From a childhood marked by exile and uncertainty to building multimillion-dollar companies before the age of 30, Haris Reis represents a new generation of entrepreneurs shaped by resilience, adaptability, and relentless ambition. Born in Germany after his family fled Banja Luka during the Bosnian War, Reis grew up watching his parents work multiple jobs to build a life from nothing in the United States. Those early experiences would later become the foundation of his work ethic and entrepreneurial mindset.
Today, Reis is known for scaling brands, helping entrepreneurs build digital empires, and generating millions through marketing, publishing, and online business ventures. Yet behind the success lies a deeply personal story rooted in sacrifice, gratitude, and a strong connection to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In conversation, Reis reflects on the refugee experience that shaped him, the lessons he learned from working alongside global celebrities and billion-dollar entrepreneurs, and why he believes young people today have more opportunity than any generation before them.
Growing up in a refugee family gave Reis what he describes as both gratitude and an unshakable hunger to succeed. Watching his parents work four jobs each after arriving in America without speaking English left a permanent impression on him. “I could never say I’m tired or I can’t work,” he explains. “They did it tired, so I felt like I had to do it tired too.” That mentality became the driving force behind everything he built later in life – a constant desire to grow while never forgetting where he came from.
Some of his earliest memories in America revolve around sacrifice. His mother walked him 45 minutes to school and back every day because the family only had one car, which his father needed for work. Harsh Nebraska weather never stopped her, and he says he never once heard her complain. By the age of 12, Reis already felt the need to contribute financially, finding work officiating soccer games. Soon after, he began traveling alone to San Diego at just 14 years old, staying in rundown hotel rooms while trying to immerse himself in circles filled with successful entrepreneurs.
Those trips changed his perspective completely. Being around high-level businesspeople made him realize that success was not reserved for a different type of person. “They were no different than me,” he says. “I realized all I needed was hard work and the willingness to listen.” Years later, he now lives in a penthouse in downtown San Diego overlooking the very neighborhood where he once stayed in cheap motel rooms as a teenager chasing opportunity.
At only 20 years old, Reis launched a marketing agency that quickly grew into a six-figure business. Ironically, his age initially worked against him. He recalls trying to offer marketing services to older professionals who dismissed him because he looked too young. That changed after he decided to prove himself in a completely different way – by becoming a bestselling author himself before helping others do the same.
In just five days, he wrote and published his first book, Millionaire Mindset, focused on the thought patterns and habits he observed among successful entrepreneurs. The book reached #1 national bestseller status in the Business and Entrepreneurship category, instantly giving him credibility. Soon, Reis began offering a unique service: helping clients become bestselling authors themselves for just $99. He handled everything from writing and cover design to barcodes and Library of Congress listings, while guaranteeing bestseller status.
The strategy worked. Clients began generating attention and new business opportunities after their launches, and naturally turned to Reis for broader marketing support. What began with books evolved into full-scale branding, advertising, funnels, email campaigns, and websites. That momentum eventually opened doors to working with major personalities, including helping build the personal brand of Gary Vaynerchuk.
Working around globally recognized names such as Mike Tyson, Wyclef Jean, and Floyd Mayweather Jr. gave Reis something he says he previously lacked: confidence in his own abilities. Seeing public figures he had admired growing up seek his advice forced him to recognize his own value. “It wasn’t arrogance,” he explains. “It was realizing maybe I’m smarter than I give myself credit for.” That realization only intensified his work ethic and reinforced his belief that he was still far from reaching his full potential.
Reis later expanded into physical products, helping scale a company whose products reached more than 1,000 Walmart stores and 1,300 CVS locations across the United States. According to him, scaling to that level requires more than marketing hype. Manufacturing capacity, operational consistency, and a product that solves a clear problem are essential. His company manufactured entirely in California and could produce up to 100,000 units per day, allowing them to meet demand quickly once distribution partnerships were secured. The key, he says, was finding major retail partners capable of pushing products into massive circulation while keeping the pitch simple and compelling.
Today, Reis believes digital success depends less on vanity metrics and more on consistency and conversion. Through his company’s “Top of Mind Method,” he focuses on ensuring brands remain constantly visible to their audience through engaging and valuable content. In an era of shrinking attention spans, he argues that boring content simply disappears into the noise. More importantly, he believes too many entrepreneurs confuse followers with real business growth.
“You can have millions of followers and zero sales,” he says. “It’s better to have 1,000 loyal fans who buy everything than a million people who never support your business.” For Reis, social media should never be about ego or popularity, but about impact, conversions, and building sustainable companies.
One of the defining moments in his entrepreneurial career came when his company, Influential Inc., generated $1.2 million in just 14 days. The opportunity came after partnering with a businessman who had recently sold his company for $115 million and wanted to launch an online coaching brand. Reis and his team developed what he describes as an “irresistible offer,” combining organic reach, strategic paid media, and a strong sales process.
In the beginning, Reis personally handled nearly every sales call himself, often closing $5,000 deals in less than ten minutes. The experience reinforced his belief that success in online business often comes down to two things: a compelling offer and an effective sales team.
Despite building his career in the United States, Reis remains deeply connected to Bosnia and Herzegovina. He proudly identifies as Bosnian and speaks passionately about giving back to the country. One of his long-term goals is to purchase a house his family built during the war in Sarajevo’s Old Town and transform it into an entrepreneurship center for young people.
His vision is to create a space where aspiring entrepreneurs can access mentorship, technology, AI tools, software, and educational resources that he never had growing up. Reis believes Bosnia and Herzegovina possesses extraordinary talent and potential, and he hopes to contribute to creating more opportunities for future generations.
For young people who feel limited by their circumstances, Reis insists there has never been a better time to succeed. While acknowledging that life is becoming more expensive and competitive, he believes modern technology has created unprecedented opportunities for those willing to work relentlessly. Access to AI, online education, mentorship, and global audiences has removed many traditional barriers that once prevented people from building wealth or businesses.
He points to teenagers building million-dollar companies online as proof that geography is no longer destiny. “People shouldn’t feel limited,” he says. “They shouldn’t let anyone convince them they can’t do something.” According to Reis, success ultimately comes down to consistency, resilience, and the willingness to keep moving forward regardless of setbacks.
“You have to get up every single day and fight,” he says. “And when you finally win, you look back and realize how proud you are that you never gave up.”
