The new age of entrepreneurship: 70 to 79

The entrepreneurial urge doesn't necessarily diminish with age.

- Clare Ansberry

As people live and work longer, more are choosing to start a business in their 70s. These emerging septuagenarian entrepreneurs share many motives with younger counterparts. They want to be their own boss, set their own schedules and pursue meaningful projects.

While older entrepreneurs might have lost some stamina, age has benefits. People in their eighth decade can leverage years' worth of contacts and experience. With their children grown, they may feel free to address what has long bothered them, like clutter and costly in-home care. Or, in the case of the founders of Judson Squared, dull trial lawyers.

"They're boring as hell," says Judson Vaughn, 71, an actor and filmmaker. He partnered with attorney Judson Graves, 77, known for his persuasive court performance, to create online courses to teach lawyers how to be entertaining as well as effective.

Self-employment rates rise dramatically as people age. Nearly 30% of employed people in their 70s work for themselves, almost double the share of self-employed people in their 60s, says Cal Halvorsen, an associate professor of social work at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. That translates into about 1.3 million septuagenarian entrepreneurs, he says.

For some, it's a last hurrah, the culmination of ideas that had been percolating for years. Others are driven by the desire to create a product that will improve the lives of others, which often becomes more important as people age.

Some people feel they have no other choice but to start a business because they need the money and have a hard time finding work elsewhere. Help is more readily available. The AARP Foundation launched a nationwide Work for Yourself@50 program to help older adults with limited income explore self-employment opportunities.

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