Yu Ting Lin is a young entrepreneur en route to her next venture. After starting her first business at 19, Wrooof, Yu Ting Lin is a rising senior at Northeastern University involved in the entrepreneurial space. She sat down with us to talk about all things business, Tik Tok, and dogs!

Harper Wayne: Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?

Yu Ting Lin: I am actually a senior at Northeastern University. I’ll be graduating in December because I took a semester off, the fall of 2020, because my mom was sick. I went back to Taiwan to kind of just be there with her and make sure everything was okay and then came back. But everything worked out for the best, because I will actually have a graduation by the end.

Harper Wayne: What was it like to start Wrooof?

Yu Ting Lin: I started Wrooof when I was 19, sophomore year. When I adopted my first dog, I was obsessed with her, and I was actually afraid of dogs before. At first with Wrooof, it was honestly really hard because I wasn’t as involved in school as I am now, so I didn’t have a lot of resources on campus or a lot of connections, so I had to figure a lot of things out on my own. I was doing drop shipping for the first two months, and I only got one sale. That’s it. I was so defeated. I realized drop shipping wasn’t for me because there’s no personal connection with a brand. Later on, I sourced my own products, found a manufacturer and did some production on my own. And then, when I started to have a brand, that’s when the customers started coming in.

Harper Wayne: And now you’ve chosen to stop the business. Why is that?

Yu Ting Lin: With my mom’s condition, I had to pause Wrooof for six months. And at that time, I had a lot of time to think, “Where do I want to take the company next?” “Do I want to stop it?” I eventually came to the conclusion that I do want to stop it because it’s a part of my journey that I’ll never forget, but I’m ready for something more than that. So we’re officially closed now, and I’m embarking on a new journey with my co-founder Jamie. I had a call with her two weeks ago, and we hit it off right away. What she’s doing for her [dog] app, I actually thought about it two years ago, but I didn’t have the mindset and the guts to do it at the time.

Harper Wayne: What gave you the confidence to take that leap?

Yu Ting Lin: [Wrooof] is a stepping stone. That’s why I closed it, because I know that’s my stepping stone for this next journey that’s going to be a bigger thing than Wroof. Starting Wroof definitely helped me build up that confidence. And then I joined WISE, a student-led, women-only entrepreneurship community. That immediately gave me even more strength. These amazing, ambitious women just surrounded me with pure, pure support. And that gave me the strength to think I can definitely do more.

Harper Wayne: Now, let’s talk about your TikTok (@smallbusinesstips_) . What made you want to start a professional account?

Yu Ting Lin: I’ve been doing a lot of consulting with different female founders during quarantine, giving advice and mentoring them, and then it got me rolling. If I can do this with so many different, amazing women, why couldn’t I spread this knowledge that I thought everyone knows but maybe not on TikTok? [There] a mass audience could see it, and [I could] potentially encourage people to start their own businesses and help them throughout the way.

Harper Wayne: Last but not least, what’s in your pocket?

Yu Ting Lin: I keep my phone, a pen, card holder, my keys, a pack of gum, a lipstick, and what else? Oh, dog bags and some dog treats as well.

Thanks for sitting down with us Yu Ting Lin!