By: J. Douglas Trimble
NEWTON, Mass--(BUSINESS WIRE via COLLEGIATE PRESSWIRE)--Aug 17, 2001--When nineteen-year-old Babson College freshman Thomas C. Knobel started an Internet business in his dorm room, he may have dreamed, but couldn`t have known that he would be the founder and CEO of a multi-million dollar business in just three short years.
Thomas Knobel came to America as a sixteen-year-old high school foreign exchange student in 1994. Leaving his family behind in Switzerland, Thomas used prepaid telephone cards as a means of staying in touch with his family back home, and during college, with his girlfriend who was living in Bulgaria. ``They offered the most convenient, cost effective way of calling abroad,`` said Thomas. At Babson, Thomas Knobel decided to start his own venture selling prepaid phone cards over the Internet from his dorm room, and www.nobelcom.com was born.
His first year working alone, Thomas earned revenues of approximately $4,000. The following year, the business had grown to the point that he needed help. He enlisted the help of two friends, and now business partners, Jared R. Yaffe and Tucker I. Sylvestro. The second year of operation saw sales grow to just over $200,000, and they quickly outgrew their dorm room center of operations. In 2000, the company`s revenues exceeded $2,000,000, and 2001 will see them reach $20,000,000 in sales. This represents a sustained growth rate of over 1000% annually for a three-year period, while the ``dot.com`` industry has been in a deep downward spiral.
What is the secret of Thomas` success? ``Innovation and value. It`s as simple as that,`` said Thomas. ``We have the lowest long distance rates available, with a variety of unique products to meet the needs of an internationally diverse consumer base.``
Nobel, the parent organization named as much for the cherished prize as for the owner and founder, has diversified into an online retail operation, nobelcom.com, and a bricks and mortar wholesale division, THP (TalkHome Prepaid) that caters to traditional retail channels. Nobel has also added an e-commerce enabled software development division to its portfolio of subsidiaries. The mainstay however, remains the prepaid phone cards.
College students comprise a large segment of Nobel`s customer base, with a high volume of sales coming from international students wanting to stay in touch with family members and friends back home. Nobelcom.com is an easily navigated web site that has become very popular with college students all over the world. It allows students to choose a country they wish to call, enter their credit card number, and instantly receive an access number and a PIN number. Students are able to begin making calls within minutes of placing their order at the best long distance rates available anywhere. With a repeat order ratio of over 70%, Nobelcom.com has arguably the best customer satisfaction rate in the prepaid industry. For students with websites, Nobel also offers the ability to share in their success through the affiliate program. By linking their website with Nobelcom.com, any sale made as a result of that link will earn initial and recurring commissions regardless of where that customer purchases from Nobelcom.com in the future. Commission checks are mailed out the first week of each quarter, and individual sales can be monitored through Nobel`s free software, AffiliateManager. There are currently several hundred affiliates in this new program, with the number growing weekly. According to Thomas, ``The affiliate program is our way of providing an opportunity for other college students to become entrepreneurs. This is our way of giving back to the community and sharing our success.``
Thomas Knobel has been a true entrepreneur since age seven, when he started a fresh food delivery business in his Swiss neighborhood. He later developed his own software and computer game distribution company prior to coming to America. So what words of encouragement does Thomas have to offer today`s college student that may be fanning the flames of an entrepreneurial spirit? ``Believe in yourself always, and never, ever give up on your dreams.``
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