The Side Hustle She Started in a High School Locker Room Hit Multimillion-Dollar Revenue — and Taylor Swift Is a Fan: 'Invest in Yourself'

This Side Hustle Spotlight Q&A features 25-year-old Elena Bonvicini, who runs her manner marque EB Denim retired of Los Angeles. EB Denim has generated multimillion-dollar revenue, and its pieces person been worn by Taylor Swift, Gigi Hadid and different high-profile celebrities, per the company. Responses person been edited for magnitude and clarity.

Image Credit: Courtesy of EB Denim. Elena Bonvicini.

What was your time occupation aliases superior business erstwhile you started your side hustle?
When I started EB Denim, I was still successful high school. I started trading reworked vintage Levi's to my friends and classmates because I loved having pieces that nary 1 other was wearing. I was ever repurposing clothes; moreover arsenic a kid, I would destruct my brother's apparel successful the sanction of individuality. When I started bringing them to school, peers would support asking for more, and soon enough, I was trading denim shorts retired of my locker room. It was breathtaking to spot thing I did for nosy move into a existent business truthful quickly.

Related: She Started a T-Shirt Side Hustle arsenic a Recent Grad Working astatine 'People' Magazine. It Led to a DM From Levi's and $400 Million.

When did you commencement your broadside hustle, and wherever did you find the inspiration for it?
I started successful 2016 during a summer sojourn to my grandparents successful Wisconsin. My grandma and I would return day-long roadworthy trips to each the section thrift stores, and I was truthful inspired by the characteristic and history of each the clothes. No 2 pieces were the same, and I could redesign really to style them. I would bargain denim, and my grandma Jeanette would bargain pastry dishes. It was our thing; we still do it, and I cherish those memories.

What were immoderate of the first steps you took to get your side hustle disconnected the ground?
In the beginning, it was each astir reworking vintage denim and getting my designs into the hands of the correct people. I retrieve the first clip I trim up a brace of Levi's, turned them into shorts and wore them to school. Almost immediately, group were asking wherever I sewage them, and earlier I knew it, I was making civilization pairs for my friends. I kept reinvesting everything I made into the business — alternatively of spending the money connected myself, I utilized it to bargain much denim and yet prosecute PR experts. That's erstwhile things really changed. PR sewage my pieces into the hands of influencers and celebrities who could elevate the marque successful ways I couldn't person done connected my own. My first large break came erstwhile Danielle Bernstein of WeWoreWhat and Chiara Ferragni wore EB Denim, which sewage maine a batch of attraction early on. From there, it was a domino effect of Hailey Bieber, the Kardashians, the Hadids — erstwhile I had that personage buzz, bigger retailers for illustration Revolve and Selfridges started carrying my designs.

Related: The Side Hustle She Worked connected successful a Local Starbucks 'Went From Nothing to $1 Million.' Now It Will Make Over $30 Million This Year.

What were immoderate of the biggest challenges you faced while building your side hustle, and really did you navigate them?
One of the biggest challenges was scaling. At first, I was solely reworking vintage pieces, which meant each point was unique, but it besides made it difficult to support up pinch demand. Vintage denim, while sustainable successful an ethos sense, isn't sustainable successful a scalability consciousness because of the variations successful size, colour and supply. It conscionable wasn't imaginable to meet the increasing request pinch one-off pieces. I had to fig retired really to support the brand's personality intact while transitioning to a accumulation exemplary that could turn pinch us. That's erstwhile I moved distant from purely reworking vintage and started creating original pieces inspired by vintage aesthetics. It wasn't easy to springiness up that hand-made, one-of-a-kind feel, but I knew it was basal to germinate the brand.

Image Credit: Courtesy of EB Denim

Another situation was simply learning really to run a business. I had ne'er worked for anyone other arsenic an adult. Everything I've learned has been done proceedings and error, which tin beryllium daunting erstwhile you're responsible for making each the decisions. Eventually, I brought successful group pinch much acquisition successful wholesale and production, which has been a immense help. And while I emotion being my ain boss, it tin beryllium overwhelming astatine times to not person personification guiding you aliases giving you feedback. But I've grown to spot my instincts and trust connected the astonishing squad I've built.

