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http://www.asiaone.com/Business/SME+Central/Prime+Movers/Story/A1Story20090517-141957.html
Mon, May 18, 2009
The New Paper
Teen makes up to $5,000 a month from magic
By Crystal Chan
LIKE many boys his age, Gabriel Wong, 17, studies in a neighbourhood secondary school.
But unknown to many of his peers, Gabriel is a businessman too.
In 2007, Gabriel started his own company, Magicrazed, which provides magic shows for private functions and lessons on magic tricks.
Magicrazed is a one-man show - besides performing shows, Gabriel manages the corporate website and the accounts.
In a good month, Gabriel said he can make as much as $5,000, although in lull months, his earnings can drop to below $1,000.
His love affair with magic began when he was 5. His childcare centre had invited Ronald McDonald to perform, and he was mesmerised.
'He made flowers appear from an empty vase and he also made 10 magic wands appear from his bare hands. At that point in time, I fell in love with magic,' said Gabriel.
His interest was further fuelled a few years later, when he saw David Copperfield perform on television.
From the age of 8, Gabriel began learning magic tricks from books and has never looked back since.
He said: 'After more information on magic tricks became available on the Internet, I surfed the Internet to learn more tricks.'
Gabriel began performing at private functions when he was in secondary school.
His parents helped to spread word about their only child's abilities, and that helped to win him contacts.
Wanted to be own boss
But Gabriel felt it was necessary for him to open a company to enable him to reach out to more potential customers.
And he did not want to wait till he finished school to do so.
He said: 'I wanted to achieve something immense before I really step into society. I also wanted to earn more money for a better quality of life.
'I read self-help books like Rich Dad Poor Dad and I was inspired to be an entrepreneur.'
He roped in three primary school friends for the business venture.
As he is still under 18, his mother had to register Magicrazed in her name.
The company had a paid-up capital of $10,000, contributed by Gabriel's parents and relatives.
Gabriel's mother, Madam Jenny Poh, 47, a patient services officer, told The New Paper she supported her son as she believes he has the talent for magic tricks.
She said: 'If given the right opportunities to excel, amazing things can happen. If not, his talent will be lost.'
Being a new company, Magicraze had a bumpy ride and business was slack.
Seeing that the company was not making money and having trouble juggling work and studies, two of Gabriel's friends backed out of the business.
Undaunted, Gabriel thought of ways to grow his business.
Besides selling merchandise for magic tricks on Magicrazed's website, Gabriel also got his company affiliated with Imuone International Group, a business networking company.
By leveraging on the contacts Imuone provided, Gabriel received more requests for his services and that brought in more income.
He admitted it wasn't easy to juggle work and studies as both commitments were time-consuming.
He said: 'Without my parents, I wouldn't be able to handle the amount of stress I faced at the start of the business, when I faced criticism and sarcasm from my friends, who mocked me by telling me to stop daydreaming and being childish.
'My parents never said anything negative. My mum told me studies aren't everything and I shouldn't waste my talent and passion for magic.'
Gabriel manages his time by reserving Fridays and weekends for his magic shows and revising his schoolwork from Mondays to Thursdays.
He scored five distinctions for his N levels last year.
He declined to say how much he charges for giving lessons and performing.
What about studies?
Gabriel will be taking his O levels this year.
He said: 'It's likely that I'll go to a polytechnic as I still believe education is a foundation for success. A junior college is definitely not for me as it's too academic. I want something that's more hands-on.'
Veteran ventriloquist and magician Victor Khoo feels Gabriel is doing well considering that his occupation is only part-time.
He said: 'For someone aged 17, earning $5,000 in a month is a lot, since he's only a semi-professional. But if it's a full-time job, $5,000 isn't a lot these days.
'But in all kinds of jobs, education should come first. An O-level certificate is nothing these days. If Gabriel can manage his studies and magic tricks, then why not?
