Last week, sharphawk was born, a marketing agency billing itself as being “built by Gen Z, for today’s modern world”.

Originally known as NB Media, the company was founded by Mr Borg as a 17-year-old freelancer, who employed his first team member in 2018.

WhosWho.mt sat down with Mr Borg, now a 21-year-old architecture student, to talk about the journey so far.

“Just like any other start-up,” he says, “at first I started taking on very small projects and doing most if not all of the work myself – from social media management to designs, websites, and more.”

“Now,” he continues, “our team has grown to seven members, allowing us to service prestigious brands and companies with the professionalism they expect, despite our young age.”

These projects vary from branding to marketing campaigns to web development.

“With our team of in-house designers, strategists, marketers and others, we are capable of providing endless solutions to our clients at an efficient timeframe and cost,” says Mr Borg.

Growing up in the GP Borg family, a group of companies diversified in construction, manufacturing, development, leisure and hospitality, instilled an entrepreneurial spirit in Mr Borg from a tender age.

“Coming from a business-oriented family,” he recounts, “I have seen both the highs and the lows of several ventures.”

“This includes the many hours which are dedicated to growing the company and the risks faced on a daily basis, but also the pride which comes with every new project.”

“Of course,” he continues, “mentally this has helped me pick up certain traits which fuel me on a daily basis to keep on improving our ways of doing business and expand in new areas.”

Aged 13, he was already making money from a side hustle by selling electronics like Android boxes online.

But marketing was always of great interest to him, starting from photography and design and then moving further into strategic and digital marketing.

He is fascinated by the constant evolution of marketing, and the way new avenues for conducting businesses emerge through technological development.

“This means that we have to constantly be investing in new talent,” he explains, noting with pride that he is now surrounded by a team of experienced individuals, each specialising in their own field.

This trajectory was not all plain sailing, however, with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic hitting the fledgling company hard, with Mr Borg finding himself as a teenager on the cusp of entering his 20s in a tough spot.

“I had to come up with a proactive solution,” he explains, “and that’s how Stickers Malta was born.”

The sticker design and printing industry were booming at the time, with companies introducing COVID protocol stickers, QR code menus, floor distance indicators, and many more, so Mr Borg’s idea took off quickly.

The newly generated business allowed him to not only maintain his existing team members, but also onboard more workers.

“By strengthening our team, we were able to scale our marketing agency even through the pandemic.”

The future looks promising for Mr Borg and sharphawk, with plans “already set” to implement “a very big vision”.

“The first and most ambitious goal is to take sharphawk to an international level, with offices across different countries and continents,” explains Mr Borg, the excitement palpable.

Big words? Certainly, but ones backed up by action.

“We have already started working with a dedicated international consultant who is giving us advice every step of the way.”

Whether these dreams will be achieved or if new ventures await, Mr Borg and sharphawk are definitely ones to watch.

Asked how he manages to keep up with everything, Mr Borg laughs. 

"I'm just crazy."