Notes from Chris

Episode 565

There is a little-known plight in this world. It is often seen and usually ignored. But its effects are far-reaching and wide-ranging. It is only when the stars align during a solar eclipse that a solution to this plight is brought into the world. Or… at least that’s what it feels like for women over 5’10 looking for jeans that come past their ankles or sleeves that actually meet their wrists. Standing in all her glory at 6’3”, Natalie Matthews, an eCommerce manager by day and hero to tall women everywhere by night, knew this problem all too well.

Natalie spends her days in Melbourne, Australia managing clients and drinking fantastic coffee. And, up until she started her side hustle in 2016, she spent her nights dealing with the extreme frustration that comes with the inability of finding clothes that are long enough.

After countless hours of online searching, and many shrunken items of clothing, Natalie decided to take matters to her own hands. No longer would she be stifled with a lack of choice or frumpy clothing that more closely resembled potato sacks than cute outfits. She was better than that. It was time for her to take the challenge head-on and create the change she wanted to see in the world. Positive change, with better hemlines.

Natalie knew that she wasn’t alone in her struggle because she had a community of similarly tall women on Instagram to commiserate with. But she knew that it wouldn’t be enough to merely source and re-sell items of clothing. No. She would have to reach for the top shelf and design and make the clothing herself. After all, at a statuesque 6’3, she knew where things would need to fit better and how silhouettes should be crafted. And there would be no better test than her own day-to-day life.

The possibilities were endless as she began to think about all the things she could make, and all the places she would be able to wear properly proportioned clothes. If she was this excited just daydreaming about it, Natalie knew that she had stumbled onto a keeper of a side hustle idea. She would now be able to reach the Height-Of-Fashion.

Since she started Height of Fashion back in 2016, Natalie has used about $40,000 of her savings, and a lot of elbow grease, to fund her side hustle. She knew that investing this much money would be a risk, however worthwhile, but she also knew that she’d be in her job for a long time.

She had to invest in a website, marketing materials, and, to quote the lady herself: “about a thousand other things” to get her side hustle off the ground. Now, Natalie gets about 25 orders, or $2,600 a month, to put right back into her business and cover things like photography, website hosting, shipping fees, import duties, barcode fees, and transaction costs.

While it helped that Natalie has a background in eCommerce, she still had a lot to learn on her feet. She told us that had she not started Height of Fashion from the ground up, she doesn’t think that she would have had the knowledge, experience, or the expertise in the eCommerce sector that she does now. In her words, “getting my hands dirty and starting something from scratch that touches so many areas across the supply chain really improves your confidence.”

It’s a top-shelf adventure—we’ll see how high she can go!

 

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  MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Height-Of-Fashion: Women of height unite! No longer should you have to be reduced to ill-fitting clothing—snag some sweet threads over on Natalie's website

• Shopify: Natalie used Shopify to set up her site for Height-Of-Fashion, and they're offering a 21-day trial and exclusive discount for all Side Hustle School listeners!
• Upwork: The global freelancing platform that helps businesses connect with independent freelancers remotely

SEE ALSO:

• Clothing Store Salesman Invents Baby Harness, Earns $100k Per Year: An innovative salesman creates a baby harness that benefits both parent and child, all the while creating a six-figure side income for himself
• Mom & Son Create 'Comfy Cup' Support for Young Athletes: A Kansas City-area mom and her 10-year-old son invent an unconventional (but essential) product for young male athletes that brings in more than $5,000 a month
• Paralegal Starts Side Hustle During Maternity Leave: After starting her hustle with a friend, this new mom buys out her co-owner and begins earning $10,000/month selling baby items

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

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