Tag: Unique Ideas

Bargain Hunter Designs One-of-a-Kind Flea Market

What It’s About

A weekend warrior discovers more than she bargains for and builds a six-figure side hustle.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Brittany hasn’t really worried about copycats because they generally end up fizzling out because, as she puts it, this is 100% a relationship business. If you don’t have a strong relationship with your vendors, there’s no way to keep something like this going. You have to really care about the people you work with and their success.

And if someone wanted to do something similar, Brittany says that that is the key to making something like this work—forming a strong connection with your local, creative community.

Fun Fact

Brittany hails from a unique little city called Orange. While most of the surrounding areas of LA were tearing down older establishments in lieu of building something modern and new in the ’60s, Orange dedicated its time to restoring them. As a matter of fact, Orange has the second largest concentration of historic buildings in the State of California and their Historic Town Center is even listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Notes from Chris

Episode 879
Although half of her life has been spent in Dallas, Texas, Brittany Cobb hails from a little city called Orange—appropriately located within Orange County, California. While most of the surrounding areas of LA were tearing down older establishments in lieu of building something modern and new, Orange had dedicated its time to restoring them.

With their love of “the old ways,” there was never a shortage of open-air shops, swap meets, and flea markets in their old-timey city square. And since her mom ran a booth at many of them, Brittany spent most weekends rummaging through the stacks in pursuit of treasures while her mom was occupied with decorating her booth. One of her earliest memories involves convincing her mom to buy her a funky iron and crystal lamp at one of these that found a home in her bedroom until she went off to journalism school in Texas.

She ended up stayed a few extra years working for local publications before relocating to New York City. Once there, she began to feel a little bit of home. Living within walking distance from the Brooklyn Flea Market, she happily filled her home and closet with one-of-a-kind items.

When it was time for her to relocate back to Dallas for work, she did so somewhat reluctantly. Although the city boasted plenty of shopping opportunities, a local flea market was conspicuously absent. There was a serious lack of the vintage, antique-y goodness that Brittany had come to know and love.

At the time, she was working as a journalist for a company called DailyCandy, and her main focus was highlighting the unique work of artisans and creators local to the area. Every day presented a new opportunity for her to connect with bakers, crafters, and collectors. Before long, she realized that she had a well-rounded collection of potential vendors right under her fingertips—quite literally!

So in true maker form, Brittany decided to put together an event. She cobbled together a simple vendor application using Microsoft Word, sent it out to her contact list, and started looking for a venue.

What seemed like an immense undertaking was quickly falling into place little by little.

But then, disaster struck … or was it an opportunity? Mere days before the launch of her first show, DailyCandy was bought out by another company and Brittany suddenly found herself without a job.

Luckily, that first show was a smashing success! It provided her with a bit of support while she was transitioning into the role of a freelance journalist, and she planned to run three more shows the next year—one in March, one in June, and another in September.

A lot has changed since then. After running a handful of shows each year in Dallas that were starting to bring in out-of-state visitors, she saw an opportunity to expand to new cities. She’d already changed her name to Flea Style, allowing her to be more flexible, and then a call from The Dallas Cowboys set things in motion.

They said that they loved what she was doing and wanted her to extend her show up to their headquarters in Frisco. It was a no brainer. They had over 12,000 shoppers come to that first show, and she now runs three of these each year as well.

In addition to expanding to a new city and opening up a retail shop, Brittany also added a handful of makers workshops out of her retail space that would allow the makers she partners with to share their skills with others, an e-commerce shop so that people could purchase items out of state, and even a podcast! And when all of the facets of Flea Style come together, Brittany brings in over $500,000 a year. In 2013, she started working on Flea Style full-time.

Brittany has a lot in store for Flea Style—there’s another retail shop opening up in Frisco in August, and she’s even adding a restaurant to one of her shops. The passion project now employs more than a dozen people. And it’s a side hustle that’s truly one of a kind!

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Flea Style: Learn more about this unique, one-of-a-kind side hustle over on Brittany’s website!

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Quote of the Day
"If you want to open up a retail shop, whether online or in-person, you have to position yourself to be a little bit more niche. Having 100 dedicated shoppers will make you more successful than 1,000 wishy-washy shoppers."
—Brittany Cobb #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Try ShipStation for 60 Days FREE!

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by ShipStation, the #1 choice of online sellers. 📦

To get a 30-day trial AND an additional month free, click the microphone at the top of their page and enter the word HUSTLE.
Get it Here

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Party Lover Mixes Up Custom Confetti Business

What It’s About

Marketer mixes things up and gets the party started with her custom confetti.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Jessica made herself a promise to not lose focus and to not get too comfortable. Her new job is a great opportunity to learn and grow, but ultimately, she would like to return to The Confetti Bar full-time at some stage. That means treating it more like a like side hustle again, working nights and weekend to restructure her business plan, and gaining clarity on how to grow it in a way that she’ll continue to enjoy.

Treating your business like a side hustle, even when it’s a full-time business, is a great mindset to have!

Fun Fact

Custom made confetti is not always made by machine but is sometimes hand cut! Jessica will combine different textures, shapes, and sizes into the perfect mix for her customers. Sometimes that means a product so complex that the only way to create it is with good old scissor cutting.

