24岁时, 中国博彩平台 Project and Supply Chain Management alumnus Solomon "Sol" Taylor is already a successful entrepreneur as the proprietor of wholesale import business The Phonekings Inc.:泰勒折扣用品.
宾州中央谷. -从他记事起就开始了, 所罗门·“索尔”·泰勒曾梦想成为一名企业家.
他的商业成功之路始于7岁, 当他在他父亲的商店结束销售时. Eventually, he struck out on his own and founded Allentown-based The Phonekings Inc.:泰勒折扣用品, a fast-growing wholesale importing business specializing in Chinese-made products.
泰勒直接与中国制造商打交道, so a thorough understanding of the intricacies of global supply chains and business practices is fundamental. 毫无疑问, 这位24岁的海勒镇居民说, the tools he acquired from 中国博彩平台’s Project and Supply Chain Management (PSCM) program and 利哈伊谷发射箱 powered by Penn State have proven critical to his success.
“年轻的企业家需要学习很多东西. 他们可能有很棒的想法, but because they’re so green it takes years to really get their business up and running at a high level,泰勒说。, 2020年PSCM毕业生. “在中国博彩平台, I was able to take all the theory I was learning in the classroom and through discussions with my professors was able to apply it better to what was going on out in the real world. One of the benefits of going to a smaller campus is that you develop better relations with your professors, 你会得到更多的实践学习. 如果你想真正学习课程, it’s much better to be in a smaller class where you can speak to your professor on a regular basis.”
The son of a career entrepreneur who found success in cell towers and cellphones, 泰勒从很小的时候就知道他“想要出售”.”
在他十几岁的时候, he decided to strike out on his own and go into the phone accessories business, 因为他很了解这个行业.
“我不想成为一个实体经销商. 我希望能够在批发方面供应给经销商，”他说.
Taylor started simple, selling chargers, phone cases and tempered glass screen protectors. He was making his purchases through the Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba but grew frustrated by all the middlemen standing between him and the factories manufacturing the product.
最终, 他意识到他需要直接与一家中国制造商打交道, 在进入PSU-LV之前的那个夏天找到了一个. He placed a $10,000 order – he and his father put in $5,000 each – that made him extremely anxious. But, when his order sold out within five days of arriving, “I knew I had something,他说.
“在接下来的六个月里，我每天都在工作. 我们真的建立了这项业务，”泰勒说. “我把十几个客户卖给了加油站、酒窖、小零售商等等. And then we started doing farmers markets, which became like a traveling retail location. Next came wholesale and retail trade shows, where you’re dealing with a much bigger clientele. If you’re a good salesman and you have a good product, you can sell it anywhere.”
In time, Taylor’s product line grew to include Bluetooth products and other cellphone accessories. 最近，他开始涉足自卫用品. He also does closeouts and liquidations where buyers can get significant discounts on a host of brand-name items.
一路走来, 他对中国的商业惯例已经很熟练了, 与美国人做生意的方式完全不同,他说. 他主要通过微信与供应商沟通, and has significantly altered his sleeping habits to deal with the time difference between the U.S. 和中国.
“我看待它的方式是，它不仅仅是一个客户，还是一个合作伙伴. 我做得好，你也做得好. And that’s been a business model that’s helped me grow substantially,” Taylor said.
Taylor would be the first to say his business acumen grew considerably thanks to his studies at PSU-LV.
Initially interested in starting at 利哈伊谷 and then finishing his degree at University Park, Taylor eventually decided to complete all four years at the campus once the PSCM program was added.
“我比较了生活费和学费, 我想, 这是显而易见的,’”泰勒说。. “很多学生都是为了大学生活. 我去那里是为了接受负担得起的教育. I received a lot of scholarships and grants, but working was what paid for my education. 我不想要贷款和大量的学生债务.”
他最终在学业上表现优异，以3分的成绩毕业.96年平均绩点. 一路走来, 他在教员中建立了一流的支持体系, 其中包括PSCM讲师Mark Capofari, 助理教学教授兼商业项目主任Maung Min, 营销学教授丹尼斯·奥格登, and Lecturer in Economics and Corporate Communication Program Coordinator Bob Wolfe.
“They were all fantastic – I could say so much about each of them,” Taylor said. “与教授保持良好的关系是非常有益的, 因为你对你所学的东西有了更好的了解.”
"Sol is truly a global entrepreneur in every sense of the word,” Wolfe said. “He didn't wait to graduate to start on his venture – he was already well into the international electronics business when he took my classes. 索尔在世界贸易方面的商业头脑令人印象深刻, and his entrepreneurial venture allowed him to combine the classroom with the business world, 这是一个令人难以置信的强大组合."
泰勒充分利用了这个项目的实习机会, and spent a summer studying abroad at East China Normal University in Shanghai. While there, he made it a point to visit factories and make connections with various businesses.
“I didn’t speak a word of Mandarin when I got off the plane, but I wasn’t worried at all,他说. “我觉得我唯一能学到东西的方法就是去那里上课. 这是一次很棒的经历，我遇到了很多很棒的教授.”
与此同时, 泰勒得到了利哈伊谷发射箱的额外帮助, 这给他提供了一笔资金，让他可以启动自己的网站.
“这是无价的。. 这个网站帮助我们获得认可，帮助我们进入eBay和沃尔玛.com，亚马逊，所有这些第三方平台. I wouldn’t have gotten there without LaunchBox pushing me forward,他说. “LaunchBox has also allowed me to connect with other new entrepreneurs with similar business models. 如果你缺少什么, 网络上总有人能帮你解决这个问题. 人脉在商业中非常重要.”
As Taylor sees it, his business is now in a great position for substantial growth. One day, he would love to be in the position to be bought out by a major company.
“我的目标就是为未来积累财富. 这是长期的，”泰勒说. “If I could preach anything to young entrepreneurs, it’s put your money to work. 并为此投入时间.”
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“I give a lot of credit to 中国博彩平台 for how my business is doing,他说. “我在那里接受了很好的教育.”
