Failed 5 projects in 8 years. Finally, I'm seeing some success with my side project.

Hey,

Erfan here. I think most of you already know me as the design guy from my design subscription model https://www.pentaclay.com

But I'll share another part of my life, where I tried 5 different side projects and somehow failed to scale. I always wanted to have a side project that would generate enough revenue to leave my full-time job.

When choosing a side hustle, I always focused on businesses that require low screen time. As a designer, I'm spending most of my day in front of screens.

• My first business was about hand-crafted products. The first 3 months
  were great, but eventually, it was draining my energy more than the
  revenue I was making. So I left after maybe 5 months.

• I started my 2nd business back in 2018. It was a cosmetics business, I
  invested only $180 and made approximately $1000 within a month.
  Continued for 6-7 months, and then again competition became very
  intense. Also, female expertise was needed in this category.

• I also started building a Theme/Template based website design in 2018. However, I found out I had little experience handling developers, and after a year I couldn't take the stress anymore. So I had to quit again. But revenue was so-so, still giving me a small amount in 2023.

• Started my 4th side hustle back in 2019, with baby products, especially clothes. The market was huge, and our products were super unique. Here we faced a different problem which was a high return rate. We identified our customers couldn't guess the sizes of their newborns, hence the wrong sizes were ordered every time. I had a partner in this business after a year I left and handed over the business to him. He's running the business now.

• After COVID-19 in the year 2022, I started selling imported bags and accessories for women. Me and my wife both worked together in this business. The response was good, and the profit margin was good, but I felt disconnected after a year. I felt the effort I was giving here, If I had given that somewhere else would have generated more revenue. Now, my wife is handling this business.

After all these years, and all these struggles I felt that it was the design I loved the most. I was running away from screen time but that is what excites me the most. I have almost 12 years of experience in UX/UI and graphic design, this is what I do the best.

***In June 2023 I came across an idea to provide design services in a subscription model. The idea is simple, I provide all kinds of design services for a fixed monthly rate. The same fee every month for any kind of design like website, app, graphic design, pitch deck designs, etc. Imagine Netflix but for custom designs.

I loved the idea and wanted to try this model, I planned, researched, and made the website. However, it took me 3-5 months, and finally launched the website on the 15th of November, 2023.***

I charge $2490 a month for the Standard package. Also, I provided a 14-day paid trial for $490 to attract clients who never worked with me before. I was able to acquire three clients within 3 weeks and 8 client meetings.

This is by far the best revenue I made from a side hustle within a short time. Additionally, I do have domain experience here.

I know it's super early to decide if I quit or not, but I can see a future with this subscription model.

Do you have any similar experiences? 🤔