Notes from Chris

Episode 873

Many creators talk about their ‘muse’ as a source of inspiration that comes from an unknown place. It guides their minds almost automatically, telling them where to go and what to do to create their masterpiece. Jessica Huizenga’s muse must be a party animal because one day it told her to start a custom made confetti business… totally normal, right?

When Jessica woke up with the idea, she took it straight to her husband. To his credit, he agreed to come along for the ride. He wasn’t about to be a downer when his wife was so enthusiastic.

Jessica was working full-time in marketing but moved quickly. Within a few months, she had figured out how to make her inventory, and had a website up and running. She called it The Confetti Bar. The party was about to get started, and all on a budget of just a few thousand dollars.

It didn’t take long at all for her to find customers. In fact, within a few weeks, she had her first cause for celebration and an order for a custom batch. She puts this quick win down to a very specific product, well marketed. That, coupled with a website that defined the product well and sold it as a fun alternative to standard confetti, did the trick.

Within six months of launching the site, Jessica was partying hard—and was earning enough to quit her full-time job and go all in. A remarkable accomplishment for her first side hustle.

Over the next few years, The Confetti Bar went from strength to strength. Revenue was raining down on Jessica with each and every order. She attracted the attention of some big brands that found her online, including McDonald’s, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Dr. Pepper, who all commissioned her to create custom confetti for their events. Some of these companies placed large orders, all the way up to $14,000 for one event. Although that amount wasn’t typical, a big order like that could fund her operation for several more months.

Jessica kept on this was for five more years all the way into 2018. For most of that time, she was having a ball. Each customer was a cause for celebration, and she felt like she was spreading happiness one little piece of biodegradable paper at a time.

Somewhere along the way, the fun got away from her. The business became complicated and less fulfilling. What used to make her happy was bringing her no joy at all. And by early 2018, sales had slowed and Jessica felt burned out.

She made the decision to return to full-time work, taking a position as Chief Marketing Officer for an online picture framing company. It was a hard choice, after being out on her own for so long, but it was the right one. She knew that she still loved confetti, and bringing happiness into peoples lives with her creations. But something wasn’t working, and she needed space, time and money to figure out what that was.

She made herself a promise to not lose focus and to not get too comfortable. Her new job is a great opportunity to learn and grow. But ultimately, she would like to return to The Confetti Bar full time at some stage. That means treating it more like a like side hustle again, working nights and weekend to restructure her business plan, and gaining clarity on how to grow it in a way that she’ll continue to enjoy.

It seems like a wise plan because as far as side hustles go, The Confetti Bar was a bonafide smash hit. At its peak, the business was making over $70,000 a year. Although things slowed quite a bit, they are starting to ramp up again.

Right now, Jessica isn’t sure what the future holds, but she’s excited to find out. She knows that confetti will always be a part of who she is and what she does. Right now, she’s learning to balance the love of her art, with the practicalities of owning a business and working full time. Through it all, she’s still the life of the party.

 

  MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • The Confetti Bar: Add a little color to your life—head on over to Jessica’s website to get some confetti for yourself!
  • WordPress: Jessica used WordPress to set up her website for The Confetti Bar, and here you can learn how to install your own WordPress site in 5 minutes

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Quote of the Day
"Start with a clear (and preferably simple) idea. It takes a lot more than that to run a successful business, but at the end of the day, if your idea isn’t super clear, it will be that much harder to gain any sort of traction."
—Jessica Huizenga #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Artistic Cartographer Maps Out Successful Side Hustle

What It’s About

These iconic city maps will a-maze you!

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Michelle has always been a big believer that early efforts don’t need to be perfect. In her book, it’s better to start with something, get feedback, and grow. And she learned a lot by sharing her map art at craft fairs where she could get feedback directly from a wide range of people and improve her prints and website.

Fun Fact

So, is it true that all roads lead to Rome? Well, at least in Europe, they do! A map visualization from this Vice article shows the 500,000 routes to Rome across the European continent.

Notes from Chris

Episode 861

Need to get from the Golden Gate Bridge to Sutro Tower in San Francisco? Well, you’re in luck! Today’s featured side hustler, Michelle Chandra, can take you on the longest, windiest route imaginable.

Michelle is a graphic designer with a love for the outdoors, adventures, learning, and art. From her life as an undergraduate seeking to be a creative writer to her current life as an artist with a mapping style all her own, Michelle’s journey has been full of twists and turns.

She began her adventure when she entered college, discovering a new world of travel, poetry, and art. She connected with a community of artists all over San Francisco—ultimately inspiring her into a labyrinth of projects.

The “x” at the conclusion of her journey was artistic cartography. And the intricate world of mapping was love at first sight. Michelle landed a full-time job with a Bay area startup creating web map visualizations, and that’s where she stayed putting together maps for three years.

While at a work conference, she attended a talk on maze-generating algorithms utilizing grids. As a traveler who worked in mapping, Michelle immediately connected the dots: cities are planned on grids as well!

Always keen on a puzzle, Michelle took on the challenge of designing her first map maze, using actual street grids. Although the journey was at times difficult and took 3 months and over 100 hours to solve, it was also a ton of fun. And it occurred to her that perhaps others would enjoy the challenge as well.

