MHS offers 5 different business classes, but what does it look like when a student wants to take their passion for business to the next level? Seniors Aris Karountzos and Dhara Patel as well as junior Isaiah Walker all pioneered their own businesses while still in high school.

Karountzos describes his business as “using a completely eco-friendly process to restore people’s vehicles to the same condition that they were in when they left the factory.”

Karountzos, inspired by his passion for cars, recalls getting his first vehicle and wanting to keep it as clean as possible, motivating him to start his own eco-friendly detailing business.

Although he began with passion, problems eventually showed themselves.

“A big challenge I had was finding the right kind of clientele starting out,” Karountzos said. “Nobody really wants to trust a teenager with their car in that kind of fashion. I guess I overcame it by having the motivation to keep posting everyday and letting my service do the marketing for me.”

Karountzos’s efforts have proved successful in his goal; he now has clients and continues to post online to spread word of his business.

At the start of her junior year, Dhara Patel created Shield, a deodorant catering to people with hyperhidrosis and anxiety. Patel says the biggest problem she ran into was funding, but through pitch competitions and help from her teacher, she has been able to work towards a definitive solution.

“Ms. Laflech was a huge help during this project,” She said. “She even encouraged us to bring this to DECA, which resulted in placing top 20 globally for our product.”

At the moment, Patel is testing samples and working on entering even more pitch competitions to fund the production costs of Shield products.

Junior Isaiah Walker has been a hairstylist for 3 years, and he enjoys making people look and feel pretty. Walker finds continuous motivation for his business through support from family members.

“When I was younger, I was a quiet kid that always just observed, and I would watch my mom do my sister’s hair,” Walker said. “One time, she taught me how to do a single braid, and ever since then, I got mannequins and started doing hair.”

With an average of about 5 clients a week, Walker occasionally struggles to keep up with his school work.

“I do have a lot of missing assignments, but I always get it in before the due date,” Walker said. “On my off days, I really do not feel like doing assignments and stuff, so I always procrastinate, but I always get it done.”

As a student, operating a business results in a tight schedule, but Walker uses this to his advantage.

“I start to think about how I would want my future to be and how much of an advantage I have,” Walker said. “It comes with a lot of sacrifices, especially to my social life, but I don’t take the weight as a burden. Instead, I use it as motivation.”

Although it can be hard at times, passion, support and hard work keeps these student entrepreneurs doing what they love.