Today we’d like to introduce you to Avante Price.
Avante, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I started ChoreBug last May with the goal to detach myself from a normal summer job and to give to the community in a more rewarding way. I aimed to hire kids that were responsible but also had open schedules as to show community members that teens with free time can make good use of it! I made a simple website on Squarespace, made a group chat with about 15 members, and posted ads on local facebook groups, and fliers outside. Within 24 hours, my phone had 5 calls (a lot back at the time) and I knew I was onto something.
Over the past year, I’ve built the Evanston workforce out to 45 workers, expanded to a few other schools, and accumulated over $35,000 in revenue. I also hired Oliver Leopold, an incoming sophomore at ETHS to develop a website from scratch to meet all of ChoreBug’s needs. He programmed it in one day and continues to update the site daily, fixing bugs and adding to the user experience all the time.
Now, our goal is to expand nationally with the help of ambassadors at schools around the country, and eventually be a household name!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Being only 17 years old has its pros and cons. I have encountered many roadblocks when trying to expand my business that a legal adult wouldn’t even have to think of. For example; I can’t take out business loans, ChoreBug had to be organized as an LLC under my mother’s name, The business bank account is also my mother’s, and being taken seriously by any sort of investor is very difficult, until they meet me of course.
On the other hand, everything I do is looked at in a whole different light then it would be if I was an adult. $35,000 is considered a middle-class salary in America today and that’s only my revenue before all costs. I also get cut slack on many fees like my office space and legal advice sessions.
These are just a few of the things associated with my age, but overall, I think that starting a business so young has really benefited me due to the little risk associated with investing so much time and money into this project when I have no living expenses to bother me.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the ChoreBug story. Tell us more about the business.
ChoreBug is a web platform that connects youth with neighborhood members near them who need indoor and outdoor home tasks and odd jobs done. We are known for our affordable flat rate of $25/hour per worker and our reliability to always get the job done respectfully. Unlike other similar platforms like TaskRabbit, we only employ high school age students and charge the same rate no matter the task, to reduce confusion about how much something will cost clients. This makes our platform great for communities because it helps local students and easy to use.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I’m a huge believer that luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. I feel that I work so hard that I’m bounf to get lucky a few times, but that overall, my success is attributed to how much I put into it.
Pricing:
- All services – $25/hour per worker
Contact Info:
- Website: www.chorebug.com
- Phone: (206) 883-7072
- Email: info@chorebug.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/chorebug
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/chorebug
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