How agelong did it return you to spot accordant monthly revenue?
The turning constituent for accordant gross came erstwhile I really leaned into influencer marketing. PR was basal to getting my marque successful beforehand of the correct people, but it wasn't until I saw my designs connected celebrities for illustration Hailey Bieber and Kylie Jenner that income genuinely skyrocketed. One infinitesimal that stands retired was past September erstwhile I was astatine a New York Fashion Week aft party, and astatine 4 a.m., I saw paparazzi photos of Taylor Swift wearing our Polka dress. I woke up the adjacent greeting to a flood of income — the dress sold retired successful a day, some online and astatine our unit partners. That infinitesimal quadrupled our income for the full period and showed maine really powerful personage placements tin be. Just past week, Kylie Jenner bought a fewer pairs of jeans disconnected our website. It feels surreal to deliberation backmost connected trading denim successful my precocious schoolhouse locker room and really different EB Denim looks now.

Consistently having a bestselling hero/viral style has besides been important for america to support up pinch momentum. Our occurrence started pinch our OG jeans, past the Chain pants, past the cargo, past the Frederic jean and now the Low Rise Baggy.

Related: They Started a Home-Based Side Hustle Earning Up to $20,000 a Month — and It's Still Growing: 'Will Never Get Old'

What does maturation look for illustration now?
Growth has been incredible. We've transitioned distant from reworking vintage Levi's, pinch astir 95% of our products now being new, original designs. The marque has evolved to connection a afloat scope of denim products, from dresses to jackets, and our extremity is to make EB Denim the go-to premium denim marque for this generation. Our accumulation has moved to Pakistan, wherever we're moving pinch Artistic Milliners — a LEED-certified, fair-trade mill that uses renewable power and recycled water. This has allowed america to standard while staying existent to our committedness to sustainability. We're still utilizing the highest value materials and focusing connected craftsmanship, but now we tin do it astatine a value constituent that's much accessible without compromising connected morals aliases quality.

Image Credit: Courtesy of EB Denim

What do you bask astir about moving this business?
What I emotion astir is the creative freedom. I've ever been passionate astir fashion, and bringing my imagination to life and having group emotion and deterioration what I create is the astir rewarding feeling. Although it's surreal to spot celebrities the world looks up to wearing the product, it intends much to maine to spot personification successful existent life wearing it. I get to play a portion successful what makes group consciousness bully astir themselves, which is powerful. I besides emotion the situation of evolving the marque — it's been astonishing to spot really acold we've come, and I'm excited for what's next.

Related: This Former Model Used Her Personal Savings to Start a Thrifty Side Hustle — Then Taylor Swift Became a Repeat Patron: 'People Really Responded'

What's your proposal for others hoping to commencement successful broadside hustles aliases businesses of their own?
My biggest portion of proposal is to invest successful yourself and your vision. When I started, I reinvested our net into the marque to get my products successful beforehand of the correct people, and it paid off! But it's not conscionable astir the connections — you person to person a awesome merchandise that stands retired and that group want. Also, don't beryllium acrophobic to inquire for thief and bring successful group who are much knowledgeable successful areas wherever you mightiness not be. Running a business isn't conscionable astir creativity; it's astir logistics, supply chains, trading and truthful overmuch more. Surround yourself pinch group who tin thief you pinch those aspects truthful you tin attraction connected what you do best. Finally, don't beryllium acrophobic to evolve. What worked for your business successful the opening whitethorn not beryllium scalable successful the agelong term, and that's okay — the cardinal is to enactment elastic and unfastened to growth.

This article is portion of our ongoing Young Entrepreneur® bid highlighting the stories, challenges and triumphs of being a young business owner.