Abigayle Smith, an aspiring dental hygienist, has successfully balanced launching a creative online business while being a full-time student.

In July, Smith decided to create Your Day Decor: a Christian business focused on producing custom event decorations and home accessories. To spark awareness of her business, she made a TikTok and Instagram account to show others the creative process behind her products and to display all her handmade pieces.

Over the course of three months, Smith has created a profitable platform to display her artistic abilities while providing her customers with high-quality products. She has consistently received multiple custom orders weekly; however, the process of starting her online business was harder than expected.

Starting from the ground up, Smith relied on her personal social media following and the sharing of those followers to create awareness of Your Day Decor. Her initial following was small but grew larger due to her steady posting schedule.

“My biggest advice to college students wanting to start their own business is to not give up and to keep posting on social media to gain customers.” – Abigayle Smith, owner and founder of Your Day Decor

Social media has allowed Smith to find a customer fanbase and refer them to her Etsy. The Etsy platform allows her customers to purchase products and directly communicate personalization requests. She uses a small portion of her profit to pay for advertisements on Etsy which helps her reach her target audience.

Smith attributes most of her success to God. The faith-based business has allowed her to discover a community of fellow creators and customers with similar values. She makes sure to create products centered around biblical scripture to express her faith and provide Christian options to her customers. Smith said, “Praying has been the biggest insight for my entire business journey.”

Since Smith is a full-time student and a business operator, she balances both responsibilities by focusing on time management. For instance, she says she purchases supplies on her commute to school or completes schoolwork while waiting for painted products to dry.

The biggest challenge Smith has faced in her business is the unreliable source of income. She has discovered products sell better during special periods of time like holidays or sports seasons. Products are more difficult to sell when there is not a national reason to celebrate.

Despite the challenges, Smith’s proudest accomplishment with Your Day Decor is making her artistic dreams a reality. She  pursues her goals with perseverance and determination which has led to a successful online business providing decoration products to all.