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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
They are not high profile businessmen so you have not probably come across these names.
Yet, their success stories are inspiring. After quitting their jobs, they boldly followed their passion to mint millions.
Shep and Ian Murray, Vineyard Vines
Ian worked for a small PR and marketing firm in New York while Shep worked in the New York Stock Exchange.
Giving up high salaried jobs, brothers Shep and Ian Murray dared to take a risk and follow their dreams. Together they started a company in 1988 called Vineyard Vines to sell different types of ties. Starting with ties, they diversified to other products.
Set up on Martha's Vineyard, the brand has incorporated hats, shirts, shorts, and bags for men, women, and children, and has grown to have several retail stores and outlets along the East Coast.
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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
Rick Wetzel and Bill Phelps, Wetzel's Pretzels
Former marketing executives Bill Phelps and Rick Wetzel were working with Nestle.
They quit their jobs to make pretzels (a type of baked food) founded Wetzel's Pretzels, a California-based chain of fast-food restaurants.
The first Wetzel's Pretzels location opened in 1994 at the South Bay Galleria, in Redondo Beach, California. Today, Wetzel's Pretzels has 250 stores around the world.
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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
Terry Finley, West Point Thoroughbreds
Terry Finley, a former Army captain, has been involved with horse racing and Thoroughbred industry for more than 25 years.
He started racing partnerships in 1991. With 20 to 25 horses participating in a race every year, Terry has investors who can make a fortune when the horses win. Since 2007, their horses have won more than 20 per cent of races.
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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
Dana Sinkler and Alex Dzieduszycki, Terra Chips
Dana Sinkler and Alex Dzieduszycki were working in a restaurant in New York before they ventured into the catering business.
Their company Terra Chips revolutionised the natural snacks market with different kind of vegetable chips.
The company claims to offer wholesome gourmet snack foods that are made with 100 per cent natural ingredients.
The company became a huge success, with private equity group acquiring a 51 per cent stake in the company. Sinkler has also started a new restaurant called Hubee D's.
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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
Adam Lowry and Eric Ryan, Method
Best friends turned entrepreneurs Adam Lowry and Eric Ryan founded one of the fastest-growing private companies in America.
Eric knew people wanted cleaning products without any dirty ingredients. So they created an entire line of eco-friendly cleaning products. Their product fetches more than $100 million in annual sales.
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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
Rod Johnstone, J/Boats
An ad salesman for the sailing trade magazine, Soundings, and an active one-design sailor, Rod decided to build a sailboat he had been designing since completing a Westlawn School of Yacht Design correspondence course in the 60's.
With a $20,000 investment, and a speedy 24-foot sailboat that Rod Johnstone built in his garage, Rod & his brother Bob Johnstone went into business in 1977. Now, that boat (the J/24), has become the most popular recreational offshore keelboat in the world.
In addition to the 5,400 J/24s cruising the waves, there are over 7,000 more J/Boats, ranging from the International J/22 to the J/65, that sailing enthusiasts have bought at prices ranging from $10,000 to $2,000,000.
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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
Andy Schamisso, Inko's White Tea
While working in the public relations field, Andy discovered that he could make a fortune from white tea.
While the store ran out of white tea, he realized that there was no premium, white-tea-focused beverage company dedicated to making white tea. There was no better product available in the market either. Inko's White Tea was much appreciated.
Today, the company has 14 varieties of white tea in the market and annual sales of $3 million.
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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
Kim and Beaver Raymond, Marshmallow Fun Company
The creative duo, Kim and Beaver Raymond gave up a job in the fashion industry to toys.
They once made a toy for their son, which became quite popular. The Marshmallow Shooter has become a household name. The company has seen $7.5 million in sales this year.
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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
Rocky Patel, Rocky Patel Cigars
An lawyer in Los Angeles, Rocky Patel was introduced to cigars at Hollywood studios. Fine cigars turned out to be a a passion for him. He soon became one the original founding members of the Grand Havana Club.
While looking out for the best cigars, Patel realised that there was a good potential in this industry. He then made up his mind to start a company offering the best cigars. He launched the the Indian Tabac Cigar Company in 1996 in Cincinnati.
Customers instantly liked the product for its distinct packaging and high quality.
Rocky Patel Premium Cigars stay ahead of competition by offering the highest value cigars at reasonable prices, the company says. Currently, it produces 20,000,000 cigars annually.
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They quit good jobs and became millionaires!
Paul English, Kayak
Paul English was working at the venture capital firm Greylock in 2004 when Steve Hafner, who had founded Orbitz, told him about his idea for a different kind of travel company.
After a one-hour meeting, English and Hafner formed Kayak, an online travel search engine. English quit his job at Greylock and started working as chief technology officer for the new website.
Kayak, which searches hundreds of travel sites at once to find deals on airfare, hotels and rental cars, is now one of the top travel sites in the market.
The company reported $170.6 million in revenue for the nine months ending Sept. 30, 2011. It processed 670 million user queries for travel information and had 5 million downloads of its mobile applications during the period.