Young Millionaires They're young-they're hot-they're rich. Don't hate 'em . . . Join 'em.

In the sportswear industry, the rise and fall of companies often depends on seasonal trends. But Richard Allred is rejecting that notion by bringing the idea of timeless fashion into the equation. "It's really based on the classic surf clothing and lifestyle," says Allred of Toes on the Nose Corp., his Costa Mesa, California, company, which produces everything from board shorts and swimwear to bedding and towels. "We've got a look where a 5-year-old kid will wear the same print as his 80-year-old grandfather."

After graduating from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, Allred found he was more inspired by his former classmates-who included Mossimo G. Giannulli of Mossimo Inc. and John Bernard of Spot Sport-than by his real-estate job. Gathering $110,000 from family and savings, he subleased space from Spot Sport and began to create the classic Hawaiian-print clothing he grew up with in San Diego. Today, his 7-year-old company is growing quickly-sales are expected to double from $5 million last year to $10 million this year.

Allred expects to slow down a bit in 2000 while he focuses on international markets and expanding throughout the United States. "The whole world's accessible to everyone now, and we're trying to take advantage of that," says Allred, who plans to expand into South America, as well as continue developing his markets in Australia, Canada, Great Britain and Japan. "Surfing in general is hot, and we've got a look the rest of the world really wants."

And though Toes is expanding into home linens and beginning to advertise in nonsurf magazines like Teen, don't expect Allred to lose sight of his original mission. "The way we've made ourselves different is by staying totally true to what we make. Our company doesn't look any different from when we started. We may have more items and offer more variety, but our look is exactly the same," says Allred. "It's like our image and game plan is to be like In 'N' Out Burger [a Southern California hamburger chain known for its simple but well-received menu]. You know exactly what you're going to get. If you want a hamburger, you go there. If people want a classic surf look, if they want the best Hawaiian prints, they come to Toes on the Nose."

Phil Shawe, 30, and Liz Elting, 33

Working out of a small, cramped dorm room may not be the mostcomfortable way to start a business, but that didn't stop PhilShawe and Liz Elting. With a rented computer, homemade brochuresand a bevy of resources at their fingertips, the two then-NYU gradstudents dreamed their 1992 start-up, TransPerfect TranslationsInc., would be among the largest service-oriented translationsfirms in the industry.

The partners spent virtually every waking hour promoting andmarketing or calling and mass-mailing to long lists of businessesand executives-efforts funded solely on their student budgets andan eventual $5,000 credit-card advance. "There was nodifference between living expenses, food expenses and businessexpenses," says Shawe. "We put as much as we could intothe business, then we paid the utilities, then the rent-only thendid we feed ourselves."

Within a few weeks, Shawe and Elting landed their first project andeventually started seeing repeat clients. Using contacts from atranslation company that Elting previously worked for, theyacquired a vast network of subcontracted professional translatorsand handled all their development, marketing and accountingfunctions from a couch in their desk-void dorm room. Four monthsinto the business, the mother of all projects arrived: a 600-pagemining feasibility study requiring Russian translation within ninedays. Knowing the project had to be done in-house and right away,Shawe and Elting somehow persuaded several Russian-speakinggeologists to fly to New York City and work right in their dormroom. "I don't think either one of us slept for eight ornine days," says Shawe. "Our room was like a casino fullof rousing Russian geologist translators. It was amazing!" Thetranslated study was on a plane half an hour before the client leftfor Russia.

Their company has been thriving ever since. Long gone are the dormdays: Today, this $15 million firm has 14 offices on threecontinents, a network of 3,300 subcontractors, and big-name clientslike American Express and Coca-Cola. The Stern Business Schoolgrads attribute their success to a blatant business philosophy:hard work.
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"We went right into business after college, so we were used toliving like students," says Shawe. "It would have beennice to have some money upfront, but I think learning to get bywithout excess helped us later on."

Adds Elting, "If we could do it all over again, we would do itthe same way."