From Earning $2 Per Hour To Making Over $360,000 Per Month— The Exciting Story Of A Young CEO

Krista Robertson is the CEO and founder of Penny Linn Designs, but guess what? She has made millions of dollars a year from her needlework side project.

Krista LeRay, as she is simply called, transformed her side project of needlework into a company that generates millions of dollars in sales every year. Following the introduction of her side business, Penny Linn Designs, in September 2020, Krista sold $25,000 worth of needlepoint canvases in just two hours.

It is interesting to note that, before the site launched, LeRay and her father had done the calculations. For four months, six hours were spent painting each 4-inch-by-4-inch cotton canvas, which sold for $50. She made about $2 per hour after spending $7,000 on goods.

Krista LeRay says because this work is so labor-intensive, she came to believe that it would never be her career.

She claims that LeRay, a lifestyle blogger in New York at the time who earned up to $242,000 annually, made more money in less time by sharing information about her commercial ties on social media. She continued to paint since she enjoyed the pastime. Unexpectedly, however, demand continued to rise.

The side project turned into her full-time employment in late 2022. According to data analyzed, Penny Linn Designs’ sales of canvases, threads, and accessories totaled $4.43 million in 2024, or about $369,000 a month on average.

As the business has expanded, its production has become more efficient. Last year, it reached a 36% profit margin, which allowed LeRay to accept a salary of $80,000, she adds.

The remainder of those profits, she explained, are used to grow the company. In March, Penny Linn Designs opened a 5,000-square-foot retail space.

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The shop’s canvases, now made by a variety of designers that align with Penny Linn Design’s “coastal preppy” aesthetic, feature champagne bottles, Cape Cod salt-and-vinegar chips, and Taylor Swift quotes.

LeRay profited from being ahead of a trend by capitalizing on the interest in crafts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

LeRay believes the recent surge is due to increased interest on social media, particularly following the 2023 TikTok virality of needlepointed Christmas ornaments.

By emphasizing designs that are approachable in terms of complexity and pop cultural relevance, she shows her appreciation for her clientele, the majority of whom are under 35.

Penny Linn Designs sells canvases as well as needlepoint tools and accessories, such as wicker bags to store them in, scissors, and needles.

LeRay’s grandmother was the one who first taught her to needlepoint. When the Covid-19 pandemic made it feel inappropriate for her to upload her typical fashion and beauty articles, she picked up the skill again in early 2020.

Before she finally began painting and selling her own, she wrote about needlepoint goods, like as pillows and belts, she recalls. LeRay said, for almost ten months, she painted, packed, and sent orders from her apartment in New York while watching “Schitt’s Creek” and other TV episodes in the background.

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LeRay’s Penny Linn Design salary still doesn’t match what she made at the height of her blogging career — but her priorities have changed, she says. She became less interested in sharing her life online anyway after she and her husband moved to Connecticut in December 2020 and then had a son.

And while she isn’t sure if running her needlepoint business will ever be as personally lucrative as blogging was, the business and the community around it fulfills her creative needs.

On her growing customers and followers, LeRay said:

“It was a huge shock to me. We have 50,000 followers [on Instagram], but that’s always felt sort of imaginary. I was unprepared to see our online community show up like that in real life.”

Credit: CNBC news