For so many in the world of retail and business, generating enough capital and funds to launch their own small business can be a Herculean task. But once the venture debuts, the question then becomes: “How can one keep that running successfully?” In such a competitive and challenging market where it can be difficult for businesses to even stay afloat, Chad Jenkins wants to offer insights to entrepreneurs and help them thrive through SEEDSPARK.
As the creator and acquirer of multiple businesses, the CEO knows what it takes to grow. Under his leadership, SEEDSPARK focuses on entrepreneurial growth as a global community built on collaboration with the intention of making people think unconventionally to produce favorable business results.
Jenkins considers himself to be in the business of “value creation through collaboration.” He recalls noticing what he describes as “frictions” in many existing industries—fundamental problems that had been around for years that no one had bothered to fix. Within these frictions, he saw opportunities. “A lot of times, they’re just turning a blind eye to the friction in that industry,” the CEO says. “But everyone complains about it. Right? So that has been my inspiration.”
He quickly realized that any company actively wanting to avoid these frictions is an ideal client for him. With the businesses he has started from the bottom up, Jenkins has always looked for a way to leverage problems and transform them into a competitive advantage as well as a lot of new value. This approach to value creation is something the CEO focuses on in his book Just Add a Zero, which aims to teach small-business owners how to embrace their own strengths and idiosyncrasies through strategies for thinking and growth.
Jenkins says the goal of both the book and his work with SEEDSPARK is to “inspire others to think unconventionally.” He believes adopting a different kind of business mentality is not hard to accomplish, especially when entrepreneurs are shown how to do so. “I typically create growth strategies anchored around concepts that help people do that,” the CEO says. “I want to empower others to think unconventionally and let them know that there’s a global community to support them.”
Small businesses are often constrained by the need for talent and capital. Though these are important aspects of running a business, Jenkins believes that by being so focused on merely staying afloat, entrepreneurs never consider the opportunities that can come from leveraging what they do have and betting on their own future. He hopes SEEDSPARK and his book can provide a guiding light for small-business owners everywhere.
