A Fife teenager who runs a successful car valet operation says other young people shouldn’t be afraid to take a risk and start a business.
Kenzie Mcleod left Balwearie High School in fifth year to start a mechanical engineering course at Fife College last year.
He quickly realised the course wasn’t for him. But instead of switching courses, finding a job or starting an apprenticeship, he became a self-employed business owner at the age of 17.
His Burntisland company, Elite Valet, was inspired by a video on social media platform TikTok.
Kenzie, now 18, recalls: “I was scrolling and saw a video of a guy with a foam cannon spraying a car. I thought ‘that looks like something I could do’.
“I watched more videos online and thought I’d give it a go.
“So I went to my local Halfords and grabbed a starter kit, got in touch with a couple of my family members, and practised on their cars to start with.
“That was in April last year. It started as a hobby that built into a business and I left my college course in July.”
Growing Fife car valet business
Kenzie said interest grew when he started posting before and after pictures on Facebook. He also built up good relationships with local garages while he continued to teach himself new skills and invest in better equipment.
Towards the end of last year, he took a unit at Meadowfield Industrial Estate.
He now offers inside and outside valets, paint correction and ceramic coating.
“News has spread around Burntisland about what I can do,” he said.
“Social media has helped and I post in local groups, so I’m busy.
“My plan now is to continue to scale the business and hopefully take somebody on who can help me.”
Kenzie says his friends are surprised he’s started in business, but says more young should give it a go.
“You’ve got nothing to lose at this age,” the young entrepreneur said.
“It’s the perfect time to take the risk. When something feels hard and you’re scared to do it, that’s exactly the time to do it.”
Conversation