Is it too late to start at 35?

· noise r/entrepreneur · ↑ 126 · 💬 225 · 2026-02-07 · kw: shopify amazon sync · open on reddit ↗

Tool

Amazon, Shopify

Issue

Entrepreneur with software engineering background attempted two ecommerce ventures (Kindle reselling and Shopify store) that both failed, creating uncertainty about whether to pursue new business ventures at age 35.

Cost

unstated

Recommendation

none

extracted with

anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5 · 2026-05-08

Body

I'm a software engineer and been interested in entrepreneurship for a long time but not enough to actually start many things. I've sold a few kindles on amazon years ago, and had a shopify store that wasn't successful so nothing really, and I'm seeing these story of I built X at 16 years old, and it feels a bit discouraging to be honest even though I'm ashamed to admit it. I'm pretty sure that it's not too late, but it would be great to hear stories of people who started older and are now successful in business, that would be really encouraging. Thank you :)

Top comments (8)

[score=1] AutoModerator

Welcome to /r/Entrepreneur and thank you for the post, /u/TheKaleKing! Please make sure you read our [community rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/Entrepreneur/about/rules/) before participating here. As a quick refresher: * Promotion of products and services is not allowed here. This includes dropping URLs, asking users to DM you, check your profile, job-seeking, and investor-seeking. *Unsanctioned promotion of any kind will lead to a permanent ban for all of your accounts.* * AI and GPT-generated posts and comments are unprofessional, and will be treated as spam, including a permanent ban for that account. * If you have free offerings, please comment in our weekly Thursday stickied thread. * If you need feedback, please comment in our weekly Friday stickied thread. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Entrepreneur) if you have any questions or concerns.*

[score=48] No-News-948

The average age of successful entrepreneur is like 40-45 years old

[score=120] CapInfamous7963

research suggests the "sweet spot" for starting a highly successful company is actually in midlife. between the ages of 35 and 45. I'm 38 and just starting out after a few half assed ventures that failed.

[score=85] Jealous-Employment-9

I turned 70 last month & started a new LLC for an AI services company. You have the world at your fingertips!

[score=25] ragnhildensteiner

The average **successful** entrepreneur is NOT in his twenties, and is NOT working on his first startup. The stats shows that they are usually in their early 40's and working on their 7th startup. That doesn't mean you will succeed. It just shows that the stats are not against you. In reality, none of those stats mean anything for a single individual. If you're passionate enough about the subject, have persistence, build something people actually want, those are more likely the factors that determine your success.

[score=13] IndividualEvidence39

I completely understand the feeling of being discouraged by the 'kid entrepreneur' stories, but let's look at some data - a study by CB Insights found that 57% of successful entrepreneurs were in their 30s or 40s when they started their businesses, and many notable entrepreneurs like Sara Blakely (Spanx) and Richard Branson (Virgin Group) started their ventures in their mid-to-late 20s. Your age and experience as a software engineer are actually a huge advantage - you've got a solid foundation to build on, so I'd say it's not just not too late, but actually a great time to start.

[score=12] trackday

Started at 33 1/2 in 1994. Now 65. Went to 45 employees in manufacturing for local construction market around 2008, then hit great recession, scaled back to almost half that. Grew some again but then cut back and invested in more efficient machinery, much better processes, now about 22 employees. Made a comfortable living. Been a little slow recently. Invested some successfully. Lots of mistakes that I try not to beat myself up too much about. Market here is about to pick up for us, well positioned to make very good margins. Love my do-little job. Great employees, have some with me 30, 28, several over 20 years. Makes my job incredibly easy. Never missed a payroll, never been sued. Life is good.

[score=11] NZplantparent

I'm on my 4th business and I'm older than you, it's totally not too late!