Recent College Grad Starts Small Business in Starbucks

When James Doren graduated from the University of Delaware and moved to Mahwah last May, he didn’t consider himself an entrepreneur. The 23-year-old applied for a job in data consulting at the Application Consulting Group in Parsippany, and started working there last June.

“It’s what I always wanted to do, working in this field was my goal” he said. “And, I still really like my job.”

But, by the end of last year, Doren said he realized that a lifelong hobby of his could help him rake in some extra dough, if he used the resources in and around his new community the right way.

“I’ve always done web designing,” he said. “It’s fun, and I like it. But, I didn’t really think of doing it professionally until I realized I could.”

Last December, Doren created for himself a personal website with his resume and professional experiences – a sort of personalized LinkedIn page.

“It got me thinking, if there are other people out there who are looking for jobs, a site like this could help them stand out. They might want to buy a personal site like this if the price was right.”

From there, Doren formed Development Made Simple, his own web design company. Doren said he is focusing on local, hoping to build up a customer base of nearby residents and small businesses that want websites, but don’t have the budget to hire big development firms.

And, what better way to attract local customers than to work among them?

So, instead of searching for an office, Doren works everyday from a location that has quiet, WiFi, and potential customers already built in – the Starbucks on Franklin Turnpike in Ramsey.

Each day, Doren heads to his day job in Parsippany first. He gets home at around 6 p.m., but instead of heading to his house, he goes straight to his “second office.”

“I usually stay here working until they kick me out, which usually happens about an hour after Starbucks closes, around 11.”

Doren says he fits into the Starbucks crowd – he has his laptop out, and often will buy dinner there to eat while he works. Most would never imagine that he’s slowly building a web design empire from his unconventional office.

“It’s definitely not an east schedule, but if I went straight home, it’d be way easier to slack off and not get done what I need to get done,” he said.

Though his business is still in the beginning stages, Doren said he hopes Development Made Simple will become a staple in the community.

“Who knows? Maybe I can grow to the point where I handle a lot of local accounts and hire a few people to work for me,” he said. “I think that’s a few years down the road, but definitely something I want to do.”

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