The Style Series: How a millennial entrepreneur turned her knitting blog into a million-dollar business
- In 2015, Christina Fagan-Pardy turned her college knitting blog into a bonafide business.
- Since then, her company has made over a million dollars in sales, Boston Magazine reports, and has become a favorite of celebrities like journalist Katie Couric and TV personality Kristin Cavallari.
- In an interview with Business Insider, Fagan-Pardy spoke about her career beginnings and how she deals with the "imposter syndrome" that comes with being a founder.
- This is part of Business Insider's "The Style Series," highlighting fashion entrepreneurs and businesses across the globe.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Christina Fagan-Pardy turned her college knitting blog - where she'd show off the cool items she would knit - into a million-dollar business. By using Instagram as a marketing tool, she was able to build a sizable millennial following and consumer base, selling the items she once knitted for fun on her blog. Today, the likes of journalist Katie Couric and TV personality Kristin Cavallari are fans.
In an interview with Business Insider, Fagan-Pardy spoke about her career beginnings and the lessons she's learned since founding her business in 2015.
"I started [my knitting] blog in college in 2012, but at that point it was very much like a fun project."
I actually ended up founding [Sh*t That I Knit] in 2015. I was using Instagram as a platform and to connect with people and gained so much momentum that I decided to make it into more than just a side hustle. I quit my full time job in May 2015.
"In September 2015, we did a Kickstarter and the goal was $15,000."
It was very much bootstrapped in the beginning and very much a side hustle. In September 2015, we did a Kickstarter and the goal was $15,000. We raised that in under 24 hours and then went on to raise $25,000 ... We were profitable within our first year of business. We raised [more funding in] smaller friends and family rounds the following year, and [in another round] this past summer.
"We employ 170 women in Lima, [Peru]. Here in Boston, in our headquarters, we have seven people on the team."
It's been so new for me going from working by myself to managing six other people ... figuring out how to outsource to another country when I have had really no experience in importing, manufacturing, producing, freight forwarding, or anything like that was definitely a big challenge.
"I actually went to a trade show during the wrong season."
I went to a trade show in New York City that was very expensive for me at the time, and very time consuming. And it was for Spring/Summer and I was selling knit hats! So that is definitely something I've learned over the past couple of years - how the retailer buying cycle works and how much farther in advance they buy for wholesale.
"I was marketing on Instagram."
The majority of the women who applied to work for me were millennials in their twenties and thirties. I think that there was definitely a resurgence of the DIY space between 2012 and 2015, with Pinterest and Instagram exploding. People love to share what they're knitting on Instagram, and it's a great community of people on there.
"Our customer base is very much a millennial shopper."
I think [millennials] gravitate toward us because of branding - also because of our product, obviously -but because it's how millennials shop. It has to do with believing the brand has some connection to whoever is running it and also having some sort of social giveback. People love that we're employing women in Peru and that we also donate knitting kits to ... people who can learn how to knit while undergoing cancer treatment.
"Having a physical space and being able to connect with the customer is still important."
We realized [the benefit of] having our own pop-up as a place for customers to come and test out and see our products and interact with us as a brand. As we see more and more e-commerce brands popping up, you'll see more pop-ups where people can actually go in. I think the average consumer still wants to go in and interact [with the product] in person ... [The Current at Boston Seaport] has allowed us to be really flexible [with a month and a half lease]. That would be really nerve wracking if you were signing the lease for an entire year.
"Fifty of us won [the Tory Burch Fellowship], which was great."
It was a nice opportunity for me. Burch flew us to New York to attend workshops and network and go out for dinner to have time to spend with other female entrepreneurs. It was so therapeutic to have conversations with other women who own their own brands.
"I definitely do deal with a little bit of imposter syndrome."
Making big decisions, especially with the team now, is big for me. But I think we're moving so quickly. I don't really have a lot of time to dwell on it, so I just have to keep moving forward. To be honest, [there are] definitely really stressful moments here. We have a lot going on. We're all traveling and moving around and sales are going crazy, but we're having a lot of fun. We're selling something that's a really happy product that people love .... So I've gotten better at dealing with stress over the years.
"I'm not one of those people who grew up saying 'I'm going to be an entrepreneur some day.'"
That was never a part of what I thought my career path is going to be. I was in sales prior to this, so I think that experience has really helped me in starting my own business .... I think because I love this company so much, it's made me a a great entrepreneur, because it's such a passion for me that I am thinking about it 24/7. It's my hobby. It's everything to me. So it's made me a very natural entrepreneur. I love it so much.