New Delhi | October 27, 2025

At 19, leaving home to move across the world is rarely easy — especially when loneliness and uncertainty shadow every step. Yet, that’s how Money Singh, an Indian immigrant from Punjab, began his journey in the United States. What started as a tough battle with isolation and financial struggle would one day turn into an inspiring story of grit, persistence, and success worth over $2 million a year.

When Singh arrived in San Francisco in 2006, he faced a culture shock that quickly spiraled into depression. “I was depressed for that one year. I wanted to go back. Socially, I was very alone,” Singh told CNBC Make It. With his college credits from India not transferring, he was forced to put his education on hold and find work instead. On his mother’s advice, he took up jobs at a drugstore and later as a dispatcher at his uncle’s cab company — earning just $6 an hour.

What seemed like a dead-end job, however, became his stepping stone. Singh spent over a decade in the taxi industry — driving, managing his own fleet of cabs, and eventually running a dispatch setup. His entrepreneurial instincts soon pushed him to create something bigger. He launched Driver’s Network, which evolved into ATCS Platform Solutions, a marketing and advertising company catering to independent drivers.

But Singh’s ambitions didn’t stop there. In 2019, inspired by his mother’s salon business back in India, he took a bold step and opened Dandies Barbershop & Beard Stylist in Mountain View, California. The transition from cab driver to salon owner wasn’t smooth — and it certainly wasn’t cheap. Singh invested $75,000 of his savings and spent a full year dealing with permits and licenses before he could even open the doors. “I was paying rent for one year before I could open the shop,” he said.

Then came the pandemic. Six months after opening, his business was hit hard. His partner left due to a family emergency, forcing Singh to close for nearly a year. During that time, bills piled up. He took loans, borrowed from friends, used up his life insurance, maxed out his credit cards, and even sold his stocks — all to keep Dandies alive. “I had to eat $1 meals just to make sure the business stayed open,” he recalled. To prepare for reopening, he enrolled in barber school himself, determined not to rely on anyone else.

His resilience paid off. Today, Dandies Barbershop has three thriving outlets and a team of 25 employees. Alongside his other venture, ATCS Platform, Singh now earns more than $2 million annually, with both businesses running profitably. He’s cleared his debts and continues to expand, working 15–16 hours a day on his next project — Barber’s Network, a booking app for barbers.

Singh credits his relentless drive to his upbringing in Punjab, where hardship taught him endurance. “I don’t think I’ll ever retire. I’d want to work all the way through — that’s just what I breathe,” he said. From a lonely teenager earning $6 an hour to a millionaire entrepreneur, Money Singh’s story stands as a testament to what happens when hard work meets unwavering perseverance.

 From Cab Driver to Millionaire: The Journey of Money Singh

At 19, Money Singh moved from Punjab to the US with little more than determination. Starting as a cab dispatcher earning $6 an hour, he spent over a decade in the taxi industry before launching two successful ventures — ATCS Platform Solutions and Dandies Barbershop & Beard Stylist. The road wasn’t easy; he battled loneliness, debt, and even ate $1 meals to keep his business afloat. Today, Singh earns over $2 million a year and continues to build new ventures, proving that persistence and vision can turn even the toughest beginnings into triumph.