With Studying Never Stops, 15-year-old Brandyn Ross inspires others to read
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Fifteen-year-old Brandyn Ross only trusts one person to get his haircut just right.
"He's just going to get a little touch-up, a little tease," barber David Brown, owner of Miss Hazel's Grooming Lounge, said. "I'm watching a lot of young men grow, and the ages from Brandyn's age to 21 is extremely in danger."
Brandyn has always made good use of his time in the chair.
"The name of my company is 'Studying Never Stops,'" said Brandyn, who was rocking his own clothing apparel. "You could start a business at any age. It doesn't matter how old you are and you could do whatever you want to do. You just have to work hard."
It helps to get a little push from mom.
"He's very caring, he's very nurturing," Brandi Bottle Ross said. "He loves God. He's a child of God. He is my only son. I'm so grateful for him and so proud of the things he's doing and the things he's going to do."
"She likes to call herself a 'momager,'" Brandyn said.
Brandyn's hair takes a little longer than most, and it fully explains how he discovered the vision behind the business he started when he was only 11 years old.
"I'm like, 'Son, read your book while you are under the dryer," Bottle Ross said. "Ten, 15 minutes, it adds up. You do 10 minutes in the car, 10 minutes at the barber shop, it's just 30 minutes a day."
"I went up to my mom and I was like, 'studying never stops,'" Brandyn said.
They then started making T-shirts with bright colorful letters.
"That's when we started doing them as pop-up shops and start going to different places," Brandyn said. "We have T-shirts, hats, socks, bags, dresses, short sets."
This mother-son duo can be found in Cherry Hill and Willow Grove Mall.
Before getting into apparel, this basketball lover sold basketball bracelets, and with the profits he paid it forward by filling barber shops and salons with books for other kids to enjoy.
When he's not selling, he's sharing his story.
"If you want to do it, you just have to put your mind to it," Brandyn said. "And don't let anyone tell you different."
Back inside Miss Hazel's lounge, Brandyn always leaves with more than a fresh cut but also advice.
"It's nice to see a young man his age take his life in his own hands," Brown said, "bet on himself, invest in himself mentally, physically, emotionally."
While these three words are simple -- "studying never stops" -- Brandyn's shared knowledge is power.
"Studying isn't just about school," Brandyn said. "It's more than that because you learn something new every day."
