A 36-year-old Florida woman transformed her side hustle into a thriving business, now earning an impressive Rs 45 lakh a month. Her journey began in December 2022, as she balanced a remote job and family responsibilities. Searching for a better work-life balance, Emily Odio-Sutton explored print-on-demand services, allowing her to create custom products without managing inventory.
Initially, Ms Odio-Sutton's generic designs attracted little attention. However, her focus shifted to personalized candles and journals, leading to a surge in sales. By October 2023, she was making $5,000 (around Rs 4.2 lakh) in monthly profit, nearly matching her full-time salary as an operations manager at a children's book publishing company.
Reflecting on her motivation, she told CNBC Make It, "I couldn't leave my 9-to-5 in the middle of the day- even remotely for school pickups or activities." This drove her to research print-on-demand, where products are printed only once an order is received.
To boost her business, Emily targeted specific niches on platforms like Etsy. Using Google and ChatGPT, she brainstormed niche hobbies or professions, transforming them into simple, text-based designs with Canva. For example, a "podcast candle" might feature the text: "The only podcast I listen to is the voices inside my head."
When a design performed well, she'd replicate it, substituting different hobbies or careers. By last October, she was earning as much as her full-time job and achieved even greater success during peak shopping seasons, generating over $100,000 (around Rs 84 lakh) in sales between November and December.
"It's low-risk, and you can experiment and learn at your own pace," Emily explained. "You can launch a business for under $40 (around Rs 3,000), with small expenses like $10 (Rs 800) per month for Canva Pro and $15 (Rs 1,200) to set up an Etsy shop. The biggest investment is your time."
Emily's extra income helps cover both "fun and responsible" expenses. She describes herself as "not creative" but follows a "template method" with plain black-and-white designs. If a design proves successful, she revises it with new text ideas, sourced from ChatGPT suggestions for top hobbies and careers in the U.S., combined with design research on Etsy and Pinterest. "My goal is to create items that are funny, sentimental, or relatable rather than trendy," she explained.
In October 2023, she made about $5,000 in profit, and between November and December, her shop earned over $100,000 in sales. Thanks to her business, she now enjoys a flexible schedule, picking her daughter up from the bus stop and attending activities like gymnastics practice.