'It's not every day that you have corporate events. I wouldn't advise him to stop studying because he's not going to be performing every night.'
Mon, May 18, 2009
The New Paper
Teen makes up to $5,000 a month from magic
By Crystal Chan
LIKE many boys his age, Gabriel Wong, 17, studies in a neighbourhood secondary school.
But unknown to many of his peers, Gabriel is a businessman too.
In 2007, Gabriel started his own company, Magicrazed, which provides magic shows for private functions and lessons on magic tricks.
Magicrazed is a one-man show - besides performing shows, Gabriel manages the corporate website and the accounts.
In a good month, Gabriel said he can make as much as $5,000, although in lull months, his earnings can drop to below $1,000.
His love affair with magic began when he was 5. His childcare centre had invited Ronald McDonald to perform, and he was mesmerised.
'He made flowers appear from an empty vase and he also made 10 magic wands appear from his bare hands. At that point in time, I fell in love with magic,' said Gabriel.
His interest was further fuelled a few years later, when he saw David Copperfield perform on television.
From the age of 8, Gabriel began learning magic tricks from books and has never looked back since.
He said: 'After more information on magic tricks became available on the Internet, I surfed the Internet to learn more tricks.'
Gabriel began performing at private functions when he was in secondary school.
His parents helped to spread word about their only child's abilities, and that helped to win him contacts.
Wanted to be own boss
But Gabriel felt it was necessary for him to open a company to enable him to reach out to more potential customers.
And he did not want to wait till he finished school to do so.
He said: 'I wanted to achieve something immense before I really step into society. I also wanted to earn more money for a better quality of life.
'I read self-help books like Rich Dad Poor Dad and I was inspired to be an entrepreneur.'
He roped in three primary school friends for the business venture.
As he is still under 18, his mother had to register Magicrazed in her name.
The company had a paid-up capital of $10,000, contributed by Gabriel's parents and relatives.
Gabriel's mother, Madam Jenny Poh, 47, a patient services officer, told The New Paper she supported her son as she believes he has the talent for magic tricks.
She said: 'If given the right opportunities to excel, amazing things can happen. If not, his talent will be lost.'
Being a new company, Magicraze had a bumpy ride and business was slack.
Seeing that the company was not making money and having trouble juggling work and studies, two of Gabriel's friends backed out of the business.
Undaunted, Gabriel thought of ways to grow his business.
Besides selling merchandise for magic tricks on Magicrazed's website, Gabriel also got his company affiliated with Imuone International Group, a business networking company.
By leveraging on the contacts Imuone provided, Gabriel received more requests for his services and that brought in more income.
He admitted it wasn't easy to juggle work and studies as both commitments were time-consuming.
He said: 'Without my parents, I wouldn't be able to handle the amount of stress I faced at the start of the business, when I faced criticism and sarcasm from my friends, who mocked me by telling me to stop daydreaming and being childish.
'My parents never said anything negative. My mum told me studies aren't everything and I shouldn't waste my talent and passion for magic.'
Gabriel manages his time by reserving Fridays and weekends for his magic shows and revising his schoolwork from Mondays to Thursdays.
He scored five distinctions for his N levels last year.
He declined to say how much he charges for giving lessons and performing.
What about studies?
Gabriel will be taking his O levels this year.
He said: 'It's likely that I'll go to a polytechnic as I still believe education is a foundation for success. A junior college is definitely not for me as it's too academic. I want something that's more hands-on.'
Veteran ventriloquist and magician Victor Khoo feels Gabriel is doing well considering that his occupation is only part-time.
He said: 'For someone aged 17, earning $5,000 in a month is a lot, since he's only a semi-professional. But if it's a full-time job, $5,000 isn't a lot these days.
'But in all kinds of jobs, education should come first. An O-level certificate is nothing these days. If Gabriel can manage his studies and magic tricks, then why not?
'It's not every day that you have corporate events. I wouldn't advise him to stop studying because he's not going to be performing every night.'
