How a study abroad trip and an iPhone sparked a global tech company
During his senior year at Skidmore College, Alex Blaker ’08 boarded a plane for a study abroad experience in Australia. In his pocket, he carried an iPhone — a novelty at the time that few people owned.
“I was the coolest kid in Australia. Everywhere I went, people were floored by the phone that their country didn't yet have,” he recalls. “It was like I was holding the future in my hands.”
Five months later before returning home, and knowing that a new iPhone model was expected, Blaker sold his smartphone for twice its original cost and purchased a new one shortly after. “It blew my mind,” he says. “I didn't know such a thing was possible. But I knew there was something to this idea of buying and selling used electronics.”
The experience ignited an entrepreneurial spark that would lead to the founding of his company, Tech Supplier, in 2010. Headquartered in New Jersey, the worldwide distributor of consumer electronics ships more than a million refurbished, used, and overstock items annually — from cellphones and laptops to audio accessories and game consoles.
Tech Supplier, which has a direct partnership with Apple on nearly every continent, sources inventory from retailers and manufacturers looking to offload excess stock, customer returns, or previous-generation devices. Clients include Amazon, Walmart, and TJ Maxx, among many others.
An experience Alex Blaker ’08 had while studying abroad as a Skidmore student inspired the creation of Tech Supplier. Here he is during a visit to Grindelwald, Switzerland.
At Skidmore, Blaker completed his degree as a management and business major and began working as a business analyst at an investment management firm based in his home state of New Jersey. Meanwhile, he began his venture on the side that has since grown into a multimillion-dollar enterprise with 45 employees.
“When I started making more money with my side business, I knew it was time to quit my day job and focus on running my own company full time,” says Blaker, the company’s president and CEO.
Blaker’s experience is one example of Skidmore’s entrepreneurial spirit and the College's commitment to fostering creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship. This commitment includes programs and initiatives like the Kenneth A. Freirich ’90 Entrepreneurship Competition, the Entrepreneurial Artist Initiative, Skidmore-Saratoga Consulting Partnership and, most recently, a new entrepreneurship minor. Creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship are also driving the Schupf Family IdeaLab, StartUp Skidmore, and student experiential learning.
Blaker credits Managerial Accounting and computer science courses at Skidmore for fostering the critical thinking and clear communications that have been essential to his success.
Managerial Accounting allowed me to understand a company's performance in a more analytical way and to speak fluently to banks and other financial institutions. Computer science helped me understand how to think more programmatically, which has driven our efficiency over our competitors.Alex Blaker ’08President and CEO of Tech Supplier
For Skidmore students or recent graduates who have entrepreneurial aspirations, Blaker has this advice to offer: “Don’t quit your job to pursue your dream, unless you can afford it,” he says. “And, you don’t need to invest a ton of money to start a business. There are plenty of businesses that have no barrier to entry besides effort.”