What It's About
NYC woman creates a side hustle monogramming scarves and takes a charitable interest in education.
Business Model
Skills Required
Complexity
Profit Potential
Words of Wisdom
While in college, Kirsten had spent her nights and weekends working as a merchandiser, so she knew that putting items that weren’t selling on a mannequin or moving them would lead to them flying off the shelves. Since Etsy’s entirely online, she decided to use the same concept by taking new product images for items that weren’t selling well.
Fun Fact
Kirsten donates a percentage of her ROSA GOLD profits to Pencils of Promise and DonorsChoose because she’s passionate about education, especially for young girls.
Through DonorsChoose, Kirsten recently funded a special needs teacher’s supply list that would help her students monogram items and sell them to other students and parents. It was a perfect fit!
Notes from Chris
Episode 221
Today’s story comes from Kirsten Le Greca in Hoboken, New Jersey. By day, she’s a television casting producer at a big production company in New York City. Her side hustle, ROSA GOLD, is a scarf brand that gives back...trying to wrap the world in a little more love, as she likes to say. She donates a percentage of profits to Pencils of Promise and DonorsChoose because she’s passionate about education, especially for young girls. Kirsten’s e-commerce site blossomed out of an Etsy store she opened in 2014 as a testing ground for a lot of ideas she had swirling around her head. She’d come up with an idea, order a sample or two, post a listing, and order more if it was getting a lot of views, favorites, and orders. She posted a few images on Instagram but mainly relied on the built-in traffic at Etsy to get sales. Etsy taught her how to listen to her customers, and she’d pay attention to custom orders people asked for (many of which were a slight variation of what she was offering), especially if two or more people asked for something. Kirsten wanted a monogrammed blanket scarf for herself, but wanted a very specific style that she couldn’t find, and didn’t like the style of monogram fonts she saw, so she decided to make her own. Her monogrammed blanket scarves were the product that stuck. After a few years, she decided she wanted to go bigger than Etsy. She’s still on Etsy, but she also migrated everything to its own site, added additional projects (including bandanas and t-shirts), and started to build it into a brand. Kirsten’s main goal is to turn her side hustle into a full-time job (her goal is January 1st), so she invests her profits into the business, upgrading and enhancing each element. As she figures things out along the way, she’s moving closer and closer to that full-time goal, making improvements every day and continuing to keep an eye on what works best.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
- ROSA GOLD: Get your own personalized, monogrammed scarf on Kirsten's website
- Shopify: Kirsten used Shopify to set up her website for ROSA GOLD, and they're offering a 21-day trial and exclusive discount for all Side Hustle School listeners!
- Pencils of Promise and DonorsChoose: The charities that Kirsten works with and donates a percentage of her profits to
- Elvis Duran and the Morning Show: The radio show that mentioned ROSA GOLD and resulted in a massive push to her e-commerce shop
- Honeymoon in Nepal Becomes Fashion Accessories Business: A multinational love affair turns into a global side hustle in the fashion world that also raises money for charity in Nepal
- Hair Salon Owner Designs Mittens for Cold Runners: An avid runner has a difficult time finding gloves or mittens that feel comfortable enough for running while also keep her fingers warm in the winter. She decides to make her own and pursues a patent for her idea/li>
- 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
Resources
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