Young Entrepreneur – Billy Evans
As we continue to dive deeper into a changing world, young entrepreneurs are bringing ideas to the table to solve tomorrow’s problems. Listen as Alan discusses Billy Evan’s business plan and how this young man is staying ahead of the trend.
Interview Transcript:
Alan
Welcome back. Well, we have here today in the studio, Billy Evans. Billy, welcome to today’s show. Thank you. Absolutely. Tell me about yourself. Where are you in life right now?
Bill
Right now I’m on my last year of studying mechanical engineering. On my married I have a five month old daughter, and I’m starting a business.
Alan
Are you getting a college degree bachelors of education?
Bill
Yeah, bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.
Alan
And you’re going to start a business. Wow. Well, do you have anything that concerns you right now and getting ready to start a business about the future and thoughts that run through your head?
Bill
I have three really big concerns that that I think all young people should be concerned about. I’m concerned about the national debt that continues to rise. I’m concerned about the social security system. And I’m also concerned about the economy, the future of the economy when I graduate so badly.
Alan
How old are you right now?
Bill
I’m 22 years old.
Alan
22. All right. Well, those are good things to be concerned about. You know, as you think through this, how do you feel that those will play into your future?
Bill
Well, ever, I’ve never talked to someone my age who who actually believes that they’ll get national security. And that debt keeps being passed down to us into our future generations. And I I’m scared that that’ll play a role, just like in Greece. Wow.
Alan
I guess we’ve seen Greece as an example there with the the the economic woes, and they the government having to shut down a few times. Yeah. So okay, so going back to the business. Thoughts on how to do this? Are you looking at just any type of business? Or do you have a specific type of business in mind?
Bill
Yeah, well, I’m, I grew up on a small farm and, and I found that it’s very difficult selling our, our cattle for the right price. And so what I what I did is, I’m selling other people’s cattle, and I’m taking care of the business side of it, the marketing the sales, which a lot of there’s, there’s a lot of farms in America, 98% of them were small farms. And these these guys, they don’t know how to make money, they make less than 10,000 a year. And so I’m saying I’ll take care of the business side, I’ll take care of yourself. And I’m helping them out that aspect.
Alan
You know, it’s interesting. And also, I guess, being on a farm, you’re also practicing a principle of self reliance. Yeah. And I think as we’re looking at in the world, today, we see energy and food prices are the two things that are just moving up rather rapidly. And so do you feel that there’s a strong growth market in these small businesses, small farms?
Bill
Yeah. The last census they took was in 2007. And in that last 10 years, they saw a 2% growth rate. And I think over the last five years, it’s grown even more people, they want to know where their food is coming from, whether it’s healthy food, and you can, you can really tell a difference in quality when you have good food compared to low quality food.
Alan
So it’s starting at the business. Okay, so you got to concept you’re going to be managing other people’s cows, the land ownership, will you have it on your land or will be someone else’s land? All that will be on other people’s land? Okay. Okay. And well, it will be just one farm or multiple farms.
Bill
We’re going to do multiple farms nationwide.
Alan
Okay. So you have more like an advisory type relationship, then? Yes. Okay. And how do you how do you plan on the aid in setting out your vision? What’s your business model here, how you get compensated for what you do?
Bill
Well, what we’re doing is we’re taking care of the cells, the advertising online, and then we also take care of the transportation, we work with transportation companies and do contracts through them. And so we take care of all that work. And we do a fair charge, which is 10% of the sales cost.
Alan
So really, what you’re looking at as a wholesale distribution channel for bringing cattle to market, will it be just cows or will there be something else there too?
Bill
We’re planning to extend to further to further things for farms such as trailers, barns, all these different things.
Alan
Oh, wow. Wow. So how big do you want this company to be?
Bill
Well, I would love this company to be we, my my further dream down the line is that we’ll actually have a place kind of like Cabela’s where people can go into The store and see the entire small farm lifestyle, they can see the new technologies that are coming out for small farmers that they can see this is how we can be more self reliant. I’ve also we’re going to be selling fresh produce and beef, and, and chicken and all these other things that are organic.
Alan
You know, this self reliance concept seems to be a catching trend out there right now, as you’re looking out into the world. You know, I heard a statistic when there was a guy that by the last time in dire that he wrote a book on the baby boomers and the impact that they had to our generation. And then and then Deloitte did a study on the baby boomers and they talked about, which basically is anyone born between 1947 in 1864, that that bell curve or the population is about 80%, higher, before and after. And so the net result is when we when you start to push all these people into retirement. So the first of the baby boomers is 62 years old, in 2010, you’re going to have 80% of your workforce retiring in the next 10 to 15 years. And they basically said that the real challenge for this country will not be the retirement and the health care, but it will be the fact that you’ve lost your logistical supply chain. You don’t have people that drive the trucks anymore to fill the supermarket shelves, that people just aren’t there. So your concept of becoming self reliant is not a novelty, I think it will be a necessity. I think you’re onto something very, you’re being very realistic and pragmatic in your approach there. So what do you see the number one challenge for getting this thing started up?
Bill
All all the restrictions the government has I finding it very difficult to start a business, the legal works very difficult is very expensive. The amount of money that I’m already pulling out to start this business and the risk it takes. And so it just seems like it’s a fight every step of the way.
Alan
Well, Billy, I encourage you, I think you’re on the right track there. I think for your age group. 22 years old, that’s a perfect segue into the what you’re going to be faced with with the future. You can find more information on Graco gr o co.com. Business plans and setting up you know, how do you how do you do the the execution but I think you you got a good a good plan and a strategy. Thank you for joining today’s show. All right, thank you. We’ll be right back after these messages.
