Hitting Rock Bottom Sparked A Quarter-Million-Dollar Idea

When I started my first brand, I was just trying to chase a dream. At the time, I was interning for a clothing store, designing and printing garments for them through my account with a printing company. I wasn’t getting paid for my work—I was just trying to learn and build something for myself. But then the owner stopped paying the printing company’s invoices out of nowhere. Because the account was in my name, they seized it, and just like that, I couldn’t produce anything for my brand.

I was broke—really broke. I’m talking less than $1,000.00 to my name. It felt like everything I was working toward had fallen apart. I had nothing, no resources, and no idea how to move forward. I was stuck, but I refused to let that be the end of my story.

That’s when the idea hit me: if I couldn’t print my designs, how else could I make them come to life? How could I say something without traditional printing? I grabbed some bleach and basic utensils and started experimenting. I figured out how to bleach words and designs onto shirts, and it changed everything. That simple, unconventional solution became the foundation of my success.

What started as a desperate idea turned into something incredible. I made over a quarter million dollars with those bleached designs. It taught me one of the most valuable lessons in life and business: when you’re backed into a corner, you have to think differently. You have to find another way.

That’s the philosophy behind the Gifts of Fortune logo—a broken box. Even when life traps you inside, you have to break through and think outside of it.

To every entrepreneur out there: don’t let challenges stop you. Let them inspire you. Creativity often comes from struggle, and the path forward might just be hidden in a place you never thought to look. Keep pushing. Keep building. You’re capable of more than you know. The world is yours, and you are in control of your world no matter how it twists and turns.