Aaron Levant, CEO of Complex, a media and e-commerce platform, never graduated from high school or attended college. But that hasn’t stopped him from building businesses in spaces where formal education is often seen as a prerequisite to success.
For Levant, a lack of industry knowledge in his early career wasn’t a disadvantage — it was an opportunity to do things differently, he says. His experience has turned into a business philosophy, he says: “Ignorance is rich.”
″[I had] no experience in trade shows and fashion and media companies and events, and I went in and did it,” he tells CNBC Make It. “And my naiveness toward the subject matter allowed me to try things that no logical person would have.”
After over two decades of building businesses as a serial entrepreneur, Levant’s company NTWRK, a video commerce platform, acquired Complex in 2024 in a $109 million deal.
Ultimately, his career success comes down to risk-taking and hustle, he says — plus a lack of perceived barriers. Here’s what he says about being young in work and entrepreneurship.
