A Woman Who Earned 2,900 Won Per Hour Sewing, The Secret Behind Her 6.4 Billion Won Annual Sales Success

Krista Ray, Founder of Penny Lynn Design
Expanding Business by Selling Canvases and Threads Instead of Finished Works

A story about an American female entrepreneur who expanded her hobby of needle embroidery into a business generating over 6.4 billion won in annual sales is gaining attention.

On the 15th (local time), the U.S. economic media CNBC reported on Krista Ray (33), the founder of 'Penny Lynn Design.' Originally, her profession was a lifestyle blogger. Ray was active in New York, earning up to $242,000 annually (about 352 million won). At that time, the needle embroidery she learned from her grandmother was just a hobby.

In September 2020, Ray launched a website selling needle embroidery works and sold products worth $25,000 (about 36 million won) within two hours. At first glance, it seemed like a great success, but when calculating hourly income, she could not help but feel disappointed. She spent about 6 hours over 4 months to create one 5x5 cm cotton canvas piece sold for $50 (about 72,700 won), which meant her hourly earnings were only about $2 (about 2,900 won).

Founder of Penny Lyn Design, Krista Ray. Penny Lyn Design homepage

Recalling that time, Ray said, "Needle embroidery is so labor-intensive that I thought it could never be my profession." Nevertheless, because she loved needle embroidery, she continued to create works. Contrary to her expectations, demand kept increasing, and by late 2022, her side business became her main job. CNBC reported that Penny Lynn Design earned $4.43 million (about 6.443 billion won) last year, with a profit margin of 36%.

Ray earned an annual salary of $80,000 (about 116 million won) last year. Although this amount is less compared to before, she says her work priorities have changed. She said, "I have less interest in sharing my life online," and added, "I cannot be sure that running the needle embroidery business is as profitable as running a blog, but I think this business satisfies my creative needs."

Ray cited early trend recognition as the key to her success. Needle embroidery has regained popularity as many people sought new ways to spend time indoors during the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, in 2023, Christmas decorations made with needle embroidery became a hot topic on TikTok, which also contributed to increasing brand awareness and business expansion. Additionally, she consistently introduces patterns tailored to public interest and difficulty level to attract mostly young customers under 35 years old.