I make $80K a year selling my crocheted plushies — and it isn’t even my full-time job
Work hard — weave harder?
Genna Tatu, a Mississippi business owner, revealed she makes a hefty $80,000 a year via her side gig — creating and selling hand-crocheted plushies.
“I fell in love with crocheting, and I was hooked,” Tatu told South West News Service.
“With crochet, there is this world of arugami, where you make stuffed animals. I love stuffed animals, so I started making my own.”
Her passion for the creative past-time started when her mom, Janet Tatu, 75, gifted her a cat jumper crochet kit for Christmas in 2021.
She spent nearly 20 hours a week creating plushies including gingerbread men, sunflowers and rhinos.
“I thought, ‘I need to do something with these,’ and started getting good at it, so I thought it was good enough to sell,” she shared.
The 26-year-old noticed a market for her plush products and decided to embark on her boss babe journey.
“It has taken off from there. I was so shocked at how niche crochet is, but there is a pretty high demand for plushies,” she admitted.
Tatu started her company, “Crochet by Genna,” in 2022 via Etsy and sold products priced between $10 to $200.
“The crochet space is really getting popular, and there is a ton of opportunities for growth,” Tatu said. “On Etsy alone, I have earned $80,000 this year.”
Although Tatu’s side hustle has blossomed into a steady stream of income, she still maintains her full-time job as a financial consultant.
The Mississippi resident, who has made more than 400 plushies, spends 15 to 20 hours weekly on her Etsy business, crocheting products and sending out orders.
“I spent the whole of January crocheting and accumulating all my plushies,” she said.
Tatu eventually expanded her business services to include custom orders, with a $70 flat rate depending on the size, which was where she found her success.
Unlike her competitors, the Etsy business owner makes her products by order.
“A lot of the crochet accounts only make them upfront and sell what is ready-made,” she said. “I started doing commission pieces, which are special to a customer.”
She opened up about one particular request from a customer who wanted a plushie that symbolized something meaningful to the buyer.
“One time, a girl sent me the fur of her cat who passed, and I put the fur inside the plushie,” Tatu confessed.
As a young entrepreneur, Tatu envisions her crochet business going even farther.
“I really want to think about where I want to take my business; there are so many different revenues,” she said.