To get Dirt Alley Design started, Michelle created a maze map using screenprinting for two of the country’s most iconic cities: her hometown of San Francisco, and Brooklyn.

For the San Francisco maze, she decided to start at the Golden Gate Bridge with it ending at Twin Peaks, in the heart of the city. And for Brooklyn, nothing would suffice but to have it start at the Brooklyn Bridge winding its way all the way to Coney Island. She realized pretty early in that people would want to solve these without damaging the original designs, so she also sends along an extra print of the maze for you to solve.

Her first year, she brought in small profits of around $3,500. The year after that, her profits doubled to $7,000. Her goal is to keep doubling every year. Not only that, but Michelle recently realized that she was learning way more running a business than she was at her main job. With that in mind, she opted to set off on her own path—leaving her day job to focus entirely on her growing side hustle. Luckily, she was able to take the leap thanks to savings and living a minimalist lifestyle.

Looking a bit further down the road, Michelle is aiming to convert more maze enthusiasts by getting her art featured in new places and boosting online marketing so she can spend more time creating and less time at festivals and art fairs. She is especially excited to start exploring different art forms.

Most of all, Michelle feels fortunate to have the opportunity that her hustle has given her to create a new lifestyle. She looks forward to the twists and turns ahead.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Dirt Alley Design: Learn more about this winding side hustle over on Michelle’s website!
  • Shopify: Michelle used Shopify to set up her site for Dirt Alley Designs, and they’re offering a 21-day trial and exclusive discount for all Side Hustle School listeners!
  • The Jealous Curator: A popular, curated art blog we featured in Ep. 818
  • Kottke: One of the oldest blogs on the web. Written and produced by Jason Kottke, this blog covers the essential people, inventions, performances, and ideas that increase the collective adjacent possible of humanity
  • HauteLook: A “members-only” shopping website offering flash-sales and limited-time sale events featuring women’s and men’s fashion, jewelry and accessories, beauty products, kid’s clothing and toys, and home décor
  • Art Biz Success: A website run by my friend, Alyson Stanfield, that focuses on helping artists successfully manage the business side of their operation
  • Forbes | Holiday Gift Guide 2018: A holiday gift guide that highlighted some of Michelle’s products back in 2018

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

RELIABLE WEBHOST FOR $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for my past 5 websites. It's cheap, flexible, and you can get support 24 hours a day.

Get your own hosting plan for just $2.49 a month!
Learn More

Quote of the Day
"In the beginning, you might just have an idea or an invention, but until you share it and get feedback, you won’t be able to learn, grow, or build it something bigger!"
—Michelle Chandra #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

That’s the Spot! Dog Lover’s Hustle Becomes Fur-ever Biz

What It’s About

A dog training side hustle to go mutts over.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

It can take time to gain confidence when you’re going out on your own. The important thing is to not let it get the better of you.

In Patrice’s case, humility can be a healthy response if it leads you toward self-improvement. In fact, she cites overcoming those fears as one of the most rewarding aspects of growing her business. She says, “Prior to this experience, I didn’t know I had as much gumption as I do.”

Fun Fact

For years, getting researchers to pinpoint the origin of man’s best friend was like walking into a room full of dog owners and asking, “Who’s a good boy?” Everyone would promote, with utmost confidence, their own pet theory.

But a new dual-origin theory found that an ancient European population was replaced by an eastern Asian population as the latter expanded across the continent. Every dog alive today is descended from ancient Asian roots!

Notes from Chris

Episode 856

Patrice Kuiken knew she wanted to run her own business. She even knew exactly what that business would be. But like all of our stories—and because she had to pay the bills—it needed to start as a side hustle.

You see, Patrice had been passionate about animals from a young age. Ever since volunteering at the Humane Society, helping train dogs at the shelter to become more adoptable, she was hooked on dog training.

Patrice devoured every book, video, and resource she could find to learn more about dog behavior and how best to humanely train them. Interestingly, dog training ended up being much more about training the humans than the dogs!

She gained experience working at a doggy daycare through college and then as a dog trainer at a local pet store after graduation. Patrice’s specialty became young, out of control dogs, and highly reactive dogs whose owners were at their wits’ end.

She made herself “top dog” at training, but she knew very little about business. So she started out simply. While working full-time at a customer service job she wasn’t mutts about, she began offering private training sessions. This required no overhead since she would go to the dog owner’s house and do the training there.

After a year or so, Patrice realized that her full-time job was standing in the way of building her dog training hustle. Work was draining, leaving her little energy for after-hours work. Though it was keeping her afloat financially, something needed to change.

After a brief search, she found more flexible work as a personal assistant and gardener for a psychologist who ran her practice out of her home. This allowed Patrice to create her own schedule and focus more on the business, which she named “In Good Paws” Dog Training. She’d get her work done for the psychologist in the morning. Evenings and weekends were dedicated to In Good Paws, helping people train their dogs to be the well-behaved family member they always wanted.

After taking into account her business license, liability insurance, a website, and some business cards, her annual profit from 2018 was $23,000, which was up 40% from 2017!

