Christine Kay
Northern News Services

Iqaluit (July 29/02) - In a parking lot in front of the Ivavik apartment building on the road to Apex, several young men with a pressure washer and some soap await your arrival.

There's no sign to say what's going on, but there is a lot of waving. This small business, the car wash, is booming and helping the person running it to reach his goal.

"I'm the owner," says Nastania Mullin, 15, and already a businessperson. Every weekend since June 26, Mullin has been holding a car wash outside of where he lives on the road to Apex.

He is working to save money for a new laptop for his school work.

Mullin says he got the idea after his father and some neighbours approached him to wash their cars -- some offering as much as $20 for his services.

With this, Mullin figured why not offer a car wash to every one driving by. He quickly got things set up.

"My dad bought me the hose so that I could get started and then I raised the money to get a power washer and some waxed soap," says Mullin.

His little business is doing well. He charges $15 per car and says he often gets good tips.

Mullin has a couple of friends helping him, who he pays $5 a wash.

Shawn Nattaq, 14, says it's a good way to make a little money and help out a friend at the same time. He figures he'll also get a chance to try out the new laptop when Mullin gets it.

So far, they have raised about $600 in total. Their best customers, they say, are cab drivers who come back several times since the wash started.

This isn't Mullin's only career for this summer. He is so determined to reach his goal that he also works for the city running errands on weekdays from nine to five.

"I work seven days a week," he says.

The car wash will continue to be held on weekends, pending the weather, until Aug. 10. After that, Mullin will be going on vacation for three weeks to New Brunswick. He'll be taking a break from work before school starts again and visiting his grandparents.

Mullin and his friends believe that if things continue to go the way they have so far, Mullin will be able to buy his laptop by the end of the summer.