How Selling Knives in College Inspired My Business Today

During the entrepreneurship forum at the Pinnacle Business School, we were honoured to have one of the alumni speak to us on his entrepreneurship journey. Jack Williams is the founder of HikePartner – an online store that sells all kinds of hiking equipment. He revealed that his business was inspired by the time he spent selling knives in colleges. Here is his detailed interview. Such interesting conversations you can read at During the entrepreneurship forum at the Pinnacle Business School, we were honoured to have one of the alumni speak to us on his entrepreneurship journey. Jack Williams is the founder of HikePartner – an online store that sells all kinds of hiking equipment. He revealed that his business was inspired by the time he spent selling knives in colleges. Here is his detailed interview. Such interesting conversations you can read or even ask about buying a research paper, where the talented writers share their experience, where the talented writers share their experience.

Who is Jack Wilshere?

I would describe myself as an online entrepreneur, a philanthropist, a husband and a father of two nice kids.  I am a graduate of Pinnacle Business School. I graduated with a Bachelors of Commerce. I ran an online store known as HikePartner that is our true hiking partner. No matter what you may need for your hiking experience, we got it. We sell all kind of hiking gears like tents, knives, floating boards and much more.

What makes the HikePartner unique?

I would say it’s because it offers a unique experience. For one, we specialise in all products in the hiking niche. This store is a product of passion and thorough research of the industry. Our goal is to ensure that we provide hikers with high quality equipment at an affordable price. During the two years, we have been in operation, we have made a turnover of over one million. We have over 100 staffs and thousands of partners from all over the world. Our sales figures keep growing every day. This is because we are the one stop shop for all your hiking needs.

What would you attribute HikePartner enormous growth to?

I would say understanding the needs of the customers is the main reason.  They understand it when they need anything in the hiking niche; our store is the place to be. We also have a hardworking team who have given everything to the success of the business.  Our good relationship with our partners has also helped in the growth of our business.

How did your time at Pinnacle Business School shape your business journey?

When I was young, I always was a hiking enthusiast.  During my college years at the Pinnacle Business School, I discovered that my finances were never enough. That is when I started looking for a side hustle that could help me supplement my pocket money. I was not sure what to do. But during one of my hiking experience, I discovered that I did not have a hiking knife.

When I tried searching for one in the local store, I discovered that they only had the usual kitchen knives. These could not stay sharp for a long time as they had to be subjected to hard task like cutting wood, slaughtering and much more. That is when I discovered that there was a gap in the hiking knives industry. I started by selling these knives in college. Later I created an online store provide hikers from around the world with the necessary equipment. My business started growing, and I decided to add some other items. And as they say, the rest is history.

What are the 3 lessons you have learned through your entrepreneurship journey?

• Start small. I would say start small but think big. I literally started HikePartner from my dorm room. But even as I sold knives to my fellow college students, I was thinking of a way of scaling up the business. I finally did it by opening an online store and expanding our range of products.
• Identify a need and seek to fulfil it. I realized that there was a demand for high quality hiking equipment. I decided to fill that gap and today, and I would say the move has paid off.
• Meet the customer’s passion fast. At first, when I started HikePartner, I wanted to do something that was within my line of passion. Since hiking was my hobby, I decided to start something in that niche. But along the way, I discovered that the customer’s passion mattered more than my passion. When I started, I would stock items which I thought I needed most when hiking. But today, I stock items that my customers need.

What would you advise students who are looking for a side hustle to do in college?

Do a lot of market research before starting. This is what will provide you with an idea of how viable the business is likely to be and the chances of it surviving. Work hard, persevere the bad times and be prayerful.  During the early days, things will not be easy. But with time, your efforts will be rewarded.

What is the future of HikePartner?

We can plan to become a fully pledged online store selling anything under the sun from dog food to TVs to accessories and clothing. We have used the hiking niche to understand the market and what we now have to do is to scale up the business in different niches.

If you were to start again, what would you do differently?

I would find a mentor who has walked the same way I have. The main benefit of having a mentor is that you will be able to avoid some of the mistakes. This is because you can learn from what they did right or did wrong.  At the start of any business, you will make mistakes, lose money and even feel like giving up. But you should treat every mistake as a lesson.  Once you do that, you will keep growing.

What would you like to be remembered for?

I would like to leave a legacy of a man who incredibly touched humanity. This could be through business mentorship and even helping those in needs. In HikePartner, we have a corporate –social responsibility where we support students who are needy to pay for their school fees. We also support several shelters for the homeless. We participate in events that are aimed at protecting the environment and reducing carbon emissions. Apart from earning money, we have a goal of making the world a better place.