Patrice recently brought on another dog trainer to do private training sessions as an independent contractor. This allows her to further increase the number of training sessions the business provides, without adding any risk to her. Eventually, she would also love to hire someone to do more of the administrative work so that the business could move forward when Patrice takes a vacation.

What’s so fetching about Patrice’s story is that she knew her end game and kept that ball in sight. She took purposeful steps as she could, including switching her full-time gig to be more accommodating to growing her side hustle. All the while, she gained more experience and confidence until she was ready to roll over into a full-time business. Now she’s barking to the bank!

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • In Good Paws: Sit, stay, roll over, and learn more about the dog training work that Patrice is doing over on her website!
  • WordPress: Patrice used WordPress to set up her website for In Good Paws, and here you can learn how to install your own WordPress site in 5 minutes

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

WEB HOSTING @ $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for many websites. It's cheap, flexible, and offers support 24-7.

Get your own hosting plan for just $2.49 a month!
Learn More

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

Quote of the Day
"Most of dog training is about the humans, so you really do have to enjoy working with people and know how to teach them. Finally, network, network, network! Having good relationships with people in the dog industry is invaluable for getting your name out there—this business is a word of mouth business."
—Patrice Kuiken #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Opera Singer Moonlights as Home Improvement Contractor

What It’s About

An opera singer hits all the right notes as a home improvement contractor.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Try to get one to two clients as quickly as possible so you can get reviews, and then make your offerings as attractive as possible so you stand out more. And whenever possible, find a way to combine your job or skills with your side hustle to add a unique twist to your profile.

Fun Fact

The Practical Diva also offers classes in basic lighting and electrical, plumbing, drywall repair, and mounting applications. She can also teach you to sing, really—which is a win-win for all!

Notes from Chris

Episode 847

Taerra Pence came to New York City to live the stage artist and performer life. Starstruck by the bright lights of the Big Apple, she had high hopes of being an opera singer and performing on all over the city. But like many artists before her, she set out to get a waitressing job to support her while she pursued singing gigs and voice teaching work.

Should be simple, right? But her confidence began to waver after receiving a steady stream of rejections. The final blow was when she applied for a job at the three-Michelin starred TGI Fridays in Times Square. She was turned down and left feeling like nobody would hire her.

As the old saying goes, “If you build it, they will come,” so Taerra shifted her attention to what she could build with the skills she already had in her toolbox—literally. Because Taerra wasn’t just an Opera singing diva. Growing up in her home state of Virginia, Taerra knew her way around said toolbox, and she spent much of her free time helping her dad with remodeling projects.

She took this as her cue, and The Practical Diva officially took to the stage! With $150, Taerra purchased some more tools and printed up some simple cards to hand out at hardware stores.

In the beginning, she’d get hired to do odd jobs like hanging TVs and curtains—but she soon found herself rolling up her sleeves for more large-scale projects like remodeling bathrooms, replacing tile and countertops, and hanging light fixtures as well.

Today, Taerra gets the majority of clients from HomeAdvisor and through an abundance of word of mouth referrals.

But what really sets this diva apart? Taerra says that it’s the fact that she is a handy woman in a male-dominated field. She has found that women who hire her are oftentimes more comfortable having a hardworking diva in their home than a man.

And Taerra has a great track record building this side hustle to a comfortable number as well. She earned about $14,000 in her first year, $36,000 her second year, and now is averaging about $4,000 a month in profits. With the move to HomeAdvisor, she was able to secure more high-quality jobs and income with fewer commitments. She started out with about 10 jobs a week and now averages 2-4 depending on the workload.

Moving forward, Taerra has launched her own website for Practical Diva and is expanding her business to hire two more artists/performers to split her workload so she can focus more on her singing career. She’s intentionally choosing to hire within her industry because her goal is to change the conversation from “Starving Artist” to “Succeeding Artist.” As for her opera career, she still hopes to sing in concerts around the city and all over the world.

There’s nothing but high notes for this Practical Diva!

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • The Practical Diva: Learn more about Taerra’s services and business on her website
  • Thumbtack & TaskRabbit: Two of the platforms that Taerra used to list her services
  • HomeAdvisor: The platform that really helped take Taerra’s services and business to a new octave

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

RELIABLE WEBHOST FOR $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for my past 5 websites. It's cheap, flexible, and you can get support 24 hours a day.

Get your own hosting plan for just $2.49 a month!
Learn More

Quote of the Day
"In the beginning, try to get 1 – 2 clients as quickly as possible so you can get reviews, and then make your offerings as attractive as possible so you stand out more. And find a way to combine your job or skills with your side hustle to add a unique twist to your profile."
—Taerra Pence #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Interior Designer Starts Boutique Airbnb Alternative

What It’s About

An interior designer creates an upgraded, Airbnb experience for the trendy and fabulous.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Whenever something like this takes off, it often creates additional opportunities in the margins for people like Allison to flourish. Even though she’s trying to do her own thing, she’s using the platforms of Airbnb and others. Arguably, they have enabled her to pursue this alternative vision. Pay attention!

Fun Fact

Allison learned a lot about entrepreneurial grit and salesmanship when she lived in New York. Not only did she sell copiers on Wall Street, but she was taking classes towards a degree in interior design at NYU in the evenings.

