Not many children dream about owning their own company, but several students at NC have persevered through adversity and have created their own start up companies. Both enrolled in the International Studies Magnet Program, senior Andrew Brady and junior Patrick Wright deal with a heavy workload on top of dealing with the stress of running their own businesses.  

Brady runs Weather Consulting Group LLC, a weather consulting company that sends weather data to other businesses detailing how the weather will impact their company and its operations.

“I’m the CEO of Weather Consulting Group, LLC, and there are other companies that do the same thing as us. What makes us different is that ours is more impact based rather than making a general forecast,” Brady said.

Wright operates Pat’s Cigar Box Guitars, a cigar box guitar company, repurposing cigar boxes and turning these everyday items into a three-stringed instrument.

“I’m the CEO of Pat’s Cigar Box Guitars, and we serve most of the northwestern Georgia and Metro Atlanta area. The guitars that I manufacture are very similar to a regular acoustic guitar or a dulcimer,” Wright said.

When someone creates their own company, the creator needs goals in place to ensure that they do not lose track of progress in regards to the advancement of the company.

“Right now, I’m really just saving up for college. My short term goal was to buy myself a car, and I did it, so I’m proud of myself for that,” Wright said.

Brady also voices future plans for his company and specifies how he will continue to promote growth and functionality.   

“I plan on hiring forecasters to make impact-based forecasts for companies all around the country so they can know how the weather will affect their company,” Brady said.

Assuming the role of an entrepreneur alone can intimidate people due to the tremendous responsibility running a business requires, and even the administrators at NC understand the hardship that comes with this feat.

“One thing as an entrepreneur to actually take an idea and bring into fruition is a skill that I and many adults don’t have in place until long after college. I think heading into college already having invested in something brings things to the table that others do not have,” assistant principal David Stephenson said.

Now with experience under their belts, Brady and Wright want to ensure that people looking to start their own businesses do so with the right mindset.

“You want to make goals, and you really want to drive forward. You can’t just say I want to do this, this, and this and sit back and not do anything. You actually have to make it happen and push forward,” Brady said.

Wright also makes his claim to make sure entrepreneurs create their businesses in the right state of mind.

“Having a good group of friends or people to help you get your business off the ground is the key to any successful business,” Wright said.

Since Brady formed his company two months ago, he has hired employees to email certain companies and gather weather data for him. Wright has also expanded his business to sell diddley bows, a one-stringed instrument.

These NC entrepreneurs can hopefully further expand their businesses into their adult lives.