How I started a six-figure business with $0

When I was in my 20s, I was a motivated, passionate and hardworking creative doing ALLLL the things. It’s so easy to jump from idea to idea when energy seems endless and the spooky, elusive “future,” seems faarrrr, far away.

I was living paycheque to paycheque and having a savings account seemed like a literal fantasy. I was doing everything from freelance writing to event styling to window displays and merchandising to office designs, yet I couldn’t afford to live without a roommate or pay down the debt I had racked up. I convinced myself that the more projects I took on the more money I would make and all would be good. That’s how it works, right?! Not so much, it turns out. 

20-something me may have been cute + idealistic, but she was also only one person… one person who realized [not as quickly as she’d like to admit] that she could not possibly sustain a life of working 24/7. As I entered my 30s, I knew I needed to refocus and restructure the way I was living. I was ready to “stop surviving, and start thriving,” or whatever they say on the radio ads. I had big dream and big goals, so I needed a BIG plan to match. 

Real Estate Styling sort of snuck it’s way into my life. I started styling listings for my Realtor BFF, and it opened my eyes to a whole new side of the industry – I had never thought of it as an option for me, but the whole process felt so creatively liberating. BFF being a BFF, was urging me to give this a go with other realtors, but I was hesitate to leave behind all of my fun projects to start from scratch. Also, if I’m completely honest, the Toronto real estate styling (what y’all may know as “staging”) scene that was going on at the time was not cute to say the least. It was the opportunity to offer realtors a refreshing take on this service, using my own design style, that finally sold me.

With a change in focus and a new career path, I had to do a ton of research – most of which involved a lot of trial and error. Starting a business in any industry (let-alone one you know very little about), with no money (see that $0 in the title there? That was real), VERY little credit (*waves hello to ghost of maxed out cards past*) was… a challenge. But, what I lacked in funds, I made up for in sheer determination. I was going to make it work, no matter what.  

So this begs the real question: How was furnishing homes on a shoestring? Was I trolling garage sales and sneaking lamps out of my friends’ houses? No, no. I wanted my first impression on the scene to be spectacular, so I knew NEW was the only way to go. I started off small (whatever I had room for in my bank account) with accessories and minimal, affordable furniture items. I would use them to style listings, and then return them once the property sold. 

I highly recommend this method if you have $0. I don’t highly recommend this method if you have 0 hours left in a day. Not efficient at all. So, as I slowly gained more clients, I started building my system. I would use the deposit from each listing to rent furniture, and eventually, I had enough left over to start building my own inventory. Looking back, once I took the leap with $0, the rest actually happened pretty quickly. 

Before I knew it, I was out of my condo’s locker and into a small storage unit, followed by an even larger one! Now, I have to upgrade my storage about every 6 months, to keep up with the growth of my inventory.

So, here we are, 4 years later. My $0 business has transformed into a multi 6 figure business that continues to grow each year.

Can you do it, too? Heck yes.

Alongside the maxed out credit cards at the start of my story, I had drive. The fire was lit, and my limited funds weren’t about to put it out. Authenticity, passion and determination still play key roles in helping me build my business, every single day. I am forever grateful to my amazing roster of clients and mentors. If there is a secret sauce, I’m keepin’ it cookin’ with business books, podcasts and an openness to possibility.

Four years down the road, and it’s only the beginning for Re:Creative.