This post is part of a new series called The Side Hustle, in which we interview Millennials who are successfully redefining the 9-5.
Our inaugural side hustlers are the founders of daily financial newsletter, MarketSnacks.
The epic bromance began at Middlebury College when Nicolas Martell and Jack Kramer first bonded over a shared interest in sports and protein shakes. Though Nick transferred to Brown half way through his college career, the two soon reunited in New York City upon graduation.
Nick describes the “aha moment” behind MarketSnacks as more of an “aha evolution.” As recent college grads, Nick and Jack both embarked on a career in finance at the height of the European debt crisis. While they spent their days analyzing stocks, they found themselves struggling to make sense of what was happening in the market at a macro level.
After countless failed attempts to try and explain the situation to friends and girlfriends who did not work in the industry, they recognized an opportunity: no one was successfully breaking down financial news in an engaging, accessible way. Like:
Check out last week's review with the 4th Quarter earnings' winners & losers! http://t.co/dL6OCttAPR pic.twitter.com/VgFFXAtnzZ
— MarketSnacks (@MarketSnacks) February 3, 2014
#HousingData & #FiscalCliff hit stocks, $UBS #Libor scandal & $GM #bailout made headlines @CNBCnowhttp://t.co/3A7l8xtK pic.twitter.com/vM6yAcUT
— MarketSnacks (@MarketSnacks) December 20, 2012
More #FiscalCliff #compromise hope Tuesday sends stocks to their highest point in 2 months @CNBC http://t.co/O3awPIEf pic.twitter.com/IaaYU38f
— MarketSnacks (@MarketSnacks) December 19, 2012
One day, Nick decided to create his own summary of the most noteworthy financial news stories and sent it to Jack for feedback. Jack added a joke or two, and before long, they had perfected the formula for an email newsletter that delivered bite size financial news in an entertaining way.
The biggest challenge was crafting a shared voice for the newsletter and committing wholeheartedly to their side hustle. From the beginning, Jack was convinced that it would “only be relevant if people can trust it, and people will only trust it if we never miss a day.” From the first MarketSnacks newsletter in November 2011, the duo has yet to miss a single day – despite cancelled flights, destination weddings, and trips to remote places with unreliable Internet connections (at best).
Today, Nicolas is an Account Manager at Endeavor Global and Jack is an Assistant Vice President at Commerzbank AG. After hearing the story behind MarketSnacks, we were curious to learn how they’ve managed to successfully grow and sustain their side hustle, while maintaining demanding day jobs and a close friendship. The secret to their balancing act, according to the pair, is establishing unwavering trust and creating a replicable formula…
Read more from our conversation with Nick and Jack on the art of their side hustle, how Millennials are redefining career expectations, and their most memorable moments in making their daydream a reality by clicking here.
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