31-Year-Old Woman Invested Her $1,200 Stimulus Check Into Starting Her Own Business — This Year It’s Supposed to Bring In $1 Million
Jasmine Taylor knew she needed to change her money mindset, and used the stimulus check to start a lucrative business.
The recent pandemic and associated lockdowns put a tremendous strain on small businesses across the world. Without the typical flow of customers, many businesses that require in person customers really struggled. However, one savvy entrepreneur was able to turn her stimulus check into a million dollar business.
Just a month earlier, the Amarillo, Texas native had barely made it through the holiday shopping season. “I just remember wondering how I was going to make it through the next month,” she told a news outlet.
She had lost her job due to the pandemic, and was getting by on odd jobs and side hustles. Like many her age, she also had considerable student debt.
Like many tech-savvy young Americans, she consulted Youtube to look for ways to generate extra income from home. What she uncovered was something called “cash stuffing.” Not sure what this is? Well, you’re not alone.
Cash stuffing is not exactly a money generating practice, but a money saving one. The strategy encourages budgeting by literally stuffing cash into envelopes and stashing them away, to ensure that you do not spend it. Implementing this strategy, she was able to stretch the income she was making much farther, and inspire countless others.
Going Online to Share Her Journey
She claims the process encouraged to pull her entire budget out in cash from the bank, and identify where everything needed to go. She would then allocate the necessary cash for bills, groceries, etc. and assign the needed cash to a corresponding envelope– organizing her money in a tangible and and visible way.
A few months in, after diligently tracking where all her money was going, she had saved $1,000. It was the first time in her life she had access to that much cash.
Where it took a turn however, was when she started sharing her journey online.
She decided to hold herself accountable by posting on TikTok, which at the time was “mostly kids dancing,” Taylor remembers.
Her posts went viral, as many related to the difficulty of budgeting, and found her content helpful and accessible. Her account, “Baddies and Budgets” makes saving relatable, and teaches financial literacy to a generation that is constantly encouraged to spend and consume.
Building a Successful Business
Using her stimulus check, she was able to spin the platform into a legitimate business, and now sells courses, accessories, and budgeting supplies. The check helped her purchase an online website domain, supplies to create personalized envelopes, as well as label printers and a Shopify account.
She noticed that though many found her content helpful, people found traditional envelopes drab, and she had a business idea for better supplies.
Though it may seem ironic to sell product intended to encourage saving, her business is on track to clear $1 million in sales this upcoming year. Many people have clearly identified with her brand, and she continues to expand the product line.
Staying true to brand, she reportedly pays herself a modest salary and reinvests heavily in the business. She still sorts out her finances in cash each week, setting aside for retirement accounts and other savings challenges.
There are opportunities everywhere. Keep your mind and eyes open.
