BILLIONAIRE investor Mark Cuban has revealed the biggest handbrake preventing a side hustle from becoming a career is when people are making money for someone else and not themselves.
In an exclusive interview with The U.S. Sun, the Dallas Mavericks minority stakeholder and Shark Tank star said too many people approach a side hustle the wrong way.
Billionaire investor Mark Cuban says some entrepreneurs are approaching side hustles the wrong way[/caption]
Billionaire investor Mark Cuban reveals the biggest mistake entrepreneurs are making[/caption]
Shark Tank judge Mark Cuban has thrown his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris in the US Presidential election[/caption]
He said many budding entrepreneurs were “getting confused” and thinking they could be successful by working for someone else rather than for themselves.
“Side hustles are good side hustles, as long as you’re not putting out money to someone else,” Cuban told The U.S. Sun.
“I think people get confused.”
Using the example of “drop shipping” for sneakers, Cuban warned that the process was “a problem” and likely to fail because it could not scale.
Dropshipping is a retail business model where a seller sells something without keeping it in stock.
Under the concept, a customer makes an order, and the store forwards it with payment to a “dropshipping” supplier, who then ships the product to the customer.
The concept is discussed in online retail forums as an “extremely convenient” and “highly profitable” retail business model for entrepreneurs.
It depends on the sale of niche or in-demand products that can be sold at high margins.
However, Cuban isn’t convinced.
“They see TikTok, they’re going to be drop shippers, they’re going to get in line for drops for sneakers, and I think those are a problem.
“But once you’re able to get any traction at all and you want to grow into something else.”
Side hustles are booming in today’s economy as workers battle inflationary headwinds and rising expenses.
According to a recent study conducted by One Poll, 40% of Americans have a side hustle.
Of those respondents with a side gig, 48% of them started it solely to make ends meet.
The U.S. Sun sat down with Cuban for an exclusive on-camera interview in the New York studio, discussing a number of issues, including politics, Shark Tank, business, the retail crisis, and sports.
COMMUNITIES “WILL DIE”
In a wide-ranging interview, Cuban warned businesses would be better off without politicians meddling in the economy and insisted the next US president needed to “shut up.”
The billionaire investor also said American communities would “die” if policymakers and business owners don’t act to prevent further closures of brick-and-mortar stores amid growing concern over the nation’s so-called retail apocalypse in recent years.
Calling it “a big problem to solve,” the entrepreneur said all levels of government should work with entrepreneurs to prevent a growing number of food and pharmaceutical deserts.
“If you just say, just let the market take care of it, we see what happens, communities die,” Cuban warned.
“And so we have to be open-minded. The way I look at it personally, there’s a problem to solve.”
CUSTOMERS “KNOW BEST”
When quizzed on his best advice for business owners trying to grow their enterprises, Cuban said they must talk to their customers, especially people with side hustles trying to turn them into careers.
Cuban told The U.S. Sun that a business owners’ customer base could be an invaluable resource for determining whether an idea was scalable.
Talk to your customers, you know, they’ll tell you if they think there’s more scale because they typically know other customers
Mark Cuban
“Talk to your customers, you know, they’ll tell you if they think there’s more scale because they typically know other customers.
“And so when I first got started, I got fired from a job, and it wasn’t a side hustle, it was my life.
“But to grow it, I would just talk to my customers and say, look, you know what I do?
“You know how I helped your business; who else should I be talking to?”
Cuban argued that the customers themselves best know the business and may be able to share useful advice on things that the owner is doing wrong or even share other contacts who may be interested in the product.
“You could be mowing lawns, you could be doing anything, but if you just talk to your customers, they’ll refer you to people, and that’ll give you a sense of whether or not you can grow the company,” Cuban said.
SELF MADE BILLIONAIRE
According to Forbes, Cuban is estimated to have a net worth of over $6 billion.
He is a self-made billionaire who amassed his fortune through various business ventures, investments, and media appearances.
He first made significant money from selling tech platform MicroSolutions in 1990 for $6 million.
The entrepreneur is known for his outspoken and generous nature and now invests his time and money in a new venture called Cost Plus Drugs.
Built on the idea that all Americans should have access to safe, affordable medicines even without insurance, the company aims to disrupt the drug industry and reduce the price of everyday medications.
The company works directly with drug manufacturers to bypass middlemen and lower prices.
It also transparently displays what it pays for medicine.
