By James Lomuscio
For Gary Perelberg, a 17-year-old Staples High School junior, it was a passion for limited edition, designer sneakers that put him on the fast track toward making his first million within in a year.
Gary Perelberg at work at home. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Phyllis Groner for WestportNow.com
“When I was in the eighth grade I became interested in designer sneakers, especially the ones that would sell out quickly,” he said about Air Jordans and other Nike lines. “So, I would go to the website and try to buy them.”
Sometimes he would be lucky enough to snag a coveted pair, such as $140 Air Jordans, and resell it on Ebay for $400.
“I got two other pairs of Air Jordans for the same price, and those sold out in less than five minutes,” Gary said. “I sold those for $900 each.”
But he wasn’t always that lucky. Sometimes he would just stare at the screen, only to see limited edition footwear gone in a flash.
At first he thought about buying a software call Nikebot that did all the research and nailed down purchases quickly. But the cost was too dear, $2,500. So, the then eighth grader began thinking about creating his own computer software.
“Basically, I wanted it to do what I did,” said Gary, recalling how he used to spend Saturdays glued to his computer at 10 a.m. waiting for the latest sneaker release.
The net result –- Gary, with a little help from his computer programmer father, plus what he learned in Staples computer classes freshman year, created his own software
“It was released to the public in May 2015,” he said about the software that launched his online company easycopbots.com
The software retails from $95 to $495, depending up the tier a buyer chooses, Gary said. He currently has 3,600 customers, many repeat ones. He also said he has a Twitter account with 10,000 followers.
“Once you buy it, you have the option to upgrade it,” he said.
“I still make money selling sneakers, but it doesn’t even come close to selling the software,” said the soon-to-be software millionaire.
“Not (a millionaire) yet, but probably before college,” added Gary, who has his sights on MIT, where undergraduate tuition, room and board tops $62,000 this year. “I’m probably paying for college.”
He also recently bought a BMW i8, which has a base price of $147,895.
Not all sneakers and dollars, Gary has a philanthropic side, too, donating a percentage of his monthly profits to the Bridgeport schools’ technology department to buy new computers and tablets for the district’s high school classrooms, says his mom, Linda Perelberg.
To hear Linda tell it, Gary’s success is not just the internet luck of having the right product at the right times. She say his business savvy is tied to customer service.
“He knows that to be successful, you have to have impeccable customer service,” his mother said. “He’s had 170 updates to his program. And once he updates it, he sends it to his customers for free. Because of that, he’s gotten a lot of his customers by word of mouth.
“I am so proud of him, and I am really in awe at how he masters this,” she added. “He’s staying home this summer redoing the program to make it even better. He’s improving it all the time.”
