A Sombra teen has started a side hustle selling T-shirts designed to inspire.
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In August Kaden Burnham, a 16-year-old Grade 12 student at Great Lakes Secondary school in Sarnia, launched Adrylx, a business selling T-shirts, hoodies and other sports apparel with inspirational messages.
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“I’ve always looked up to entrepreneurs who have started businesses and are trying to build something bigger than themselves,” Burnham said.
He took experience he had from operating a lawn-mowing business with his brother to start Adrylx.
“I wanted to create a brand that would motivate and connect people,” Burnham said.
A basketball, volleyball, soccer and tennis player who plans to study to become a gym teacher, he started out by thinking about athletes that inspired him.
“NBA player Russell Westbrook was the first athlete that came to mind,” he said. “I’ve always admired the dedication, passion and intensity in how he plays.”
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Burnham said that when he was thinking about a name for the venture, he wrote words down and ideas connected to the inspiration he received from other athletes.
“I eventually landed on the word Adrylx,” he said. “It’s a playful combination of the words adrenaline and athletics.”
At school, Burnham is also part of a project selling T-shirts to raise money to help support mental health awareness.
“I have also experienced firsthand someone I love struggling with mental health,” Burnham said. “This inspired me to donate a portion of Adrlyx’s revenue to mental health awareness as part of my business plan.”
He sources the clothing from a Sarnia company and sells it online at adrylx.com, and in person to friends and other local athletes. The apparel is printed with slogans such as “Now before never” and “Prove them wrong.”
“I want people to look good when wearing Adrlyx and feel good because they are supporting something that is trying to make a difference in the world,” he said.
“It has been going really good so far,” Burnham said. “I’ve sold roughly 40 or 50 shirts.”
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