One of the most important things an aspiring entrepreneur can do is validate their idea by finding a client. For first time entrepreneurs, this can often feel intimidating and so we’re hoping that by sharing stories of how others before them have found their first client we can make it feel less daunting. Below, you’ll find the stories of some incredibly bright entrepreneurs and business owners sharing how they secured their first client.

Riley Craig

I DJed a basement party with a fake DJ Controller and a pre-made hour long EDM playlist. It was super corny but it was a start! The vision of what the night would be played through my head over and over, and when it actually came it was super underwhelming! But developing the mind’s eye is something that started then and continues to benefit me today! I think we made like $50 off of cover charges! Read more>>

Jonathan Barnhill

I launched IV Bird in the fall of 2022, right as ACL music festival weekend 1 was starting off. As the weekend began, my high expectations of the phone ringing off the hook for servicing festival goers with hangover IV treatments were quickly diminished by zero phone calls. After all the careful planning and preparation it took to get the business live in time for that weekend, it was discouraging to say the least. But, in that moment I felt as I evolved as entrepreneur. I packed up my backpack full of medical supplies and IV poles and saline bags, and proceeded to walk up and down the downtown corridor- speaking to bar owners and bartenders, handing out business cards to as many pedestrians as I could, placing flyers on car windshields. Read more>>

Ashton Price

This was a long time ago when music people weren’t using the internet much to promote themselves. I say this because when I first moved to Hamilton Ontario to get started I was going to music stores to put up posters on bulletin boards. When I was at one music store I noticed a hip hop crew was doing everything BUT recording music. They were making beats, helping with lyrics etc. but it didn’t seem like they had a studio to record at. I reached out to them to see if they wanted to start running their people through my studio and they agreed and that they did. That led to a lot of other opportunities and I still work with some of those guys 25 years later. Read more>>

Nicole Deisinger

Oh boy have things changed since I first started this creative endeavor! Rewind back to the summer of 2005, equipped with a point and shoot Kodak EasyShare, I photographed by sister’s senior portraits in our parent’s backyard and thought to myself, “I could actually do this for a job!” Read more>>

Emily Hess

I walked into a retailer that recently opened in Montecito and met the owners who I found out went to the same gym as me. I showed them some of the design prototypes I was working on and they were eager to carry the line as soon as it was ready. Read more>>

Ladrena Bolden

My first client was my niece. I have always been interested in photography and the details of photography. I attended my niece college graduation, and it was the first time I honestly used a camera with the idea of starting a business. I did not know anything regarding the settings or the functions of the camera and how they all coexist with each other. I purchased my camera and the store I purchased from set my settings up for me in a manual setting. Read more>>

Jessica Schulte Walker

When I first started in the insurance business, I had to go out and find clients (which scared me to death at the time). I decided to put together a simple brochure, staple my business card to it, and went out and hit the pavement.

I headed to a business park in Encinitas and started walking into random offices, introducing myself. “Hey, I’m Jessica! My family has an insurance agency, and I help companies with their employee benefit insurance packages.” Some people barely looked up, some smiled politely, and others just wished I was there to deliver lunch. Read more>>

Richie Zarnicki

Richie: I was working for a crane company prior to COVID and my job at the time was selling cranes, specifically boom trucks and my customer base was business owners. I met a business owner who ran a roofing supply company, and over the years, he became a mentor to me. I was inspired by his thought process and how he handled business. Nick and I had always wanted to own a business, and at the start of the new year, this mentor needed a new website and digital marketing. I suggested that Nick and I could help him. After a few conversations, we signed a deal for a website and ongoing marketing services. Read more>>

Kayla Ramos

I first discovered my love for photography in 10th grade during quarantine, using my iPhone to turn ordinary pictures into art. While I struggled academically, I thrived in creative fields like art and computer science. Experimenting late at night with self-timer, lighting, and editing, I realized I could produce entire creative sets on my own. My passion grew into an obsession, leading my family to gift me my first camera, a Canon T7 on Christmas of 2020. When I finally got social media in 11th grade 2020, my artistic posts stood out, unexpectedly attracting clients. Though I never intended to start a business, my first paid shoot—priced at $300- taught me the value of my work. Read more>>

Brittany Grann

It’s funny that you ask about the first client that did not come from my personal network, because every client I have worked with has come to me through my network! I did not know them all personally, but if I didn’t know them, they have all been a friend-of-a-friend/family member. This has been a part of the magic of my business! I work in agriculture and equine, and it’s a small world. Read more>>

Scott Wozniak

The last job I had as an employee was really unique. I worked directly with the leadership team of the Chick-fil-A headquarters and I spent 50% of my time going inside other companies and learning how they operated. The other 50% of my time I used what I learned to upgrade the customer experience systems of Chick-fil-A. Read more>>

Sunday Eason

After I had graduated college as a dance and creative media major, I moved back to Woodstock, Georgia to be closer to the city in hopes of pursuing a career in shooting music videos. A friend of mine had actually reached out to me needing help with a filming a wedding in June of 2021. The wedding industry seemed like such a daunting industry because of how much pressure it seemed to be and the fact that I had actually never been to a wedding that I could remember! I accepted the job just to try it out and I imediately fell in love and made the decision right there that this was something I had to pursue despite what I thought was going to be my path in music videos. Read more>>

Kristina Sanderson

I started my business at 14 years old. Not because I was some kind of prodigy or had a grand plan to be an entrepreneur. Honestly, it was because my dad, in more ways than one, nudged (okay, sometimes pushed) me toward entrepreneurship. And, as it turns out, he was also my first client. Read more>>

Johnny Hunter

So we had built the rice mill, launched the brand, hired a sales director and were basically dead in the water. We had no distribution, no retail partners, no ecommerce and were 6 months in trying to figure out what the hell we were doing. We ended up at some random little food show in Kansas City, MO and were approached by a store manager from Hy-Vee in Springfield, MO. She wanted to bring in the product! When we asked her how the process worked and what corporate would need from us she informed us that all Hy-Vee store managers have the authority to bring in new products without corporate sign off. Read more>>

Tana Trammell-ross

So for the most part I feel, without a “career”, many Americans have multiple avenues of revenue to make it through life. Otherwise you live check to check and week to week and that’s no fun 😒 It doesn’t leave anyone the opportunity to enjoy the one precious life you are given.
Just a couple years before Covid, my then boyfriend (now husband) and I had invested in and started building a landscaping business that he is still thriving in. Read more>>

Vanessa Jackson

I firmly believe in the saying, “Go to them so they can come to you.” To me, that means putting yourself out there and creating opportunities to be seen—because when you do, your future clients will notice.

That’s exactly what I did. I knew I wanted to work with fashion businesses, so when I saw a post looking for local volunteer models for a runway event, I jumped at the chance. Did I know how to walk a runway? Not at all. But having watched every season of America’s Next Top Model, I figured I could hold my own—and I did. Read more>>

Marisol Escobar

The story of my first customer is a really special one because it’s what truly propelled me to start my business. Before that moment, I had been making cold-pressed juice as a passion project, sharing it with friends and family, and getting positive feedback. But I never imagined turning it into something bigger. Read more>>

Nicole Stever Darby Tinker

Our journey to landing our first client for PopCarts was built on proactive networking with local small businesses in the greater Phoenix area. We’d visit their storefronts, introduce ourselves to the management, and present a quick pitch about our offerings. We made sure to drop off business cards and keep the conversation focused on how PopCarts could help their business. Read more>>