Many prominent businesspersons become so after having inherited previously-founded companies as part of well-established business families. These people are benefactors not only to the large wealth of assets bequeathed to them by their family but also very likely a culture and upbringing steeped in business. To these people, the business mentality is nurture and nature, and the very guidance they received from their families comes with the breadth of experience from decades in the industry. What remains, then, is to keep their business upright and growing, a task that is significantly easier with its existing momentum.
This is contrasted with self-made entrepreneurs who often go into business with little capital, little prior experience, and usually little expectation of actually becoming a successful businessman. Instead of coming into their companies, these types of entrepreneurs will bring their businesses to life through effort, courage, and perseverance. Establishing such a business entails pouring their souls into preparation, research, and management in order to build their companies from the ground up. Compared to inherited businesses, this is generally a more difficult endeavor that may seem like an uphill climb. After all, new businesses are known to have particularly high failure rates, with some reports citing 65% of new businesses failing within the first ten years, with only a minority of 25% lasting longer than 15 years.
Self-made entrepreneur, CEO, and founder of ATMMachines.com LLC, Justin Gilmore, is one of the few successful businessmen who overcame these challenges through a combination of self-taught education, a tough mindset, and sheer perseverance. His ATM business has been handling sales, placement, and processing of ATMs to merchants all over the United States for over 14 years. Below, see how his methods can be adapted by the future’s aspiring entrepreneurs.
Justin Gilmore started his business journey in hardship at just 15 years old after getting expelled from high school due to low grades and troubling behavior, aggravated by financial difficulties. With a grave need for money and nothing to occupy his time, he found himself a full-time job by 16 and was checking out all the entrepreneurial and self-help resources he could find in his spare time. In the technology of the early 2000s, these resources included real estate courses on VHS tapes. Although Justin admits that he found little use for some of these materials, outright calling some a ‘scam,’ it gave him the tools and the drive necessary to think more creatively and outside the box with his financial journey.
At 17 years old, he would elevate his hustle by taking multiple jobs and attempting several small businesses. By day, Justin would ‘huck pizzas’ by buying them and then selling them at an elevated price. At night, he would find himself selling things online through eBay, a venture that would introduce the internet’s commercial potential to him. Besides these two, there were many other small, failed entrepreneurial ventures, including dips into real estate and multi-level marketing.
Justin found his big break when he came upon the ATM business in one of his explorations of alternative business models. Starting small in his home city of Atlanta, the industry would prove lucrative for someone of Justin’s determination, and he would soon find himself making more than $15,000 a month (equivalent to around $21,000 in 2020) within just two years in the business.
Sixteen years later, ATMMachines.com LLC now owns over 600 ATMs and processes a further 1,200 ATMs all over the United States. As part of his recent ventures, Justin now helps others build and grow their own ATM companies in order to not only grow his own business at an exponential rate but also help others reach his level of financial success. Through this and his example, Justin hopes to demonstrate how a due deposit of diligence can help anyone find success.
You can learn more about Justin Gilmore and ATMMachines.com LLC through their website or by following them on their Instagram, @atmmachines_com.
