This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
One of the things I have learned since beginning this podcast, 1500 and 15 days ago, thank you so much for joining me today. By the way, this is Chris Guillebeau. One of the things I have learned is that money, pretty much everything about money is completely relative. And frugality in particular is an interesting concept. I often get pitches from people who want to be on a show where the person says, "I'm really frugal. We started with really low investment, only $50,000."
If you've been listening for a while, you're like, "Wow, almost nobody spends $50,000, almost nobody spends $5,000 to start their project." And they end up going on to be pretty successful and make a lot of money. But meanwhile, you've got other people who are determined to never spend anything at all. And so it's just an interesting concept that I've kind of learned to just pay attention to and analyze as we go along, kind of see some patterns, see what tends to lead to success and what tends to lead to success quicker because your time is limited. That's another key principle of the Side Hustle School method. I want to be respectful of your time. I want you to be able to use your time well. So the right time to spend money on your business
is when your business is working. So anyway, in today's story, this all connects. In today's story, after getting furloughed, a working mom grows her online stationary business to five figures a month. She does this on a very low budget. And most of that growth took place after being furloughed during the pandemic. So you'll hear exactly how much that was and how she does it in the episode.
Maybe it's an encouragement to you, do something to put yourself in a place of if something happens and you get furloughed or you lose your job or there's some big change in your industry or God forbid a future pandemic, whatever it is, that way you have something to look to and invest in. The story is called Photo Retoucher Strikes Gold with Etsy Shop. And that story is coming right up. Several years ago, while searching for personalized stationery, Katrina Harris looked online but didn't find anything that fit her modern style. A DIYer at heart, she decided to try experimenting with different paper types and foil to learn the process. Through a process of trial and error, she ended up with something she liked. After sending
those personalized note cards and letterhead to friends and family, they first asked where she'd bought it. Then when they learned she'd made it, they asked her to make some for them. That interest gave her the push she needed to start Petrina's Papery in Etsy shops selling personalized foil press stationery, printers and stickers in the spring of 2016. When she first heard the cha-ching sound from the Etsy app after making her first sale, Petrina didn't know what it was until she pulled out her phone. She was thrilled, but that excitement quickly turned to angst. All of her
items would be made to order, so she worried about making them perfectly. She knew that early reviews mattered, and she didn't want her first customer to be her last. Fortunately, it turned out just fine. Whatever goal starting out was to keep her spending as low as possible. When she began experimenting with stationery for her own use, she realized that the quality was inconsistent without the right materials and machinery. She already had a desktop computer and design software,
but she needed to purchase a laser printer, foiling machine, paper cutters and cardstock. The total bill was under $1,000, and since her shop was on Etsy, she had to pay listing fees, but didn't need a web designer or hosting. Orders were sporadic in the beginning, which meant she could easily tackle them in the evening or weekends. And that was perfect for Petrina, because she was working a full-time job and had a two-year-old. It wasn't until she was furloughed from her job as a photo retoucher during the pandemic that she had the time to really grow the shop. By then,
she had two young kids, a six-month-old, in addition to the five-year-old, who was no longer going to school in person, and her husband was working full-time from home. It was a challenge, just like so many families experienced, but she made time to update her product listings, adding more color options and new images. She joined Facebook networking groups for Etsy sellers and got feedback on her shop. Petrina also learned the art of SEO on Etsy, so that users could find her products more easily. And this works. A lot of our customers
now find a shop through organic site traffic, so having the right descriptions and tags, as well as high-quality images, is very important. She also gains customers from referral. Customers will send a friend or family member a note card or envelope with a gold foil label, and the recipients ask where they got it. From that ultra-frugal startup plan, Petrina is still less than $1,000 in expenses a few years in. Her monthly revenue is now between $10,000 and $13,000. She attributes the success to a few different factors, including that modern
style, the quality of her products, and stellar customer service. Many customers tell her she provides a great product for a low price, and that responsive service encourages repeat purchases. Starting this business has let her expand on her creative side. Having another income stream in uncertain times is important too. Even after designing stationery for over five years, Petrina still remembers the feelings she had when she created the first foil set for herself. Seeing
her name in those beautiful letters on high-quality paper was an incredible feeling of confidence and empowerment. She loves creating that same experience for others. In the near future, she's hoping to launch her own website. She's also working on adding business cards and wedding invitation packages and hopes to sell eventually through brick and mortar stores too. This photo retoucher is turning what she touches into gold. Gold foil, that is.
How can you prepare for the next pandemic? Or let's not say the next pandemic. Let's say some kind of lifestyle change, some kind of change in your industry or your career. What can you do proactively? Even if you don't see all the steps, even if it's just something small like asking yourself, well, what would I do if I didn't have to go to work all day? Or what would I do if
I even just had, you know, one extra afternoon a week and all of a sudden I could use that time for anything devoted to my professional development or anything devoted towards starting one of these projects that I hear about on this little podcast or whatever else it is. Like how would you spend that time? Is there a way you can do something proactive now? Again, not to solve every problem in the world, but to give you a bit of a stepping stone just in case there is some change. I always love hearing stories about how people are able to adjust because they've taken the time to build that foundation. So that's my hope for you as well. And thank you for listening today. Inspiration is
good, but inspiration with action is so much better. Today's show notes, including links to Patrina's Papery are at sidehustleschool.com/1515. Go and check out this beautiful foil stationery, get some inspiration, perhaps make a purchase. And if you've got a comment or question for the show, just come to sidehustleschool.com/questions. All right, that's all for me today, but I hope you will subscribe and join me tomorrow. My name is Chris Guillebeau. This is Side Hustle
School. From the Onward Project.
