About Brandon l. Griffin
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Entrepreneur (Full Biography) | Student | Philanthropist | Speaker/Expert
Entrepreneur (Full Biography)
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In a city 30 miles southeast of Chicago, famous for the birth of Michael Jackson and infamously known as “The Murder Capital of the United States”, Gary, Indiana’s children are being put in a position to create and capitalize on amazing opportunities. In an impoverished inner city with little to no economic growth, an 18 year old entrepreneur is dedicated to empowering the youth and inspiring the discouraged. In the year 2000, at the early age of ten years old, Brandon L. Griffin started his first business, BLG Publishing (formerly Griffin Household Press). Brandon started his second business venture, Quality Web Solutions, at the age of twelve, in 2002. For five successful years Quality Web Solutions provided web development services, and in 2007 Brandon merged the business into BLG Publishing.
In 2004, Brandon began to speak nationally to youth; motivating them to think of entrepreneurship as a way to successfully use their interests, skills, and knowledge. 
At a national conference for young entrepreneurs Brandon announced the launch of www.FyeBye.com, a website for youth who were interested in business. Through FyeBye (For Young Entrepreneurs…By Young Entrepreneurs) Brandon’s mission was to share the knowledge he gained when trying to start a business at a young age with other youth. In 2006, after two years of planning and preparation, BLG Publishing gained the support of Wendy’s International and Comcast to launch the first issue of FyeBye Magazine, the first national business publication with content written by youth. The magazine reached an estimated 60,000 students with its One Year Anniversary Issue in 2007 with the help of The McKelvey Foundation (which provides $40,000 scholarships to youth entrepreneurs), and Don H. Barden’s Barden Gary Foundation (the first corporation in the United States to sponsor the publication in classrooms).
In 2007, Brandon founded the Brandon L. Griffin Foundation – A Fund of Tides Foundation, a charitable fund which promotes youth entrepreneurship. He is also the leader and founder of the Entrepreneurship In Schools Initiative. CampusCalm.com, an online community where students speak out about grades, stress, and personal well-being call Brandon, “The industry expert in youth entrepreneurship”.
Brandon works closely with Don H. Barden’s Barden Gary Foundation to motivate Gary, IN youth to take advantage of the scholarship opportunities provided by Barden’s Foundation. He is also the Director of Corporate Development and Community Relations of Griffin Realty Company, a growing minority-owned real estate company in Northwest Indiana.
Brandon has been featured in the following magazines: Black Enterprise, NAACP Crisis Magazine, BusINessMagazine, Ebony Magazine & Indiana Business Magazine.
Brandon has been featured in the following books: Campus CEO by Randall Pinkett, & Make $1,000 in 35 Days, for Young Entrepreneurs by Kandias Conda. He was awarded Youth Entrepreneur of the Year by each of the following organizations: Indiana Black Expo (IBE), Illinois Institute for Entrepreneurship Education (IIEE), NWI Small Business Development Center (SBDC), Small Business Administration (SBA), the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), and Computer Resource Solutions. The Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) & Merrill Lynch honored Brandon as a Growing Up CEO and Merrill Lynch Atlantic Fellow. Brandon was the first person to be inducted into the Society of Innovators under the age of eighteen, and at the age of eighteen was named one of twenty most successful business people under the age of forty by BusINess Magazine.
Brandon is a recent graduate of West Side High School (Gary, IN) and is studying Business: Entrepreneurship at Purdue University – Calumet.
Brandon L. Griffin is a recent graduate of the Academically Gifted Programs at West Side High School, in Gary, Indiana (Gary Community School Corporation). Brandon attended Tolleston Middle School, in Gary, for his middle school years (6th grade - 8th grade, and Banneker Achievement Center for his K-5th grade years). During high school, Brandon was active in many activities. A few included:
FyeBye Entrepreneurship Club of West Side High School, Founder
Speech/Drama/Debate Team
Student Council - Vice President
Intra-City Student Council (City of Gary/Gary Community Schools)
He is currently a freshman at Purdue University - Calumet (Hammond, IN), and is majoring in Business: Entrepreneurship. Brandon is president of the Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization of Purdue University - Calumet, and publicist for the Univeristy Village Hall Council.
In 2007, Brandon L. Griffin founded the Brandon L. Griffin Foundation - A Fund of Tides Foundation. Brandon is also the leader of the Entrepreneurship In Schools Initiative, a program of BLG Publishing and the Brandon L. Griffin Foundation - A Fund of Tides Foundation. For more information visit please visit the official website. More Information
In 2003, after Brandon attended the NAACP Reginald F. Lewis Youth Entrepreneurial Institute, he began his mission to inspire. Brandon began to speak to people, especially youth, about the opportunities that there are for them to start a business at an early age vs. waiting until they are 30 or when they finish college.
Brandon travels across the world, and has spoken before thousands. From youth to middle-aged adults, Brandon has what it takes to get the crowd moving to accomplish their goals and objectives. Brandon speaks on a variety of topics from creating a basic web page to increasing the revenue of a business and maximizing its profits.
CampusCalm.com has named Brandon L. Griffin the expert in youth entrepreneurship. View monthly tips from Brandon and other experts on the CampusCalm.com's Expert Circle at CampusCalm.com
A few clients include: Junior Achievement, Gary Community School Corporation, Black Enterprise Magazine, NAACP, Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization (CEO), Institute for Entrepreneurship (Coleman Foundation), Illinois Institute for Entrepreneurship Education (IIEE), Merrill Lynch, Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, and .INC Magazine
Featured Topics:
*Youth Entrepreneurship For Students 101 (Popular Request)
*Youth Entrepreneurship For Parents/Teachers 101 (Popular Request)
*Corporate Philanthropy & Social Responsibility (Popular Request)
* The Potential You Have (Popular Request)
* Journey To Success (Popular Request)
* Creating a Legacy (Popular Request)
* Talents From God (Popular Request)
* Ways To Network Your Business to Greater Heights
* Using Your Website to Increase Your Revenue
* Using Who You Know To Get To Where You Want To Go
* Turn Your Hobby Into a Branded Empire
* How to Motivate Your Employees to Increase Profits For Your Business
* How to Plan So That You Don't Fail
* Sell or Sink - Sucessfully Sell To Customers
* How To Motivate Students To Take Action
* Be Different - Be Successful
* Create The Script & Play The Part
* Turn Your Vision Into A Money Making Reality
* How To Give Yourself a Promotion
* Customer Servicing All The Way To The Bank
* How To Make Extra-Income So That You Can Be Free
* How To Make Your Money Work For You
If you would like to book Brandon L. Griffin to speak/appear at your next event Click Here
Brandon L. Griffin with Earl Graves (Black Enterprise Magazine) and Don H. Barden (Majestic Star & Fitzgerald Casinos) .