For most high school students, starting their own business remains a hope for the distant future. For junior Justin Lutz, however, entrepreneurship is a part of his immediate reality. From online start-up businesses to summer program pitch decks, Lutz’s path to success in business has been an extensive one. Most of all, his experience has shaped who he is today — both in the salesroom and outside of it. 

Lutz began his journey in the business industry earlier on, taking the inspiration from his experience of working in a family business and channeling it into several minor business ventures.

“My whole life, I’ve always been interested in entrepreneurship,” Lutz said. “My mom started her own business, a lice salon, and so I’ve worked there for a long time. I’ve always tried to [start] a lemonade stand or [have] tried to sell candy at school. It’s always been something that I’ve been growing in. That led me down [the path] to entrepreneurship, as my ideas started becoming more elaborate and profitable.”

As Lutz reached his middle school years, he began a new pursuit: dealing sports cards. Having collected sports cards as a child, Lutz looked to take advantage of a possible stream of income by opening up a store on eBay.

“As a kid, I collected some sports cards, and there was one that I unpacked that was a pretty rare one,” Lutz said. “[However], I didn’t like the player, so I just sold it. I was pretty impressed by how fast it sold, and so I started selling more, and then I started buying more to resell.”

Using eBay helped Lutz launch his project, providing a professional space for communication with customers. 

“[The online market] gave me more opportunity,” Lutz said. “I started the sports card business pretty [young]; most people wouldn’t expect a seventh grader to be packaging and sending them their cards when they buy. Being behind [the screen] online helped me kind of level that playing field.”

Online businesses leaped in sales and success during COVID-19, when the demand for products amidst quarantine meant a massive increase in customer possibilities. The phenomenon occurred nationwide, but also affected small businesses like Lutz’s. 

“The sports market really goes up and down, and it hit a really big peak during COVID,” Lutz said. “That’s when I was really making a lot, because I was able to sell and move so much product. Nowadays, it’s not as profitable.”

As part of the ups and downs of the market, Lutz faced moments where his effort in the trading process wasn’t always reciprocated strongly. A key factor in trading ability relied on player ability, which could change at any moment, affecting customer desires. 

“In a total market with a sports player, if they break their leg and they can never play again, their card is worthless,” Lutz said. “Because of that, some cards, I lost money or just broke even with.”

For Lutz, the path to tackling these challenges is remaining resilient and continuing to take entrepreneurial risks. 

“It’s pretty hard when you’re thinking you made a smart move and you didn’t,” Lutz said. “But usually I just try to forget about it and not let that scare me, because if you don’t take a little risk, you can’t really make any more money.”

Through buying and selling cards, Lutz stumbled upon another business opportunity: consignment. The business agreement allows people looking to sell property to give a third party the responsibility and ownership of selling the goods; the seller then receives a portion of the proceeds from the sale. 

After first taking the role of a consignor to help his grandfather sell sports cards, Lutz continued to invest in the process for other customers, building a more profitable foundation for his small business.  

“I started doing consignment when my grandpa had a few cards that he wanted to sell, but didn’t really have the time to,” Lutz said. “I sold his card, got a cut of [it], and that led me to do real consignment. Right now, I’m doing a consignment where I’m selling a bunch of a customer’s graphic cards. When I sell them, I’ll get about 25% of the profit.” 

Over the summer, Lutz took his entrepreneurial studies to new heights by attending Washington University in St. Louis’ Gateway to Business program at the Olin Business School. Alongside other selected business passionates, he participated in learning courses and marketing projects to strengthen his understanding of the business world. 

“I stayed on campus for about a week,” Lutz said. “We would wake up early and go to these long classes. We had a real client, St. Luke’s Hospital, which was a nonprofit. We were assigned groups, like a pitch deck, and we tried to come up with a solution to keep customer attention because they were losing customers as the years went on. Through the program, I saw what a full-on business would be like and how it would actually work.”

At school, Lutz has met even more business lovers through extracurriculars like Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) and Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA). Both clubs focus on different aspects of business, centering around participation in competitive events at the district, state, and national levels. Lutz traveled to Orlando as a qualifier for the FBLA Nationals Conference competition in July. 

“It can be hard to find people that are really interested in business and want to go into this in the future,” Lutz said. “That’s one thing I really appreciate about FBLA and DECA. I’ve met some really cool people, and you never know when they might come up later in life. It’s great to meet people that are interested in the same thing as you, no matter if it’s business or something else.”

Business teacher and DECA sponsor Evan Stern cites Lutz as a valuable asset to the club, offering a range of business and leadership skills.

“Justin is our club president this year,” Stern said. “He is essential to everything we do. He was a secretary last year and did a really good job. He was organized, and me and everyone else in the club took notice, which was why he was elected president this year. He is off to a great start this year; he’s got really good attention to detail, but he also has that trait where he is easy to talk to and easily approachable, and it’s really helpful to new members.”

Throughout his experience in his business journey, Lutz has also gotten the chance to pick up on essential business skills. Qualities like work ethic and persistence allowed him to find profit and satisfaction, even after periods of failure.  

“The key is hard work,” Lutz said. “I consider myself a pretty hard worker. When it comes to trading cards, there were some days when I was exhausted sorting through packages, but I knew there was always a reward at the end.”

Stern echoes Lutz’s sentiments on the impact of work ethic on entrepreneurship, adding that people skills can also separate success from a stagnant business.

“[Business professionals] need a lot of those soft skills, like working on a team, being a leader, making good decisions and being organized,” Stern said. “I think [Lutz] has all of those traits. He’s creative and he’s quick at thinking on his feet. His business knowledge is obviously there, but the work ethic and outside skills he puts in are what make the difference.” 

With his evident skill set and drive to accomplish at a young age, Lutz’s endeavors have set the foundation for a strong future in business. Going forward, he hopes to pursue business in college and potentially start his own entrepreneurship, using the platform of the skills he already has. 

“[Business] has really made me think about my future,” Lutz said. “I now live my life through the lens of trying to find different opportunities and make real connections.”