell her extra clothes,” Lackey said. “She had planned on donating them, but I realized she could [earn] a profit doing resell.”

As these business owners have discovered, starting a business comes with its challenges. For Houdini Cookies, Chen and Wayt have had issues advertising and receiving orders. 

“The biggest challenge that we’re currently facing is getting the word out there that we are selling cookies,” Wayt said. “There haven’t been a lot of sales right now, but we are hoping with more cookies circling the school, more hungry teenagers will come order them.”

Lackey has also had issues spreading awareness of her business, especially on the highly competitive Poshmark. The e-commerce app has millions of sellers, listing everything from shoes to purses to pet toys. 

“It’s hard getting people to know the store exists,” Lackey said, “and it’s difficult on Poshmark because there are so many sellers selling so many things [that] it’s hard to stand out.”

Kraizman has a different problem; for her, maintaining organization is the most difficult part of running her business. Managing her stock and keeping track of the money can be a major struggle for her.

“The biggest challenge is scheduling with people when to meet at school, or what form of payment they have,” Kraizman said. “Sometimes requests were taken back if they weren’t able to pay a certain way, or if they were too busy to meet up at school.”

However, despite the challenges that come with running a student business, all three business owners encourage students interested in business to go ahead and start one.

“Just get out there and do it,” Wayt said. “And if it’s just going to be a pipe dream where you say you should start a business, and then you never start one, that’s not going to work. But if you take some time out of your day to put in the work and make sure you’re advertising, it’s really not that hard to make a profit.”