A trailblazer, entrepreneur, and creative strategist. These are the words that describe Duke Pierre. Whereas most people at age 25 are just graduating college and barely able to figure out what they want to do with their lives, Duke was already well into what he calls his “purpose in life”. This is his story.
“The generational perspective is that you have to go the traditional route to become successful”.
“In my family, I can probably name the people who have graduated college on one hand, but you know I always say: you’re either passing it on or starting it off. I say this because most people do not have a millionaire in their family, so it takes one risk taker in every family to break what I call the “generational curse”.
Duke, who is now 25 years old, is making it his mission to impact his neighborhood with credit education and resources to put people in better financial situations. “Growing up in the Bronx we knew everyone. We knew a barber, someone who was a doctor, a real estate agent, a tax broker, a lawyer but we never knew anyone who did credit”. Credit was always a gray area for me and my family. “Being raised by a single mother, who worked long hours to be able to provide for us , she did not have much time to educate us on credit or other financial matters”.
Duke did not initially dream of becoming an entrepreneur. His goal was to become a professional football player. Many of us dream of becoming a professional in some sort of sport or athletics as we watch our favorite athletes compete on TV. After receiving a scholarship to play division 2 football in Connecticut and successfully completing his college career. Unfortunately, multiple knee injuries prevented him from pursuing a professional career in sports. Though this was a major setback in Duke’s life, he clearly has made something big out of the setback by becoming a successful entrepreneur. At just the young age of 16, Duke started his first business as a freelance Content Creator. He made creative videos for his friends in his highschool which later branched off into different industries creating more work for him. “It was no question, I knew my whole life I had a gift to help people”. Duke’s video business immediately gave him an opportunity to work with other creatives in many different ways.
“I spent the last year building this new movement”. Late 2021, Duke privately launched First Gen with intentions to impact as many people as possible. As he continued to develop his knowledge, what started as giving people advice about credit quickly turned into a business. First Gen has a focus on serving credit solutions to young individuals under the age of 30 and a target of Athletes, Artists and Entrepreneurs. This is the perfect business that speaks true to Duke’s life. “I grew up an athlete, I’ve been in the music business for over 10 years and I’ve spent my life around entrepreneurs for years first hand”. First Gen was created because I quickly realized how important credit was for us as americans. I want to help people achieve their dreams and I truly believe credit can do so.
Duke has a strong social media presence that helps him promote himself while promoting his work and his success in addition to giving sage advice to people who want to have a lifestyle like him. “I would like to be perceived as a millennial entrepreneur, creative credit strategist and innovator. It does not matter what field you are in, how financially literate you are, Duke can help you.
“My goal is to impact as many people as possible through credit” I plan on turning First Gen into a well known brand that represents a strong new generation. One day, the First Gen logo will be everywhere! Billboards, on jerseys and maybe on television.