Notes from Chris

Episode 833

Though formally trained in advertising and marketing at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Allison Crawford’s real passion was somewhere else: interior design. Even as she sold radio advertising in Austin, moved to sell copiers on Wall Street for a while, and then moved back to Texas to direct the marketing efforts of a car company, she was always learning about interior design. While in New York, she took night classes at NYU.

But rather than working for an interior design company, Allison created her own gigs on the side by flipping houses once she moved back to Dallas. It was grueling work: finding a house, bidding for it, renovating the property, designing the interior, and then—finally—selling it, hoping to profit.

It was a bit less thrilling than she’d hoped, and when one deal went sour and Allison ended up losing a lot of money, she decided the house flipping game wasn’t where she belonged.

She did, however, really like the part where she handled the interior design of the properties.

When a handful of friends offered to pay Allison for her skill, a lightbulb went off: she should try starting her own home design service.

Just a few months later, in 2015, Allison Crawford Design debuted. She built a portfolio of happy clients in a matter of months, and took her hard-earned cash to Los Angeles for the annual “Design Week” festival.

Still, this wasn’t the final answer either…

In Los Angeles, she learned a lot and made valuable connections, but the festival itself wasn’t where the most dramatic change happened. That happened in her Airbnb.

Let’s just say Allison’s first short-term rental experience on the platform was less than ideal. And it made her wonder: “Why isn’t there a chain of properties that fill the void between common home rentals and boutique hotels?”

She went home at the end of the week curious and eager. And what she found was intriguing: no other company owned, designed, and marketed boutique short-term rentals all under one umbrella. Lots of companies do one, or maybe two of those things—but never all three.

Allison knew she could do it. She’d bought and sold homes, she was an interior designer, and she was an experienced marketer. Allison had a trio of skills that nobody else seemed to be using all together—so she jumped in.

By Summer of 2017, HOTELette had its first property in Nashville. Not long after, she added two more properties in Austin and Dallas. She’s now looking at a fourth location in 2020, a furniture line, and maybe even a reality TV show.

Allison’s not one to take all the credit. She says she has an incredible team behind her that she’s put together over the last three years: three city property managers, a digital shop manager, an assistant, a bookkeeper, and marketing manager. Drawing others into the dream of Hotelette—from customers to contractors—has been a lot more rewarding than selling copiers or flipping houses.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • HOTELette: If you’d like to learn more about the boutique experiences Allison is creating, head on over to her website!
  • Airbnb, HomeAway, & VRBO: Three of the property rental platforms that Allison used to get HOTELette out to the masses

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

RELIABLE WEBHOST FOR $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for my past 5 websites. It's cheap, flexible, and you can get support 24 hours a day.

Get your own hosting plan for just $2.49 a month!
Learn More

Quote of the Day
"I think that it’s important to celebrate the small victories with your team. Getting a business up and running isn’t always glamorous, and consistent reminders of our progress and growth keeps driving us forward."
—Allison Crawford #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

TV Writer Casts Himself in Lead Hustle Role

What It’s About

A writer who spins the stories of others using a new medium.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

A suggestion: don’t try to accommodate every request. Decide how your service works and offer it that way! Especially when it’s a different kind of thing, the burden is on you to explain why it’s important to do it your way. This creates more confidence and trust for buyers.

Fun Fact

When Dennis went to build the website for the game, he discovered that YouDontKnowMyLife.com was owned by someone else and they were asking $795 for it. That seemed too steep so he secured YouDontKnowMyLifeGame.com. A few weeks before the games were going to arrive from the manufacturer, he saw that the original website was going to be auctioned off. Dennis took a chance and bid $10. He ended up being the only bidder and the website is now his for $785 less than what was originally asked.

Notes from Chris

Episode 832

Los Angeles writer Dennis Hensley has spent his life asking unique, probing questions. A master interviewer, he began his writing career in the magazine world crafting celebrity profiles, and later transitioned to writing for television.

All was well until the labor strike in 2013.

His opportunities began to dry up and he soon found himself without steady gigs. The crisis had a negative effect on his financial, mental, and physical health. And it continued like this for several years.

In 2017, he began attending programs at the Actors Fund, a national human services organization that meets the needs of the entertainment community through emergency financial assistance, affordable housing, health care and more. He enrolled in a life-changing course called Managing Cash Flow for Artists. In this course, the instructor recommended that students listen to the Side Hustle School podcast.

Dennis was clear that he needed a side hustle, and could see how it could make a difference when crises occur (like the labor strike). He began to explore what he likes to do and what he’s good at and landed on interviewing. He had been interviewing his whole life and was really great with crafting questions. And most of his past subjects found his style to be fun and meaningful. He already had a podcast and wanted to think of a unique way to expand.

That’s when the idea for Lifecast was born. Lifecast is a digital audio interview that focuses on memorable stories. Dennis spends up to three hours conducting in-person interviews to gather details about the subject’s life.

He utilizes questions from his Observation Deck, a deck of cards featuring questions created specifically for interviews: “What makes you blush?” and “What was your worst job?” for example. He then compiles the interview into an edited audio collage with music for family and loved ones to cherish.

