Nima Yamini remembers renting a sofa for the night during Paris Fashion Week when he was in his 20s. Now, the 42-year-old entrepreneur can rent a private penthouse in the same city.
“It’s very foreign to me to have this affluent lifestyle with these luxuries,” he says. “Most of my life, I was a working-class man.”
Nima Yamini Early Life
When Yamini left college aged 18, he tried his hand at a variety of different businesses and industries — sales, the LA music industry, and nightclubs in New York City to name a few. He started his own club promotions business where he was rubbing shoulders with NYC’s top business players. It was here that something clicked; Yamini realized that, if he could get himself into that hierarchy and the right rooms that come with it, from there, he could determine exactly what he wanted to do.
Throughout this time, he also did some work in real estate. However, it wasn’t until he got back in touch with a friend, who worked as a hedge fund analyst, that Yamini found an opportunity within private equity.
“From there, I started making money and being able to travel,” he says. “To make another long story short, I ended up meeting my fiance [in Spain], who’s about to have our first child in a few weeks.” Throughout Covid, Yamini also set up an online education business. “I didn’t really think about making money, but it ended up coming,” he says.
Social Media Influencer
Yamini never thought he would see himself getting into social media, but right when Covid hit, he says he had a “midlife crisis”. Being based in Germany at the time, he was subject to much stricter lockdown rules than the US.
“When I’m in Florida, you feel liberation,” he says, “but in Germany, it was locked down. The gyms were closed, and I gained weight.” To battle this, Yamini turned to TikTok, making videos about wealth strategy, his lifestyle, and mindset — with a few entertaining anecdotes on the way.
“I didn’t care about making the money,” Yamini remarks. “I started doing videos, and now we are here.”
He’s also aware of the great degree of ethical responsibility that comes with having a large platform and influence. “I realized that there are people who can screw you over,” he adds,” people who wake up in the morning and think that you’re the sucker — that it was your fault and that they did nothing wrong without shame. I’m not one of those people.”
1 Percent Life
It’s not lost on Yamini just how fortunate he is to be able to live the life that he does — from private planes, to mega-yachts, to traveling all around the world. So, what’s the thing that he’s most grateful to be able to do as he reaps his rewards?
“I’d say just being able to, on a pretty fairly consistent basis, rent the yacht, go enjoy the sunset if I want, watch Miami, and see the skyline.” That, Yamin says, as well as being able to train with world class boxing coaches. “As someone that loves athletic activity, I just think it’s cool to have a personal trainer and be able to easily afford it. I guess that’s something that not everyone has, but it’s something I deeply appreciate.”
Yamini has come a long way from crashing on couches and hustling hard just to get by in New York City. But, being the self-made entrepreneur he is now, it allows him to never forget where he came from, or what matters most in life: “I want to be happy more than wealthy.”
Follow Nima Yamini on Instagram.