My First Hustle: High School Side Gigs that Built My Foundation
Everyone starts somewhere, right? For me, before any of the bigger moves like Iron Mountain Downtown Development Authority or launching my portfolio as Prefer Kenzie. My very first job was Dunkin' Donuts when I was sixteen. Then, from seventeen on, Little Caesars. That's where I learned the basics about working with customers and the grind of a fast-paced job. By the time I was a Senior in high school. I was interested in more. I dove into direct sales with Norwex Enviromental Cleaning Supplies, and soon added Premier Designs Jeweler as a second line.
It’s funny how those little things, that you just "do" for a bit of extra cash turn into real life long lessons. My first direct sales venture with Norwex was with a gal named Alli Thiel, who is still the most amazing person. (Note *I chose her easily. She was the ONLY consultant in the area who had a profile picture on her account. Those little details are important!)
I remember my very first show. Alli was there to teach me how it’s done. For the main demonstration, she had these test swabs. Swab a surface, green is clean, purple is bacteria present. The demonstration process was to break an egg on a surface, clean it with a paper towel, then do a test swab, and it would show up purple, meaning, still dirty. Then, we'd clean it with our Norwex cloth, and the swab would stay green, clean! To really make people believe and have their jaws on the floor, Alli would lick whatever she'd just cleaned. Seriously. The floor, a fireplace, a countertop. It didn't matter. She'd lick it and say, "I trust this product! I completely trust that I'm not going to get egg germs or sick. I just cleaned it. With this one cloth." People would always show a response or get grossed out, but it was such a big, impactful moment. It really drove home the confidence she had in the product. I was 18 years old and dumbfounded by her confidence. She seemed like she new what she was doing, and I wanted to look that part too.
The first Ad I ever made for business
The thing about Norwex that is great for the customer and bad for the rep, you really only need one or two of each of their products and they last forever. I'm using the same towels now that I got in my intro kit from my first intro party with Alli. So, after a bit of time, I realized I needed to expand, and I added Premier Designs jewelry. The margins were good; I could make about 50% commission, plus extra perks depending on my sales and party sizes. In the end, they had a yearly renewal fee and I decided to part ways. Norwex and Premier Designs Jewelry were the only two direct sales companies I ever joined.
Looking back, these were not little high school jobs. They were my first real steps into understanding how to grow a business from nothing. How to connect with people and build value from the ground up. I believe this has built muscle memory for taking an idea and just going for it. This chapter of life taught that you didn’t need a degree or a massive investment to start. You just need a willingness to learn and the guts to give it a try.
