Jake Millar

Jake Millar
Miller in 2018
Born
Jake Christopher Clifford Millar

8 August 1995
Christchurch, New Zealand
Died (aged 26)
Karen, Kenya
Cause of deathSuicide
EducationChristchurch Boys' High School
Occupationentrepreneur
Years active2013–2021
Known forfounder of Oompher and Unfiltered
FatherRod Millar

Jake Christopher Clifford Millar (8 August 1995 – 29 November 2021) was a New Zealand entrepreneur and businessman who founded the companies Oompher and Unfiltered.[1][2] On 29 November 2021, at age 26, Millar died by suicide in Kenya.[3][4][5][6]

Early life

[edit]

Millar was born in Christchurch, New Zealand[7] and was the son of Robyn Jacobs and the late Rod Miller. He was raised in Greymouth.[8][9] Rod Miller died in the 2010 Fox Glacier FU-24 crash.[4][10]

Millar was ambitious about business from a very young age. During his primary school years Millar's Mother Robyn helped him create and sell fridge magnets outside of supermarkets.[9][11]

Also with the influence of his fathers Sky Diving Business growing up, Millar saw that business was something he wanted to get into as he got older.[9]

Early in his career, Millar made a notable change to his personal identity. Originally born Jake Miller, he decided to change his surname to ‘Millar’ at the age of 19, when he was just starting his first business. This change was motivated by a desire to avoid confusion with the American rapper of the same name, as this was impacting the visibility of his business and its achievements online. Millar expressed a wish that he had chosen a more distinctive change, reflecting on the decision, “All the stuff we were posting about the business and the publicity we were getting at the time was just getting lost. I spent months trying to work out what to change it to and I wish I changed it to something more fun instead of just changing a letter.”"The Bizarro World of the Very Young, Very Rich Jake Millar". The Spinoff.

Career

[edit]

Millar's professional business career started early during his teenage years when he was attending Christchurch Boys' High School, where he was Head Boy in 2013.[12] There he founded his first company, Oompher, a career advice platform.[13]

Still a teenager, he sold Oompher to the New Zealand Government, with the platform being taken up by Careers New Zealand only 10 months after beginning Oompher.[9][14][15][16]

Unfiltered

[edit]

Millar's next venture was Unfiltered which he founded in 2015,[17][18][19] a platform that provides inspirational interviews and advice from high-profile individuals. A notable interview Millar did for Unfiltered was with British business magnate Richard Branson.[20]

Despite the promise of the idea with nearly $5 million raised and a $12+ million valuation at its peak, the business failed as a result of the impact of COVID-19 and Unfiltered was subsequently sold in early 2021 to Crimson Education for a combination of cash and shares.[5][21][22][23]

Personal life and death

[edit]

Following the sale of his business, pressure from investors and New Zealand media led Millar to leave the country for Kenya.[24] He had previously lived in Auckland and New York City.[9]

On 29 November 2021, at age 26, Millar died by suicide in Karen, Kenya.[3][4][5][6]

References

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  1. ^ "View All Details". app.companiesoffice.govt.nz. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  2. ^ Harding, Bruce (21 January 2022). "Life story: Ambitious entrepreneur Jake Millar, a Kiwi Gatsby". Stuff. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
  3. ^ a b Fieldhouse, Rachel. "Kiwi millionaire found dead in Kenya | OverSixty". www.oversixty.co.nz. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
  4. ^ a b c "Tributes pour in as Unfiltered founder Jake Millar dies aged 26". ZB. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  5. ^ a b c "Unfiltered founder dies in Kenya: 'I'd never met anyone like Jake Millar'". Stuff. 29 November 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  6. ^ a b "New Zealand entrepreneur Jake Millar dies in Kenya, body found hanging from balcony". The Star. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
  7. ^ Downs, David; Dickinson, Michelle (29 January 2018). No.8 Re-charged: 202 World-changing Innovations from New Zealand. Penguin Random House New Zealand Limited. ISBN 978-0-14-377258-3.
  8. ^ "Jake MILLAR Obituary (2021) The Dominion Post". Legacy.com. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  9. ^ a b c d e "Jake Millar - millennial entrepreneur". RNZ. 2 April 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  10. ^ "Jake Millar: 21 years. 21 things I have learnt". Stuff. 11 August 2016. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  11. ^ "Life story: Ambitious entrepreneur Jake Millar, a Kiwi Gatsby". Stuff. 21 January 2022. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  12. ^ "Jake Millar - millennial entrepreneur". RNZ. 2 April 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  13. ^ "Jake Millar launches Unfiltered Live business speaker series". Stuff. 8 November 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  14. ^ "Oompher". www.careers.govt.nz. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  15. ^ Junn, Jihee (11 February 2021). "From Oompher to Crimson: A brief history of Jake Millar's Unfiltered". The Spinoff. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  16. ^ "Motivational website Oompher sold to Careers New Zealand". Stuff. 4 May 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  17. ^ "Unfiltered founder Jake Millar signs up Aussie entrepreneur". Stuff. 29 July 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  18. ^ "Jake Millar is not a typical entrepreneur". NBR. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  19. ^ "Jake Millar dies in Kenya". NBR. 29 November 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  20. ^ Newsroom, Sharon Brettkelly of (25 February 2021). "The Detail: The story of Jake Millar, a young entrepreneur who burnt some of the country's wealthiest investors". Stuff. Retrieved 28 May 2023. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  21. ^ "How it all went so wrong for Unfiltered founder Jake Millar". NZ Herald. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  22. ^ "The Detail: The young entrepreneur who made millions then disappeared". Newsroom. 26 February 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  23. ^ "Young entrepreneur's death sparks media backlash". RNZ. 9 December 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  24. ^ Junn, Jihee (31 March 2021). "Popping the Unfiltered bubble: Jake Millar on how it all went so wrong". The Spinoff. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
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