A Profile on Alex Fantappiè: A Student Entrepreneur Pushing the Youth Forward
A Profile on Alex Fantappiè: A Student Entrepreneur Pushing the Youth Forward
by Alex Fantappiè
Rancho Palos Verdes, CA—I am one of the few lucky people who figured out my purpose in life before I turned thirteen years old. It was a lazy Sunday afternoon in 2012 when my dad plopped a book about marketing into my lap. I had become bored of re-reading and re-re-reading Harry Potter and was in search of something new, so I wearily decided to give it a shot.
Realizing that entrepreneurship was my passion did not come to me in the way of a single “Eureka” moment. Instead, as I consumed more and more books and articles about marketing, finance, and startups, a feeling of clarity began to settle inside me; I had realized what I wanted to be in life.
It wasn’t until 2014 that my next epiphany came. When I first started learning about entrepreneurship, I had assumed that I needed to wait until after college to start my own venture. After attending a business camp, however, I observed dozens of students my age building companies from scratch, and in an instant my life changed when I realized that I could do the same.
By the time high school had ended, I had created a nonprofit that helped small businesses improve their digital marketing efforts, a clothing brand that infused classic branding with modern streetwear, and a tutoring company where I enlisted several of my friends to do peer-to-peer tutoring for younger students in the district. The tutoring company (by the name of Smartr Tutoring) proved to be by far the most successful, mainly due to the experience I had gained over the years from starting and failing many times. Not only did Smartr allow me to earn guaranteed money for myself and my friends, but we were also making a real impact on the community by offering high quality, affordable academic help to dozens of students on the hill. Throughout those years, I realized that entrepreneurship gave me the freedom to do whatever I wanted and be creative, though it also meant that I had to motivate myself to get things done and be okay with taking risks and making mistakes.
After spending a couple of years at Babson College continuing to learn the true ins and outs of creating and managing a company, I am now using all of the lessons I’ve learned since the age of thirteen to launch my newest venture, known as Avanti.
Avanti is a platform that allows you to hire a local, qualified high school student for services like private tutoring, dog walking, car washing, technology help, and more. The mission of Avanti is to close the gap between capable high school students looking for ways to save up for college and adults in the area who would rather book a service with a student who grew up in their neighborhood rather than a random stranger from the next town over. The name “Avanti” comes from the Italian word for “forward,” encapsulating both the mission of the company and Italian traditions I grew up upholding.
After a summer full of difficult but extremely rewarding work for myself and my co-founder/best friend Matt Hashimoto, Avanti launched on August 31st of 2020. We are already starting to provide weekly income for dozens of PVPUSD students while becoming the central hub for Peninsula residents to find help when they need it.
Although we are starting small, our dreams are big. We believe there is a need for Avanti is every neighborhood in the world, and that’s where are ambitions lie. I hope to one day use Avanti to inspire thousands of students to think more about financial independence and entrepreneurship before college and pass on the lessons I was lucky enough to learn when I was a kid. For anyone reading this and wanting to pursue entrepreneurship, the best advice I can give is to get your hands dirty right away. Whether it’s a marketing agency, a tee shirt brand, or anything else, you’ll learn way more by getting out there and trying it out. And who knows, it might be the next big thing!
~to hire a local student helper with Avanti or learn more, visit www.joinavanti.com.~
Rancho Palos Verdes, California — When everything shut down over the summer, Peninsula High School alumni Alex Fantappiè ’18 and Matt Hashimoto ’18 decided to spend their extra time at home trying to create something that would make the community grow stronger during these difficult times.
During high school, Alex started multiple businesses, including a digital marketing consulting firm, a clothing brand, and a tutoring company called “Smartr Tutoring”. Alex recruited his friends to be the tutors on the platform (including Matt) and the business was a hit. With almost no money spent on marketing, sales soared to more than $10,000. Today, Alex notes the experience of Smartr as “the first time [he] fell in love with entrepreneurship.” He credits Smartr with teaching him about marketing, customer service, and managing employees. Many of Smartr’s customers found the service so professional that they never even knew it was run by a high school student.
The most valuable lesson Alex learned from Smartr was the realization that high school students are just as capable, if not more so, than adults at doing jobs like tutoring, dog walking, car washing, and more. This idea stuck with him during the first two years of college, and he finally turned the idea into a reality with the launch of Avanti.
Avanti allows adults on the hill to hire a local, qualified high school student for services like tutoring, dog walking, car washing, and technology help. You can now visit Avanti’s website to get matched with one of the 40+ PVPUSD students that have passed through an extensive application process to be listed as verified Avanti helpers on the platform.
To make it as easy as possible for customers, Avanti makes it a point to have all of its helpers go through a rigorous three-step application process before being accepted.
Alex and his team’s goals are to keep growing Avanti’s job offerings and expand its service area throughout the South Bay and beyond. If PVPUSD continues to produce students like these, it’s safe to say the Peninsula is in good hands. To learn more about Avanti and hire your first helper, visit www.joinavanti.com
Alex Fantappiè
Chief Executive Officer
Matt Hashimoto
Chief Technology Officer
Where the passion comes from
Just a few years ago, when we were in high school, no practical opportunities existed for us to save up for college while keeping up with a demanding high school schedule. Now that we're in college, we want to solve this problem for the millions of high school students who struggle to apply for college and save up for it at the same time.
On top of that, we want to strengthen communities. By using Avanti to hire a local student, you can get help safely and affordably while investing in the future of your own neighborhood.
Although we are thinking big, our focus is narrow. We care about the small-town neighborhoods that we grew up in, and as a company that is where our attention will stay. In the future, our goal is to create lasting impact in hard-hit communities by giving time and money to those who need it.
We can't wait for you to come along with us for this crazy ride. There's just one thing left.
Hire a helper today.