From words on paper to strokes of a paintbrush on a canvas, beauty exists in many forms. Beauty leaves a permanent imprint on our minds, and the memories are passed on for generations.
There is a special kind of sweetness in witnessing someone’s most personal and cherished lyrics, words, or quotes displayed in print for others to witness. The intimacy and trust of such gestures are worth the outcome. Recognizing the value behind the art of words is an entrepreneur and her loving family. Having labored to make it a reality, scores of people worldwide now enjoy the fruit of their hard work. This is the story of Kristie Rickert, who dropped out of college to pursue AmourPrints.
AmourPrints offers song lyrics on canvases, poetry verses on canvases.
AmourPrints offers song lyrics on canvases, poetry verses on canvases. You can even get your song printed. Starting on Etsy and then moving to Shopify, Kristie and her husband, then fiance, went from making $0 to $3 million. Right now, Kristie and her husband are on track to earn $6 million.
Although, the company specializes in couples and anniversary gifts, you can customize your gift to fit just any occasion. Their specialties include anniversary gifts for him and anniversary gifts for her.
Kristie first touched on her creative side when she was experimenting with twisting balloons. This discovery led her to work in restaurants, where she performed balloon art. Kristie was so awkward and clueless that her manager pulled her aside to say she would be fired if things continued like this.
Kristie remembers being terrified. This incident is her first memory of growing into an entrepreneur. She remembers thinking that it was when she strengthened her resolve and decided to have a little faith in herself. Soon things flourished, and Kristie felt unstoppable.
In 2012, Kristie began working on her business. In 2013, Kristie formally opened her doors to a massive market by launching a shop on Etsy. Around the same time, her fiance left college to assist her with the business. Kristie faced many problems.
It began with domestic opposition and concern over what they considered a rash and reckless decision. Then, Etsy took AmourPrint’s shop down due to some error. The first time this happened, the couple got their shop back, but they were not so lucky the second time.
So Kristie and her husband decided to move the business to Shopify. They soon realized that it was nothing like Etsy. Kristie and her partner had to do everything from the base level. It included learning SEO, ads, hiring employees, the working and mechanism of their platform, and web design.
Even then, in the face of such hard work and resilience, the steady stream of qualms from various family members did not stop. The first year the couple made 50k. The following year they doubled it to 100k.
Then the pandemic hit, and AmourPrints took a severe blow. The entire world went into a state of indefinite lockdown.
In 2020, AmourPrints earned up to 3.6 million dollars in revenue.
Kristie began to have severe doubts about the chances of their business. Would it survive? If so, then at what cost? How bad will the losses be? Kristie went on to invest all their money in upgrading Shopify plus. Miraculously, this worked, and AmourPrints was thriving once again. Consequently, in 2020, AmourPrints earned up to 3.6 million dollars in revenue.
As much as we love to recall such tales of unbelievable success and glory, it is essential to remember the choices that led to them. For Kristie and her partner, it meant giving up on college and facing numerous obstacles. We, as a society, tend to discourage other people’s passions and choices.
But later, we glorify the same persons’ tales of enormous success while conveniently ignoring the same choices that led to Kristina and her husband’s victory. They credit God for their success. As a token of their gratitude, they donate a portion of their earnings.
We must realize the potential that lies in entrepreneurship. Kristie went from being a shy and nervous teenager performing balloon arts in cheap restaurants to owning a multimillion art store and business. And not just any business, but one that survived the worst pandemic recorded in history.