This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
Today, we're gonna hear from a user experience designer who loves a clean workspace, but hates crawling under the desk with zip ties. Have you ever tried to organize a bunch of cables around your desk? You've got the computer cables and speaker cables and all the peripherals and all the USB devices and all that stuff that we all have these days. Well, mine is actually not super organized because I also don't like crawling under the desk and I would like it to look nicer, but I want it to happen kind of magically without a whole lot of work on my part. Maybe this guy that we're gonna hear from today has found my solution.
Instead of firing up a 3D printer, he goes online, he looks around for metal fabrication shops. Within a week, he finds a Michigan vendor who's willing to laser cut powder coat and basically create this whole invention that he has an idea for. He drafts a sketch, kind of outlines how it's supposed to look and finds this supplier, this manufacturer, he orders 50 packs, he pairs them, he sells them. Well, I'm getting ahead of myself here because he's gonna tell the story. Basically, he has an idea for an invention to make cable management easier.
He makes $14 on every one that he sells and he's selling a lot of them. Let's hear today how he sold his first $1,000 of inventory. That is our segment, First $1,000. The episode is titled "Turning Cable Chaos Into Magnetic Profit." Let's pass the microphone to this crafty designer. I'll be back at the end with a quick wrap-up.
[Music]
I'm one of those people who can't think straight if a single cable is out of line. My standing desk was the final frontier. Every time it rose, the cord sags and sooner or later, something yanked loose. I tried plastic raceways, fabric sleeves, even duct tape. None survived the up and down cycles.
At 11 p.m. on a rainy Tuesday, I drew a simple solution in Figma, a 12-inch steel rail with six nickel-plated magnets press fit into recessed holes. Stick the rail to the underside of the desktop with automotive-grade adhesive, snap cords in place, done. No screws, no drills, no swearing. I assumed the manufacturing would be a nightmare until I found a small Michigan job shop that already produced magnetic knife bars.
Their minimum order quantity was only 50 pieces. Unit cost was $7. I said yes, wired the deposit, and spent the two-week lead time designing a peel-and-stick template printed on cardstock so customers could align the rail in 15 seconds. Next came TikTok. Desk setup videos dominate the productivity space, so I set my phone on a tripod and filmed a single take.
Cables messy, rail revealed, snap, instant order. I added on-screen text, two rails, $29, link in bio. I posted at 7 a.m. between inbox checks, and by lunch, the clip had 26,000 views and 11 sales through a gumroad link. Shipping was painless, two rails fit diagonally in a USPS padded flat-rate envelope.
I printed branded labels using Canva and a $90 thermal printer. My only customer service moment came when someone asked if the magnets erased hard drives. I replied with a smiling video demo, phone right next to the rail, data intact. Five more clips followed, one comparing my rail to zip ties, another in soothing ASMR style, one featuring my cat swatting dangling cords before the rail rescued them. TikTok loves a cat cameo.
Each video sparked a burst of orders, and by day 18, I hit 75 bundles sold. To break down the numbers, $29 retail minus $7 cost minus $2.50 postage and packaging leaves $19.50 gross. Subtract Stripe fees and TikTok's referral cut, net profit rounded to $14 per bundle. 75 times 14 equals $1,050, my first grand from a side project smaller than a ruler. I keep five rails taped under my own desk as backup stock.
Whenever inventory drops below 20, I email Michigan for another run. Two week turnaround, no drama. I might do more with it in the future, but for now, I'm mostly busy with other projects. If you've solved your own workspace annoyance, grab your phone, show the fix in one satisfying moment, and let short form video do the heavy lifting. A clean desk and your first $1,000 might be one snap away.
Cool little project and shows how you can manufacture something, which is often not the simplest of side hustles compared to like buying and reselling stuff, for example, or putting up a website to offer a service. But still, there are ways to do it, right? And so this example just shows you don't have to spend a lot of money or have a great deal of complexity. It can be a fairly simple project. So I love examples like this, well done.
Listeners, if you have a question, if you have an update about your hustle, and remember, there's something you can do too. Like if you're thinking about, you know, you're hearing these stories and you're like, what's my idea? There is something you can do. Maybe you already know what it is. Maybe you're exploring.
I want to encourage you to make small progress on something that's important to you today. I hope you will continue to listen as well. New episodes drop every day, seven days a week. My name's Chris Guillebeau. This is Side Hustle School.
[Music]
From the Onward Project.
