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Teen mowing on a mission

While most teens are chasing likes on social media, Yarrabilba teen Ethan Thew is chasing lawns that need mowing.

At just 15, Ethan spends his afternoons and weekends making cash by running his own lawn care business.

The budding business owner doesn’t have a car license yet, but that doesn’t stop him as he tows his mower and whipper snipper to job sites on his mountain bike.

His entrepreneurial journey began when he was just 13, seeking a way to earn some extra pocket money.

“When I was a little kid, I used to love gardening,” Ethan said.

“I asked my mum and dad, if I could do a little mowing thing to get some pocket money.”

Ethan would mow his parent’s lawn and his neighbour’s lawn, which soon expanded to a couple of more houses on the street.

As customers in the street increased, Ethan approached his neighbour, who helped him create a custom-built trailer for his bike to carry his equipment.

From there, Ethan’s business started to grow.

“I started with one of those trailers where you put your kids in. Then I upgraded it to a bigger one,” he said.

“I carry everything I need on it like a mower, whipper snipper, some fuel, a rake, a broom, and some safety cones.”

To get the word out even further, Ethan resorted to traditional methods, door-knocking on local houses to offer his services.

His dedication to the work is evident, often taking pride in the results of his hard work.

“I usually take some photos for customers who aren’t home to let them know the work is done,” he said.

“The photos remind me that ‘oh wow, I’ve done a good job’”.

Ethan’s parents, Michaela and Terry Thew, are proud of their son’s initiative.

“It makes me and his dad very proud that he used that initiative because Ethan has some learning difficulties,” Mrs Thew said.

“His intention was to go for a normal job, but when he wasn’t successful, that’s when he came up with the idea of mowing.”

Mrs Thew also noted how Ethan has grown his business from just a few clients to five regular ones, using local community pages to advertise his services.

“His business now has five regular clients which is awesome,” she said.

“He’s worked really hard promoting his business on the Yarrabilba community local pages to drum up more work.”

Mrs Thew also praised Ethan’s work ethic and passion for his business.

“He’s a perfectionist when it comes to doing the whipper-snipper side of it,” Mrs Thew said.

“That’s the most difficult part of the job and he loves that the most.”

Looking ahead, Ethan has big plans for his business, including saving up for an e-bike to make transporting his equipment through the hilly Yarrabilba easier.

“The e-bike would be awesome to have because it’s quite difficult towing a mower around,” Ethan said.

Mrs Thew believes these goals will teach Ethan valuable lessons about hard work and perseverance.

“Purchasing the e-bike himself, instead of us buying it for him, from his own business money would mean a lot,” she said.

“It’s something he can look back on and say, ‘I did that with my hard work.’”

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