Startup costs came in around $2,000 to cover the cost of equipment, rights for music, and a Squarespace website. He was able to recoup his investment after a couple months of interviews. Packages range from $700 to $1,000 depending on the scale of the interview. He currently conducts an average of two interviews per month.

Dennis has recently cast himself as the lead in another side hustle. After launching Lifecast, he was inspired to have his Observation Deck printed professionally so that he could gift the deck to interviewees and sell to interested parties. He reached out to a graphic designer friend and asked for advice on where to print his cards. His friend sent him a link to MakePlayingCards.com and challenged him to “Think big and create a board game out of the questions as well!”

Dennis encourages everyone out there to look within their own skills and interests, and get creative. Think of what excites you and see what you can build from that. After creating one side hustle, it was easier to create another. These side hustles have given Dennis something that is his to own that the entertainment industry can’t take away from him.

 

  MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Get a Life Cast: Learn more about this unique side hustle over on Dennis’ website, and while you’re at it, check out his card game, You Don’t Know My Life! as well!
  • Actors Fund: A charitable organization that supports performers and behind-the-scenes workers in performing arts and entertainment
  • Make Playing Cards: The manufacturer that Dennis used to create You Don’t Know My Life!
  • Squarespace: The website building platform that Dennis used to create his website

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Quote of the Day
"Find support around you when brainstorming ideas for a side hustle or starting one. Whether that be joining a community of entrepreneurs, a society like the Side Hustle Society, or forming your own, find support to keep you motivated and in action."
—Dennis Hensley #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Financial Analyst Unearths Organic Plant Shop

What It’s About

A financial analyst grows her budding side hustle from a lifelong passion.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

You don’t have to be an expert, you just have to know more than the people you are serving. Don’t let a “lack of professional skills” stop you from starting something you might really enjoy.

Fun Fact

In the ruins of Pompeii, researchers found much more than the well-preserved skeletons and homes of residents. They found the remains of indoor gardening—terra cotta pots that had the remnants of flowers and other plants.

Notes from Chris

Episode 803

It’s safe to say that financial analyst, Abi Downing, has a knack for tending plants—but she didn’t start out that way. Her experiences cultivating greenery started as a labor of love growing up in her childhood home in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

When the temperatures dropped, Abi’s mother took comfort in the bright, greenhouse plants she kept year-round. She wanted her children to share the feeling that came with keeping plants, so maintaining them became part of Abi’s chores.

The more Abi learned about them—how to grow and propagate (or breed) those plants—the more she realized that maybe she wasn’t so different from her mother after all. It fascinated her that you could cut off a piece of vine, stick it in some water, and have a whole plant grow from it.

When she moved out of her parents’ house, that love of bringing the outdoors inside went along with her. Before long, Abi had quite a happy little plant family over in her new home.

And she realized that she wasn’t alone. Over the past few years, Abi watched a love of all things house plants spread its tendrils across the furthest reaches of the internet like wisteria working its way up a trellis.

There were Instagram profiles and blogs completely dedicated to growing plants, and it was becoming more and more common to see neighbors scrambling for the keys to their front door while juggling a couple of spider plants in their arms.

Abi had wanted to start a side hustle of some kind, and it made sense for her to nurture something with a product that she was truly passionate about. Growing a side hustle around her love of all things horticulture seemed like an idea too good not to let it take root.

Her initial thought was, “Oh! I could sell my plants at fairs and farmers markets,” but she discovered that the requirements were steep. All of the markets that she found in her area required you grow the plants yourself from seed, and they needed to be organic to the region.

So over the next year, Abi repotted her idea. She realized that an e-commerce shop could be the solution she was looking for. It would be easy and cost effective to start. She could keep inventory in her home and benefit from all of that extra oxygen in the air. And since she would be running it online, she could fit it in around her work schedule.

With the idea firmly planted in her mind, she set out to start digging.

When it came to picking plants to carry, she opted for plants that were low-maintenance, suitable for small spaces, and easy for beginners to take on. Not only did she think that all of these attributes would be desirable to customers—they might also cause fewer headaches when it came time to ship them.

To develop a shipping strategy, Abi drew on the same detective skills that she used to find a wholesaler. To get an idea of the “industry standard,” she ordered plants from her competitors and took special note of 1) how they packaged and protected the plants during shipment, 2) how long it took to go from order to delivery, and 3) the marketing materials that came with the box.

With all of her plants in a row, she built a website using Shopify and called her new shop Perrico Plant Co.

She sells her plants in the traditional planters that come with the plants from the wholesaler, but she also has some upgraded options on her website—glazed ceramic and cement style planters that are popular with trendy horticulturists.

There was one downside though: Abi discovered that this is somewhat of a seasonal business—at least online—because customers are hesitant to purchase plants that have to ship in the cold. When she saw that customers were visiting her site but not buying, she found ways to reach out to them to get an idea of why. And the overwhelming response from them was that they were waiting until the warmer months to make their purchases.

To supplement a reduction in orders during the cold weather, Abi has found ways to sell her plants at local popups and has even brought in as much as $1,600 over the course of a single weekend. As a matter of fact, she completely sold out within two hours!

