This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
Hey there, greetings. What's up? Welcome back. This is Chris Guillebeau here for you today recording another episode of Side Hustle School. Today's is a good one.
It's about a marketing director who gets sick, isn't able to work her normal job for a while, does eventually recover, but in the meantime starts a side hustle reselling vintage items. I'm gonna talk about this story in the context of continuous improvement about how when you do these kinds of things over time you get better at them, and that's also why you should start now if you haven't started already. But first, a fun fact about yesterday's story, that episode number 233 featured the fidget spinner cookie, which became a viral sensation for a woman in Dallas who makes all kinds of custom cookies, sends them out nationwide, and I think is making something like $2,000 a month doing this. Anyway, here's the fun fact. A customer ordered Chevron cookies for a party.
Now Jessica, that cookie creator, didn't know that Chevron was a type of pattern. And to be totally honest with you, I didn't know it was either. I actually went and Googled Chevron pattern, and then I saw the images and I'm like, oh, I've recognized that before, I just didn't know it had a name. So since Jessica was also not familiar with it, when she got this order for Chevron cookies, she thought about Chevron the company, like the oil and gas conglomerate. And she's like, well, this is kind of strange, but maybe they're big fans of Chevron, like who knows, they really like that gas station.
So she makes the cookies in the shape of the Chevron logo and drops them off in person to a very confused client. Now she ended up refunding that person's money after the source of confusion became clear, but still to this day, she thinks of it as one of her greatest hits. So I thought that was amusing and as part of it, I also learned what a Chevron pattern was. Anyway, today's story about a marketing director who turns a passion for vintage finds into a sustainable side income is coming right up. [Music]
Jillian Lyons is an early adopter.
She was selling crafts and jewelry on Etsy shortly after it launched way back in 2005. As a marketing director by day, that original hustle grew out of need. When after being diagnosed with stage three cancer in three places, she had to get a less stressful job. She took a position selling women's shoes at Macy's, which she says she hated, and started selling those handmade crafts and jewelry on the site. It kept her busy, helped her think positive, and provided a small income.
Plus, it was something she could do no matter how good or bad she was feeling. Before she knew it, she was running a little side business from her bedroom, quite literally on her sick bed. It took some time, but thankfully, Jillian's treatment was successful. And as her health returned, her hobby transitioned. Once she was feeling better and venturing out into the world again, she connected with her interest in thrifting, adding vintage jewelry, then vintage clothing to her Etsy shop.
When her fiance, then boyfriend Matt began helping out, the two realized they had a great opportunity. So three years ago, Jillian's hobby evolved into a new Etsy shop called Valley Vintage, specializing in original vintage fashions for men, women, and children, as well as jewelry, housewares, shoes, accessories, and more. The business aims to turn around orders within 24 hours of payment and ship's priority mail so that customers get their items quickly. Startup costs were minimal, and she put the word out to friends and family that she was on the hunt for vintage items. A number of them were so happy for her to clean out their attics that they would give her access or even drop stuff off themselves so that she could then resell it.
She already had a laptop and decent camera, Etsy fees were about 20 cents a listing, and to make a small home office, she found other items on a site called freecycle.org, which connects people who are giving away free stuff in all kinds of local areas. The first official sale with a new side hustle was almost immediate, because through her original Etsy shop, Jillian had learned a definite formula to selling online, which included planning and consistency. Several months in, Valley Vintage began seeing an average monthly profit between $500 and $1,200, and Jillian says that sales get better and business becomes more predictable every year. And if you're interested in doing something like this yourself, here are a couple of tips from her. She says, first and foremost, it's important to know your stuff as a vintage buyer and seller.
And like anything, learning to identify vintage takes time and study. Jillian used something called the Vintage Fashion Guild for its resources on fabric and labels, in addition to tips and tricks she's picked up from fellow thrifters. Thanks to her experience, she can now quickly scan a rack and recognize vintage items by look and feel, but when listing items, she always backs up her selections with research. She also says when you're starting out with a project like this, don't be afraid of making mistakes. Sometimes they turn into learning experiences or even give you the strength to fight a little harder.
Jillian and Matt will be getting married next year and Valley Vintage will continue as a family side hustle. Jillian continues to be cancer-free ever since that successful treatment, and she hopes that they can go mobile, traveling the world with her hustle and selling vintage from the road. For a while, she was thinking of that as something far in the future, but now with the rate Valley Vintage has been growing each year, it may come sooner than she first thought. [Music]
So this kind of buying and selling is something that you can get started with right away. You really don't need a lot of knowledge or expertise to list your first items or make your first sale.
With platforms like Etsy or eBay or others, the listing fees are so low and the marketplace that you can gain access to is so large that it's super easy to just jump in. And it doesn't mean it's gonna be a huge success right away, like you heard in the story, Jillian got better over time. And that will likely be your experience too, especially with reselling, but really with any kind of side hustle. The more you do it, the more that experience kind of informs what you do next. And even if you don't have an interest in reselling long-term, I know from my own experience with it long ago, you'll gain skills that can be used elsewhere, skills like copywriting, search engine optimization, marketing, customer relations, and that all-important sense for what sells.
And it can also be fun, especially when you haven't done this before, it's almost like a hobby that pays you. You may not get rich from it, but most hobbies cost money. So this is kind of the opposite of that. I often use this phrase, investing in yourself, just beginning some really easy low-key experiments like this is a great way to invest in yourself. So I put that story before you as an example, whatever you're up to today, whatever your dream is, whatever you're working on, don't just be inspired, inspiration is good, but inspiration combined with action is better.
Today's show notes, including links to Free Cycle and the Vintage Fashion Guild are online at cidustleschool.com/234. This has been another episode of Cidustle School, and I hope to see you again tomorrow. [Music]
