Interview: Trent Bigelow of Palopia.com
Finally another interview, this time I had the pleasure of talking with Trent Bigelow of Palopia. Trent is a sophomore at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business.
The basics: who are you, what projects are you working on, etc.
Well, I’m Trent Bigelow — I stay up late to work on “projects,” one of which is Palopia, a next generation personal social platform. I’m studying business at USC because I get to be around some amazing mentors and gain some serious connections. I’ve got several other projects going on (it seems like more and more each day with each new person I meet), many of them are happening in Asia. Most of the projects have to do with next generation collaboration and interaction ventures, with radically new business models.
Why Palopia? What makes you think your social network can be better than MySpace of Facebook?
Simple: by being nothing like MySpace or Facebook. Our approaches are totally different and new. It’s funny that everyone keeps comparing us to them… it’s one of those things that you’ll just have to see to believe. If we happen to replace them in the process, my team (and our partners) won’t mind.
Do you think it’s difficult to balance school work and projects? Would you consider leaving school?
I would definitely agree that it can often be daunting to try to balance two such big responsibilities. I have considered taking some time off from school to dedicate full time to work — and, actually, I’ll be doing so. I’ll be spending the next two years based in Hong Kong, with many visits to LA and the Bay Area.
What sparked your interest in starting a company? Is there anything in particular about launching a startup that frustrates you?
We started a youth marketing consulting firm first–and only later it evolved into a web venture. We saw a really exciting opportunity that no one else seemed to notice. I used to get frustrated when we first started at how some people (potential investors) didn’t see the vision we had for Palopia and the whole Web 2.0 environment. To be honest, it’s really who you know that makes the difference. It seems like early success is all in the connections [you have]. Another thing that can sometimes be annoying is when others around you aren’t willing to take as much risk as you.
If you could give next year’s freshmen class advice on getting the most out of the “college experience,” what would you tell them?
I might not be the right guy to ask (as far as typical school experience goes). I guess instead of spending time at the row or partying, I spent most of my time networking, connecting, and brainstorming. Introduce yourself to your professors and their colleagues…you never know who knows who. Also, if you want to go places differentiate yourself from your peers by being mature and thinking about what’s next. There’s nothing better than inspiring your friends, classmates, and even professors!
Where do you see yourself in 5 years? Still working on Palopia? Still in the “start up” world?
I hope that in five years Palopia will be successful by fostering its own unique member movement. I hope personally that I start several ventures and really ramp up my involvement in Asia-Pacific. Also, I plan on having my diploma from USC in that time, too!
A big thank you to Trent for agreeing to do the interview and providing some great responses.
Along with Palopia, Trent recently got involved in CollegeSellers.com.
For more information on Trent, Palopia, or anyone involved with Palopia, check out palopia.com/team.html.
Sounds like a very interesting idea, I guess the key is to find a niche. Good luck with your project.