This Side Hustle Spotlight Q&A features Paris Emily Nicholson, 26, and Saskia Teje Jenkins, 25. The business partners and friends began working on Australian fashion brand Amelie Teje as a side hustle in 2020 with just $2,500 each and have since grown it to seven figures. Responses have been edited for length and clarity.
Image Credit: Courtesy of Amelie Teje
What was your day job or primary occupation when you started your side hustle?
Nicholson: I was at the end of completing my business marketing and events degree at university while working part-time in retail and doing freelance digital marketing for a bunch of ecommerce brands.
Jenkins: I was a full-time fashion model. I worked between LA, London and Australia. I was never at home for more than a month, usually on the go to the next place and never settled down anywhere long-term.
When did you start your side hustle, and where did you find the inspiration for it?
Nicholson: After freelancing in digital marketing, I quickly realized I preferred working for myself. Working with ecommerce fashion labels, I fell more and more in love with the idea of having my own. I saw there were some gaps in the market. I felt that pieces were missing from my own wardrobe that I wanted to create myself. Saskia and I sat down one day in 2020 and started discussing the idea. From that day on, we made our dream come to reality, officially launching Amelie Teje at the beginning of 2021. We have been hustling every day since!
Jenkins: We started during the pandemic, like many new businesses. It was the first time I had to stay put for a long period, and I started reflecting a lot on where I was in my life and where I wanted to go. I have always been so obsessed with fashion and being creative. I feel like it’s the one thing I will never get bored of; in fact, it completely recharges me. I always dreamed of having a fashion company, but I didn’t believe I could achieve it as I went straight from school to modeling with no university education. But being around designers, creatives, production managers and everything in between taught me so much. Just by watching and listening, I picked up so much, and I wasn’t afraid to be nosey and ask questions when I could! Then, one day, Paris and I got on the topic of what we should do next, and the idea was born.
Image Credit: Courtesy of Amelie Teje
What were some of the first steps you took to get your side hustle off the ground?
Nicholson: We started by writing down potential business names, and we came up with the idea of putting both of our middle names together: Amelie Teje. Then, we began drawing logo designs and discussing what we wanted to create and share with the rest of the world. Once we had a vision of what we wanted Amelie Teje to look like, we began searching the web for manufacturers that we felt would be best suited for our brand. We did lots of research to figure out our ideal customers and what our potential competitors would be. We began making sacrifices and started saving like crazy so that we could put whatever savings we had into our first-ever collection.
What were some of the biggest challenges you faced while building your side hustle, and how did you navigate them?
Nicholson: My biggest challenge was juggling my paid jobs at the time with the business, as we weren’t drawing any money out for at least the first two years. Trying to put all of the money I was making from my jobs into the business and seeing no return was hard. It almost felt like I was throwing money away for the first couple of years. Finding the right work/life balance was also a struggle because, as a 22-year-old, I always wanted to go out and see my friends, and a lot of that time, I had to work instead. Late nights and weekends mostly became Amelie Teje time. It was tough at the start, but I truly believed in and loved the brand so much that I was willing to make sacrifices.
Jenkins: I would say the biggest challenge was trying to juggle modeling with the brand when Amelie Teje started growing fast. It was fine to manage the balance when Amelie wasn’t taking up the majority of the time, but the goal was always to make Amelie Teje No. 1. It’s an amazing problem to have, but stressful nonetheless. Shooting a nine-hour day, then going straight to the office until 10 p.m., just to wake up and do it all again. We were packing orders ourselves out of a tiny room. We decided the next step was to move to a 3PL distributor. I also decided it was time to pull back my modeling jobs and be more picky about what I took on.
How long did it take you to see consistent monthly revenue? How much did the side hustle earn?
It took at least two years to see consistent revenue. It was disheartening when we would have a good month and think, Maybe this is the moment it takes off. But then, it goes back down. After the two-year mark, we snowballed each month to consistent (or better) numbers and sell-through. In the two-year period, we only made $549,993.32.
Image Credit: Courtesy of Amelie Teje
What does growth and revenue look like now?
Here are some fun stats from October:
Sales grew by 1,318% from the 2021 to 2024 financial year, and gross profit jumped by 472% over the same period.
We are now running a multimillion-dollar business — something we never thought we’d be able to say!
What do you enjoy most about running this business?
Nicholson: There are so many things I love about running Amelie. I love being able to work with my best friend every day. Being able to share the same vision is such a special and exciting thing. I love feeling proud and being so passionate about my work every single day. I enjoy navigating the challenges we face, networking, traveling and just simply creating pieces that people feel amazing in all over the world. There is no better feeling!
Jenkins: I get to work with my best friend every day. It’s always fun going to work. Even on the bad days, we find comfort in doing it together. I would be lying if I said being able to travel wherever we want for photoshoots isn’t amazing, and being able to work our own hours.
What’s your advice for others hoping to start successful side hustles or full-time businesses of their own?
Nicholson: Never give up. No matter how hard some days feel. If you are passionate enough about something, it will work out how you envision it. There will be times you think to yourself, Is this really worth the stress and anxiety? Or, Am I really up for this? But you have to trust the process. Work hard, make sacrifices and never say no to the opportunities that scare you the most. There’s always room to grow, so make sure you are constantly willing to learn and don’t be afraid to ask for help and advice from people who have done it before. I always say an inch of forward movement is better than a mile of intention.
Jenkins: Just keep going. There are going to be moments where you think it’s easier just to go back to what’s easy. If you’re truly passionate about whatever business you are starting, you won’t even see quitting as an option. If something sets you back, learn from it and use it as ammunition to move forward again. And sometimes you will need to sacrifice fun things for your future: a trip, a handbag, a night out, a lazy day…it will all be worth it one day! Paris and I never have a day off, even if we are on holiday or traveling or hungover (everyone’s got to blow off some steam sometimes!). If there’s an email that needs answering, WhatsApp messages from international production teams in different time zones buzzing, customs forms needing to be completed before the bulk gets rejected or Zoom meetings with coworkers — we will get it done. Even if we want to switch off, we know that’s not an option. Some people probably think that’s depressing, but it lights us up. We love this business so much — we wouldn’t change it for the world!
This article is part of our ongoing Young Entrepreneur® series highlighting the stories, challenges and triumphs of being a young business owner.