Meet the Aussie pair who made the 30 Under 30 rich list

The innovators and founders of HiSmile, Nik Mirkovic and Alex Tomic, launched their business in December 2014 with just A$20,000 of their own money. Photo / Supplied

Aussie teeth-whitening entrepreneurs Nik Mirkovic and Alex Tomic have just been named in Forbes' annual 30 Under 30 rich list.

And their company, HiSmile, is on track to turn over a staggering A$100 million ($105m) by the end of 2018 — after trading for just four years.

But don't think the 20-something Gold Coast mates are content to rest on their laurels — they now have their sights firmly set on global domination.

The pair launched their business in December 2014 with just A$20,000 of their own money.

One of the keys to such rapid and astronomical success has been the decision to focus on and invest heavily in celebrity social media endorsements.

After dogged negotiations, the entrepreneurs have secured deals with reality stars Kylie and Kendall Jenner and boxer Conor McGregor, which have won over the millennial demographic and netted the company millions.

Mirkovic, 22, told news.com.au the goal now was to turn HiSmile into one of the world's top five brands in the near future.

It may not be such a lofty goal, considering that around this time last year, the company's revenue was around A$20m — far lower than 2018's A$100m benchmark.

"Myself and Alex want HiSmile to be among the top five brands globally, not just in our space in cosmetics. We want to be in the top five brands globally across all consumer goods," he said.

"Our motto from a young age has been 'challenge expectations' ... so when we set benchmarks that we hit, we are constantly lifting those benchmarks."

Mirkovic said he and his business partner had always been hugely ambitious, despite their young ages.

"Literally since I could walk, since I was two years old, I used to muck around with my dad and wrestle and he would never, ever let me win. Having that instilled in me from a young age gave me that competitive, ambitious drive," he said.

Mirkovic said the pair, who were the youngest entrants on the Australian Financial Review's 2017 Young Rich List with a combined wealth of A$46m, had been eyeing a spot on the 30 Under 30 list for some time.

"Being young and hitting that bracket is something we've wanted to achieve, so it's pretty big — we've been on a few lists like the AFR list recently, but it's definitely a good feeling," he said.

"We have no background [in entrepreneurship] but we're similar in that from a young age we've both had that competitive, ambitious side and we also love to question things."

Mirkovic said HiSmile would be around for the long haul.

"We don't want to be a trend or a flash in the pan, we don't want to get in, get rich, and get out," he said.

Kylie Jenner's Instagram post for HiSmile gave the start-up a million-dollar boost. Photo / Instagram

"We wanted to build something over a long period of time and reach a global scale. We thought everyone cares about their teeth, everyone wants to look after them, but over the long course we wanted to dominate the space, not be a trend. We wanted longevity."

Mirkovic said he wanted HiSmile to become as much of a household name as Nike or Apple, and that more products and staff members would be added to the business in the near future to accelerate that growth.

"There's definitely space for us to really dominate the oral cosmetics sector," he explained.

"We're always planning for the future — we know where the company will be at the end of the year, and at the start of next year. We have 40 staff but one of our main focuses is preparing infrastructure to house 150 people.

"That doubling effect and constantly playing at that level means we're constantly thinking of the future. We've got the correct people in place but we're looking to grow the business as well now more than ever."

The brand was launched after Tomic, now 24, got bored of his commerce degree, quitting six months in.

Mirkovic was working part-time in hospitality at the time, and they came up with the concept for their brand during a family dinner in 2014.

The company's flagship product is a A$79.99 LED teeth whitening kit, while toothpastes, gels and a coconut oil mouthwash are also in HiSmile's arsenal.

Today, it has an Instagram following of 729,000 and around a million customers.