[Business](https://goodwordnews.com/business/) How one student built a lucrative side hustle from his parents’ apartment This story is part of CNBC does this Six-Figure Side Hustle Series, where people with lucrative side hustles break down the routines and habits they used to earn money on top of their full-time jobs.Do you have a story to tell? Let us know! Send us an email at [email protected] years ago, Jason Siu was a high school student who sold $3 stickers on Snapchat to save money to buy new parts for his car.Today, the same side business, called Invalid.jp, brings in more than $500,000 a year.The company still sells stickers, as well as flashy auto accessories, from LED rearview mirrors to cup holders, visors and license plates.Siu, now a 21-year-old student at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, buys most of these items in bulk, personalizes them with light signs or homemade designs, and resells them for a profit.
A few months ago, he rented a warehouse to serve as the company’s operations center, he said.Before that, he ran Invalid.jp from his parents’ 1,000-square-foot, two-bedroom apartment in Honolulu.
One of Siu’s most popular products, a customizable LED-lined rearview mirror, was the subject of a viral TikTok video in October 2021.Jayson Siu He’s made about $400,000 from his business since it started, he estimates.Part of it comes from the virality of TikTok.A popular video of Invalid.jp’s glowing stickers, posted in 2022, generated $38,000 in sales in a single day, Siu says.
He credits his relentless publishing strategy, perfected over several years.“A lot of times people I talk to who are trying to start a business only try for four or five months and (quit when) it doesn’t work,” Siu told CNBC Make It.“Everyone is trying to go viral for their business, but if you post one to two videos every day for a month, that’s 30 to 60 videos.One of them is bound to go viral.” Siu doesn’t bring in tens of thousands of dollars every day, so over the past two years he’s also learned how to make his business more profitable, often relying on social media ads to help increase Invalid.jp’s revenue.
Here, Siu explains how he turned his side hustle into a six-figure-a-year business, what it takes to launch your own version, and the #1 tip he wishes he knew when starting out.CNBC Make It: Do you think your side hustle is replicable? Siu: Yes.It’s all about consistency.In the beginning, I offered more content and products – quantity over quality.
We were posting so many videos that were between five and eight seconds long.It was definitely effective in the short term.Once a video went viral, I saw the potential and felt like I could replicate the result as long as I kept posting.But then I had a problem: some months I only made a few hundred dollars.
Now it’s more (about) quality.I will blog or post longer videos on how to use a product or (what it looks like) unboxing it.I invested more in (social media ads) and hired a few contractors to help me film content.How much money do you need to start this side hustle? I wouldn’t say (more than) $100.
When I first started, I ordered products for around $20 and filmed videos every day.When it works, you buy more stock and ship it.You can discover trends by looking on Amazon or TikTok, or you can film and post videos and see if they go viral.But you need to know that what you buy has the potential to sell.It’s a risk to buy a bunch of inventory before you know people like the product.What is the most important quality you need to succeed in this type of side hustle? What do you wish you had known at the start? I would say perseverance.I used to work (for a valet service) from 9 a.m.
to 5 p.m.
I thought starting my own business would help me work less.When you’re doing a side hustle, you’re going to be working 24/7.You will work more than ever.When I first launched LED mirrors, other people were making similar products and doing quite well, but they couldn’t keep up with the demand.
One day, as I was packing all day, I realized, “Not many people would do that.” » I filled my parents’ entire living room with boxes and wrappers.There is no hack.It’s really about finding the right product and your creations, your videos.This interview has been edited for length and clarity.DON’T MISS: Want to be smarter and more successful with your money, your job and your life? Subscribe to our new newsletter! Get Warren Buffett’s Free Investing Guide from CNBCwhich distills the billionaire’s best advice for regular investors, do’s and don’ts, and three key investing principles into one clear, simple guide.Find out more about Six-Figure Side Hustle: Gn bussni.