Since the beginning, Abi’s sold over 200 plants and has made roughly $3,000 in profits. And you could say that while selling organic plants, Perrico Plant Co. is growing organically. Abi has really unearthed a new source of income doing something she enjoys.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Perrico Plant Co: Check out Abi’s growing collection of organic house plants on her website
  • Shopify: Abi created her budding business on the e-commerce platform Shopify

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

RELIABLE WEBHOST FOR $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for my past 5 websites. It's cheap, flexible, and you can get support 24 hours a day.

Get your own hosting plan for just $2.49 a month!
Learn More

Quote of the Day
"You don’t have to be an expert, you just have to know more than the people you are serving. Don’t let a ‘lack of professional skills’ stop you from starting something you might really enjoy."
—Abi Downing #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Try ShipStation for 60 Days FREE!

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by ShipStation, the #1 choice of online sellers. 📦

To get a 30-day trial AND an additional month free, click the microphone at the top of their page and enter the word HUSTLE.
Get it Here

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Think Like a Lawyer: An Underground School For Lifelong Learning

What It’s About

A lawyer objects traditional higher education seeking to make it more affordable and accessible.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Take small steps and have a theory to test. Validate the theory, yes or no. If you’re wrong, that’s great to know quickly and cheaply. What’s next? What’s your next theory? Ask yourself how can you validate it quickly and cheaply.

Fun Fact

In the USA the cost of grad school can be anywhere from $5000 to $50,000 per year. This is an astronomical cost that saddles many students with debt for the majority of their lives. Instead, more people could move to smaller schools and online courses to obtain the skills they need.

Notes from Chris

Episode 802
Douglas Tsoi is passionate about learning. After finishing college, he went on to law school. But, after graduating and entering the workforce, the longtime Portland, Oregon resident noticed something. Opportunities for learning new and interesting things were few and far between, at least the way that he envisioned.

As he looked around he felt an undeniable sense that this was affecting people. Most people go through school, maybe getting a degree on the way to full-time employment. Then, they stagnate and fall into a life of repetition where they don’t learn much.

So after pondering for a while, he put two and two together. He believed if people had an easy, affordable way to learn new things, they’d jump at the chance. He decided to do something about it, and, in 2014, made a move to open his own school.

Every great change starts with that small step, and Douglas was about to take his. To begin, he’d teach only one class. The topic for that course was “Criminal Law: How To Think Like A Lawyer.” Law was what Douglas knew, so compiling the subject matter into something easily digestible was simple.

It took him a month to prepare the course. To drum up interest, he turned to Facebook and presented the idea of his course to his network and a few Portland-based groups.

Next, he needed a place to host the class, somewhere that didn’t cost a lot of money. He decided to turn to the local community center to rent out a space. Most cities have something like this and they can be a cheap way to have a party, arrange a meeting, or, in Douglas’s case, start a school.

Now that he had a classroom and enough registrants to fill it, class was in session. The first course went well. Douglas got a thrill out of teaching, and his students equally enjoyed learning what he had to offer.

When it was over, students and instructor all went out for drinks to celebrate. This was a tradition that would continue for all his classes over the next year.

After the first course, Douglas had the courage to put a little more effort into his project. He decided to officially name it and launch a website. He called it Portland Underground Grad School, or PUGS for short. For the site, he paid $300 for the setup. With that, his little school was official.

During the first year, Douglas continued to teach that same course every month, and then he added more. He’d rent rooms in community centers around the city to keep the costs down so he didn’t need a permanent space. Over the next four years the volume of courses grew to eight per month, or two every week. Of course, Douglas couldn’t teach all the different courses himself, so he eventually found instructors to teach them.

He has a unique criteria for coming up with what to offer through PUGS. First, he looks at his personal experience, what would he find interesting and beneficial? Second, what’s popular at the moment? For example, after the 2016 election they offered social justice courses that proved very popular. Third, and perhaps most importantly, are the instructors themselves. Do they have an audience already—and how effective will they be at promoting a course to their own networks?

Douglas didn’t want the price to be a limiting factor to anyone. He felt like anyone who wanted to learn should be able to. So, he landed on a scaling pricing model based on a person’s hourly work rate. So, those with a higher income paid more than those who earned less. This model proved extremely popular and its uniqueness was a big factor in growth.

This brings us to 2018, where PUGS was running hot. Douglas had built the school up to 75 different courses, with 900 students and, and he was earning $5,000 a month from his little side hustle. Those figures caught the attention of a buyer through his network, and he was able to sell PUGS for a tidy profit.

While growing the business for a sale was never the intention when he was starting out, it was a nice byproduct. What he’s most excited about is that gives him a financial cushion to start more side hustles and build other businesses. And that’s exactly what he’s done.

Throughout Douglas’s time with PUGS, he learned to love working on a small business. On top of that, he loved the financial freedom it gave him and the ability to be flexible with his life choices. He also loved teaching, sharing his knowledge with others so they could go off and make their way in the world a little more equipped.

So, Douglas has combined all those things into his next side hustle: it’s called the School Of Financial Freedom. Douglas’s new school that aims to help people take control of their finances, and live the life they want.

