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A Rock and a Hard PlaceAccording to various studies, people with criminal records are half as likely to get hired as nonfelons. When they do find work, they earn 40% less than those without records. Entrepreneurship tends to be one of the few ways former prisoners level the playing field.
Reform SchoolSome company founders wind up in prison; many have come to entrepreneurship after serving time. Programs that mentor prisoners, like NYC incubator Defy Ventures and AJ Ware's Inmates to Entrepreneurs, help. Here are 10 success stories.
1. Martha StewartIn 2004, the Martha Stewart Omnimedia founder served a five-month stint for obstruction of justice related to insider trading. While in jail, her media company's stock soared, and she became a billionaire.
2. Piper KermanConvicted of money laundering for a heroin ring, Kerman went to prison. Her experience would later serve as inspiration for the hit Netflix series Orange Is the New Black. Kerman is pictured (far left) with Taylor Schilling, the actress who plays her in the show.
3. Frederick HutsonAfter serving time for trafficking 3,000 kilos of marijuana, Hutson built Pigeonly, an inmate database to help people find incarcerated family members. Pigeonly's most popular app allows families to send prisoners printed photos from a smartphone.
IMAGE: Courtesy Company4. Coss MarteAn arrest for running a $2 million drug ring in New York landed Marte in prison. For four years, he worked out and lost 70 lbs. Upon release, he started ConBody, a "prison-style boot camp" exercise company and now has 400 clients a week.
5. Cedric HornbuckleAfter serving eight years in prison on a drug charge, Hornbuckle went through Texas-based Prison Entrepreneurship Program. In 2008, he started his own moving company called Moved by Love.
IMAGE: via pep-blog.org/6. Curtis "50 Cent" JacksonAfter serving time in juvenile detention, he signed to labels from Eminem and Dr. Dre. Then he built an empire: clothing, movies, video games, and platinum mining. His stake in Vitamin Water also paid dividends. The rapper recently filed for bankruptcy protection.
7. Georgia DuranteAfter modeling for Kodak, Durante switched to stunt driving in commercials in the 1990s. She married a mobster and worked as a getaway driver. After leaving her husband, she started her own stunt driving company, Performance Two, and wrote a memoir.
IMAGE: via georgiadurante.com8. Kevin MitnickAt 16, Mitnick became a fugitive after hacking 40 corporations. He was on the run for three years. Upon release from prison in 2002, he started cybersecurity company Mitnick Security. He still breaches networks, but companies pay him to find the vulnerabilities.
9. Frank AbagnaleThe con man started writing fake checks at 16. In six years, Abagnale cashed over $2.5 million in fraudulent checks. He went to prison, helped the FBI catch crooks, wrote a book (Spielberg turned it into a movie), and founded a fraud-prevention consultancy.
10. Dave DahlA baker's son, Dahl hated the bakery. After a stint in prison for drugs and armed robbery, Dahl started his own line of bread called Dave's Killer Bread in 2004. The company made $50 million in 2013. That year, Dahl got arrested. He's no longer with the company.
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