30under30 is an Anthill initiative that was launched in early 2008 to encourage and promote entrepreneurship among young Australians. Each year, we invite our readers to nominate young Australian entrepreneurs deserving of recognition for their outstanding entrepreneurial endeavours. Anthill’s editorial team then trawls through hundreds of applications and identifies and profiles the top 30 Australian entrepreneurs under the age of 30. The process culminates in an event held in Melbourne where the 30 winners network and celebrate. We’ve been releasing profiles of this year’s Anthill 30under30 winners via our Twitter account – youngest to oldest.
Jeremy Levitt once had a promising career at the international law firm Allens Arthur Robinson. For him, entrepreneurship was just a pipe dream, and it wasn’t until the moment he finally shook off the guilt associated with leaving the law firm that the dream had become reality.
He has since founded two businesses, PodProperty and Serviceseeking.com.au, growing both at 10 to 24 percent month-on-month since the beginning of global financial crisis.
His first business, PodProperty, is a service that assists groups of people to jointly purchase properties. Its clients include parents helping out children to buy their first home, friends teaming up to buy an investment property and siblings buying a holiday home. Levitt won the support of CBA and Mortgage Choice and has made PodProperty their recommended co-ownership agreement provider.
His second business, ServiceSeeking.com.au, is an online marketplace that allows service providers to bid for projects posted by other people. Levitt negotiated high-level alliance partnerships with the likes of NRMA, eBay and Truelocal.
“I am constantly thinking of new problems to solve, always planning the next business and trying to develop as an entrepreneur,” says Levitt. He networks with as many different entrepreneurs as he can, and learns from their experiences and mistakes.
As a school student, Levitt enjoyed competing academically with his peers. “Entrepreneurship is a natural extension of the school yard, requiring you to closely monitor your competition, work out the weaknesses of your corporate peers and derive strategies so you can squash them like bugs!” he says, “I love competition — being ‘Number One’ is my biggest motivator.”
ENTREPRENEURSHIP LESSONS ACCORDING TO JEREMY
How to find your business partner
“I enjoy pitching business concepts to friends. The co-founder of ServiceSeeking.com.au is a friend from kindergarten, who is now my business partner. [As an entrepreneur you] need the ability to trust yourself and your friends. I believe if you kick something around for long enough, it starts to look like a ball! For that, you need good, trustworthy friends that you can share original ideas with — and accept criticism without falling apart!”
MULTIMEDIA
Three simple steps to use ServiceSeeking.com.au to find a service provider.
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