In late 2009, the ink and toner retailer InkStop filed for bankruptcy effectively closing all locations. At the time, Charlie Schilla was 18 years old and attending college, but decided to max out a $300 credit card to fill up his trunk with as much inventory as he could purchase from the liquidation of his local InkStop retailer. He listed the $300 worth of inventory on eBay and successfully sold it for $1,800. With $1,800 in cash in his pocket, Charlie went to another InkStop store, purchased $1,800 worth of inventory, listed it on eBay and made another profit. After a few more rinse and repeats, Charlie needed to purchase in bulk and decided to go directly to InkStop’s headquarters and negotiated a deal to purchase some of their remaining inventory. Five years later, Charlie had continued to expand his business and decided to lease his first warehouse in Broadview Heights and, effectively, supplyhut was founded. Since those early years, Charlie still keeps intact that “hustler” mentality whether it is used for identifying and contacting suppliers in lesser-known regions of China or in negotiations against multi-billion-dollar mail carriers to receive favorable shipping rates. Today, this mentality defines supplyhut and its employees and will continue to carry it forward for years to come.