He plans to teach people good financial habits and the power of making your money work for you. Launching PUGS was the ultimate learning experience. He hopes he never stops learning, teaching, and building.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Quote of the Day
"When you’re getting started, start with a theory and then take small steps until you validate it. Because, if you’re wrong, that’s great to know quickly and cheaply."
—Douglas Tsoi #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Try ShipStation for 60 Days FREE!

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by ShipStation, the #1 choice of online sellers. 📦

To get a 30-day trial AND an additional month free, click the microphone at the top of their page and enter the word HUSTLE.
Get it Here

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Real Estate Agent Supplements Commissions By Renovating Homes

What It’s About

A real estate agent finds a way to close more deals thanks to renovations.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Graham stresses the importance of building a strong team if you intend to do something like this. He’s essentially locked down the competition because he enlists the help of reliable builders who give him highly competitive quotes. This way, even if a client goes elsewhere, they’ll never be able to match Graham’s prices.

Fun Fact

Properties in Spain are usually pillar and beam constructions meaning the walls don’t support any weight. This means owners can have a great time knocking down walls at their leisure. Afterward, they can completely change the layout of a property to suit their liking.

Notes from Chris

Episode 796

Graham Hunt works full-time in real estate. As a successful agent in Valencia, Spain, he knows a thing or two about selling property. You’ve probably heard the real estate agent’s mantra, “location, location, location.” It suggests that the main reason to buy a property is for where it is, not what it is. For the most part, this is true—but it isn’t always the case.

Seaside homes and tourist hot spots will command a higher price, but there comes a point of diminishing returns where the location doesn’t outweigh other factors—like the quality of the property and its condition.

Graham has seen this first hand during his career. After selling real estate throughout Valencia, there was a common theme among sellers. They almost never presented their homes well. Many of the homes had been passed on as part of an inheritance. As such, they hadn’t been updated since the 1960s … and sometimes they just looked downright awful.

By contrast, Valencia is a beautiful place, a coastal city densely populated with both locals and tourists. Many potential buyers are looking for properties they can use as holiday homes or vacation rentals. It’s not shocking that apartments or houses that are a mess don’t go over well. Over and over again, Graham heard, “This is a great location, but we can’t see ourselves buying this place as-is.”

In fact, this type of feedback became so common that he could predict it during showings. Sales fell through constantly because of it. These untidy residences in desirable locations were affecting his ability to sell property and make a living. He kept thinking, why can’t the seller put a little time into sprucing up their place before listing it for sale?

One day, he had a perspective shift. If there was nothing he could to do make the sellers act in their own best interests, perhaps he could convince the buyers to purchase with a little incentive.

You see, aside from selling property as an agent, Graham had purchased, renovated, and flipped a few properties in Valencia himself. Throughout that process, he’d made connections with a number of reliable builders. These were people he knew he could trust to provide good quality work at a reasonable price. He’d also developed a keen eye for what buyers were looking for.

Graham saw an opportunity to combine these skills and experiences to manage building renovations for new property buyers.

The idea seemed simple enough, and soon Graham had the chance to test it out.

One afternoon he was showing a property by the beach. Sure enough, the issue of untidiness cropped up again. Before the buyers had time to reject the property, Graham suggested they take a look at a recent renovation he’d completed for an apartment he was planning to flip. It happened to be in the same building, with the same layout, so Graham knew the renovation would do a good job convincing the buyers.

When they walked into the modernized apartment, they were floored. They couldn’t believe that this apartment was the same layout as the one they were considering buying. The renovated apartment looked and felt nothing like the older style one.

Not only was Graham able to net a commission from that sale—one that almost got away—but also turned that sale into an additional twelve hundred euros ($1,360) in his pocket.

Currently, he serves anywhere from ten to twenty clients per month which results in around two thousand euros ($2,200) profit every month. That’s after he’s paid his freelance project managers for any projects he cannot handle himself. And remember, because of the new service, he’s also making home sales that he might have missed out on—so the true profit is likely much higher.

The extra income has helped Graham find stability in his work. On a personal level, he’s caring for a son with autism who attends school online. He now has more time to spend with him at home—and more money to pay for the school.

For the future, Graham wants to hire more project managers to handle larger renovation projects. That may allow him to build this side hustle into a sustainable business in its own right.

 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Valencia Property: Head on over to Graham’s website if you’d like to learn more about the renovation work he’s doing

 

SEE ALSO:

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

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

RELIABLE WEBHOST FOR $2.49/MONTH

Want to build any kind of website for your hustle? If so, you'll need somewhere to host it! This is the reliable company I've used for my past 5 websites. It's cheap, flexible, and you can get support 24 hours a day.

Get your own hosting plan for just $2.49 a month!
Learn More

Quote of the Day
"This side hustle benefits me because it means that even in a month with lower sales, there is a second income coming in. Estate agency is pretty feast and famine in general, and there may be months with lots of completions and other months with very few or none."
—Graham Hunt #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Try ShipStation for 60 Days FREE!

Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by ShipStation, the #1 choice of online sellers. 📦

To get a 30-day trial AND an additional month free, click the microphone at the top of their page and enter the word HUSTLE.
Get it Here

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau