23-year-old entrepreneur turns $2,000 investment into million-dollar animal removal business

LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX NEWS) — Less than a year after losing her six-figure job, 23-year-old Autumn Mough says she has turned a $2,000 investment into a million-dollar business.

Mough is the owner of Trapperz, an animal removal business she started after being laid off in January.

“I was let go of a $100,000 job in January, along with a lot of my other team, and I started Trapperz with $2,000,” Mough said. “We are now a million-dollar business, almost a year later, and it’s been great.”

For Mough, the road to entrepreneurship started long before Trapperz.

She grew up in a low-income household and began working when she was 14. She later left college and built a career in marketing, all while holding onto the goal of eventually owning a business of her own.

When she lost her job, that goal quickly became a reality.

Mough said building a company from the ground up has meant learning as she goes.

“I say that I’m building the ship as I’m steering it,” she said. “There’s a lot to learn. There’s a lot, of course, like taxes, bookkeeping. There’s a lot to learn.”

Her love for animals also helped shape the direction of her business. Mough has four cats, two dogs and several reptiles of her own.

“I could never imagine harming an animal in any way,” she said. “So, once I saw that need, I was like, I gotta build something up. And it has to be quick.”

Since then, the business has handled thousands of animals, according to Mough. Some calls have also given her and her team stories they won't soon forget.

One involved a baby vulture that became trapped inside an attic after a contractor left a window open. Mough said one of her inspectors climbed into the attic, safely removed the bird and released it on the spot before closing the window.

Those unexpected experiences have become part of a business Mough said grew much faster than she ever anticipated.

Now, she hopes her experience can encourage other young people who have an idea but aren't sure whether they're ready to pursue it.

“You don’t need to go to college. You don’t need a giant savings,” Mough said. “I started this with $2,000 and, yeah, you just don’t overthink it, really. If you have an idea, go for it. Stop thinking, just go.”

Molly Demrow is committed to covering the stories that matter to you. If you have an idea, please reach out to Molly at molly.demrow@wlex.tv

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