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16 December, 2012
From VOA Learning English, this is the Technology Report in Special English.
The iPhone has become one of the most popular mobile phones in the United States. An 18-year-old student in California has used his knowledge of the device to create his own business. And he has gained national recognition for his work.
Vincent Quigg is the chief executive officer of TechWorld. His company is kind of like a hospital for iPhones.
"I'm 18 years old. I'm a college student. And I'm the CEO and founder of TechWorld, where we specialize in customizing and repairing iPhones."
Vincent Quigg launched TechWorld while in high school.
"My mom became single a couple of years ago and I had to grow up. And in order to keep my lifestyle, I had to find different ways to stay financially ahead of the game [to] keep my phone, keep a car, transportation and all that stuff. So I had to find ways to be entrepreneurial."
An organization called the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, or NFTE, helped the young man get started. Both he and his mother, Carla Quigg, admit that he had a hard time developing a business plan.
"He quit the class, which I was very disappointed."
"It was extremely hard for myself to find a business to start and run with it. But once I had that 'aha moment' or what I knew I wanted to go with, it was really easy and extremely fun."
At the time, Vincent worked for the electronics store BestBuy. He says people always came into the store with broken electronic devices. He decided that repairing those devices was what he wanted to do. He not only re-registered for the NFTE class, but he also won the organization's national competition for best young entrepreneur.
Estelle Reyes is executive director for NFTE in Los Angeles.
"He has an incredible gift for presenting himself and his dreams in a very compelling way that engages everyone to rally around him."
His business has grown through word-of-mouth. Vincent says he now fixes up to 10 phones per week. He earns about $1,500 each month in sales. Brisa Munoz is one of his satisfied customers.
"I actually looked him up on the Internet because I had heard so much about this kid, how he won entrepreneur of the year. So I looked him up, and I was like, whoo, I want him to fix my phone.'"
TechWorld has two other employees. Kacee Wheeler is one of them.
"He's such an amazing kid, and you always see his wheels turning with ideas every day. And it's really inspiring for him to be so young and pushing and have the drive. It's amazing to me."
Kacee Wheeler works on the technical side of the business. Vincent Quigg now deals with finances and planning. He says he wants to continue to grow his business. His biggest goal, he says, has always been to work for himself.
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