Many students at Sandburg have small businesses that are waiting to be discovered
and supported. Managing a business as well as managing school work and activities can be a challenging task that several students at Sandburg have experience with—Aiden Wasilewski and Cam Kedziora are two of them. Although they own two very different types of businesses, the dedication, skills, and experience they take away from their work, is both beneficial to consumers and rewarding for their business.

Aiden Wasilewski, a senior, started a fragrance business a year and a half ago called
ODWAGA by creating scents and working with others to make these scents into buyable fragrances. From selling them in his classes to now trying to sell them on Amazon, Wasilewski hopes to bring in more business. He mentions his approaches to get attention.

“I basically change off my scents every 4 months” he states, as well as, ” starting to implement doing drops” are his ideas to launch his business, specifically on social media.

Cam Kedziora, a sophomore, has begun a nail business from her home that involves
making gel press-on nails of all kinds for friends and other students at Sandburg. Although her business started very recently in July, she has already learned so much from her experiences and hopes to bring in new customers as well.

Multi-tasking is a huge part of being a young and successful entrepreneur, balancing a small business as well as school life, and one that both Cam and Aiden have learned to manage very well.

“Well, I prioritize my school work, but also, I get a lot of my work done like in school” Cam states in addition to her balanced work schedule. “If I still have work to do, I finish that at home and usually the weekends I spend doing nails and everything” she explains as well to establish a routine for getting both her school work done while also designating a time for her business.

Time management is one of many skills Cam has taken away from selling her nails given some sets could take up to 3 hours to complete. However, with a lot of practice she explains “I can do a full set in a lot shorter of a time than before when I first started” explaining how much she has improved her timing in only a few months.

Both of these young business owners have taken huge life lessons away from their
businesses as well as skills that have had a huge impact on them.

Aiden states, “the main skills I probably learned from my business was to never think lower than yourself” as he navigates the prices of his products and selling them he never wants people to think less of his product.

“Even though it’s a small business, you can’t be like changing prices for other people because then you’re never going to be successful” he states which stresses the importance in staying true to your business and worth, while facing competition. Aiden also talks about how he has learned to approach people differently.

“You’ve got to understand going up to someone, you have to understand how they think” as well as “you just kind of learn and adapt to different situations and different things.” he states. Aiden stresses that getting into a business with people requires a strong system of trust and he also states, “don’t let anybody affect your beliefs in what you’re doing.”

Both Aiden and Cam have found more confidence in themselves since starting their businesses while meeting new people and having to adapt to a new independent entrepreneurship.

Sandburg offers many classes that could help students start a business or get into business. “I did take an entrepreneurship class last year which led me kind of into starting my own business” Aiden explains as well as the many ideas he had had for a business before he settled on Fragrances.

Although Cam started her business out of interest in nails, she has also begun understanding managing prices and handling the supply and stock of her necessary items to create a set of nails.

Advertising is critical for both Aiden and Cam and they both would love the support of more people from Sandburg and beyond. Cam and Aiden both use Instagram to communicate with customers or interested buyers. Supporting small business owners such as Cam and Aiden can benefit their business as well as introduce the consumer to a new business that offers the most thoughtful and unique goods.