At the ripe old age of 11, Asia Newson isn’t just a businesswoman—in the words of Jay Z, she’s also a “business, [wo]man.” The young Detroiter has already been featured on Ellen and a TEDx talk.
As the co-founder and CEO of Super Business Girl, a company she runs with her parents, Asia has been labeled Detroit’s youngest entrepreneur. But none of that has stopped Asia’s hustle, and she’s still hitting the pavement to achieve her goals. Literally.
Asia was recently spotted on the streets of Detroit trying to raise money by selling candles and coming across a generous stranger. Asia gave the woman her sales pitch and asked for a $20 donation. But she got much more than that:
Asia’s business acumen has attracted the likes of everyone from NBA team owner Dan Gilbert to Detroit startup experts Dave Anderson, Mike Ferlito, Amanda Lewan and Brian Davis, the owners of Bamboo Detroit. According to ABC News, they were so impressed by Asia’s pitching abilities, they now give her free space and Internet support for which to run her business.
“I was so impressed with her pitch, I just wanted to give her all the money in my pocket,” Anderson told 20/20.
“You know, she really understands business concepts a lot better than most adults that I interact with, and it’s just a natural thing,” Anderson said.
Asia says the key to being great in sales and business is getting people motivated, and at age 11, she’s definitely on the right track. Asia plans to use her skills to help others in the long run, and in a couple of years, who knows, she just may be sitting at the head of her expanded business.
“My ultimate, ultimate dream is to have schools all over the world, not just in America, that have professors and teachers in them that [teach] at-risk youth how to become entrepreneurs and empower themselves,” she says.