There are so many varied experiences when it comes to starting a business. From what we’ve seen, there is no one, right answer. Some people found success by writing a business plan, spending months or years perfecting the idea and only then approaching their first client while others found their first client before they had even settled on a name for their business. Below, you’ll find the stories of how entrepreneurs from across industries and markets found their first clients.

Morgan Baldwin

It was a pretty crazy and fast experience when I started my business and got my first client. I was actually in an idea accelerator program for a different business idea; I wanted to start a clothing store on wheels. However, I was feeling super discouraged and not excited about it anymore. The next morning after one of the sessions, I was trying to decide if I wanted to stay in the program / if it was worth my mental health not being super great. Read more>>

Kaitlin Thanhauser Flynn

One of the first clients to sell her furniture and decor via Around the House is now a dear friend, and the (absolutely fabulous!) pair of tomato red chairs she sold went to the home of a stranger who is now one of my closest friends in Nashville! Read more>>

UYLEE DENNIS

I can still remember my very first dollar earned as Uylee’s Boutique. I was still not sure that anyone would take my business serious. However, I recall thinking in my mind that “every business that currently exists has had a first sale at one point in their existence. So what is so different about my business?” Read more>>

Joe Rivello

The first client I got was a friend that I knew very well. I had lost contact with him for some years but he messaged me after he saw I was in the industry and how active I was on social media. He and his wife were looking to purchase their first home and had lots of questions about the process and what to do. As someone who was taking on their first client, I was both excited and nervous because buying a home is such a big deal and I didn’t want to make any mistakes. Read more>>

Simon Berghoef.

well I had a handful of small one time clients from my home town but i would say the one that surprised me the most and made me the most stoked would be Autumn Headwear. The first handful of years shooting was a challenge to get anything from companies especially snowboarding. I don’t want to name any of them but they used my work on multiple occasions because they were images of riders they sponsor but would not respond about fairly compensating me for those images. Read more>>

Charmaine Gibbs-West.

Many people are surprised when I tell them that my first wholesale client was Whole Foods. This came about very organically. I started my business in Nashville and would set up at local artisan markets. One of the markets was at a health food store named Wild Oats. Read more>>

Audrey Cooper, Tammie Cooper N/A

Coper Vue Photography started small, as do many. Our first client was a friend, who still comes to us to this day! As we tried to advertise for new clients, one way we gained experience was to do mini sessions, in exchange for a donation to a charity in our community. We would donate all funds directly to the local organizations! It was a way for us to meet new people, practice our trade, and give back. Read more>>

Jee Wipperfurth

This story is about how I got my first chef/restaurant client, which is a now the majority of the work I do. Almost exactly three years ago, my work was placed in my first retail store, along side that of another ceramicist, who had overlapped with me at a community studio in San Francisco a few years prior. Although we were only acquaintances, I took a chance and contacted her. She remembered me from our old studio and was excited to have someone to talk to about ceramics. Read more>>

Tiffany Alexander

I was already working in the gym. I was just getting started into personal training and had started taking client. My first client was a female client that was recovering from having a mastectomy, over weight and had quit smoking. She was interest in getting into shape and losing weight but what made her get my attention was when she expressed that she wanted to fit in. Read more>>

Mitchel Dumlao

I co-founded a Youtube channel that grew to over 100k subscribers and my first client was a clothing brand from the community that wanted to promote their product on our channel. From there, I used that video to add to my reel and pitched to other brands and we eventually landed Redbull as a client. Read more>>

Linda Blume

I believe I’ve gotten my very first order back when I started KorBeautyPopShop in September of 2020! It was a very hard time for me and my first true sale was from a good friend. After constant marketing, content creation, and exploring several social media platforms, I finally got my first order from a customer who I didn’t know. This happened after 20 days and I couldn’t have been more proud of myself that someone who didn’t know me took notice of my small shop and liked it enough to purchase something. Read more>>