The day to day routine of a single working mother is no paradise. I know. I lived it. Each morning I would rise at 7am, make myself and my daughters look beautiful, drop them off at daycare, work for eight hours, pick them up at 5:30pm, buy groceries, make dinner, and go to bed – only to rise and do it all over again the next day.

Although I had a good job and the promise of a rewarding career in the future, every morning I felt like a slave to a system that demanded so much of my time. Caught in the maze that I had indeed created for myself, it seemed like there was no escape. But then I had an epiphany, and I put the monotony of that hard life behind me, forever.

First I should say that I’m still a mom, and I still work hard, but gone are the dreaded hours sitting in traffic and the boredom of my old job. My children are happier now, and we spend infinitely more time together as a family. And no, I didn’t drop off the grid to live on a commune – I still live in the same house, and I still put in 8 hours a day, same as before, but now I wear comfy clothing and walk my girls to school in the morning. Now I leisurely shop for clothes, take photographs of my finds, and work for a few hours at the computer in the afternoon. And I waste time watching the money come in.

I started my eBay business in January 2007 operating under the user ID Attic*Industry. My target market: twentysomethings with fat wallets and an avant-garde sense of style. It started innocently enough. I bought a mouthwatering flocked 1950’s vintage prom dress for $50.00 at a thrift shop in Kingston, Ontario. The dress was gorgeous and I just had to have it, even though it was obvious that it would never fit me. The anguish of spending fifty precious dollars on a decoration for the inside of my closet got to me in a matter of hours, and it was then, for the first time, I considered an ecommerce solution: eBay!

After snapping some digital pictures of the dress, I wrote a passionate, detailed description for potential buyers. I had no difficulty getting my very first item listed on the eBay website; I already had a Paypal account, and so before I went to bed that night Attic*Industry was open for business.

Day one was an eye-opener. You know that famous quote from Ray Kinsella’s Field of Dreams, "if you build it, they will come…?" These words came true online. The bids came fast and furious, and from all over the world. On day seven the auction closed and I realized a profit of $310.00. My love of good quality vintage clothing was no longer a burden to my bank account – now it was a terrific boon.

After dabbling for six months and seeing my sales grow exponentially, I decided it was time to put my executive career on hold and sell vintage clothing online full time. After only four months I became a respected PowerSeller with stellar feedback, and in August 2007 I was selected as a finalist for eBay Canada’s Entrepreneur of the Year. I can proudly say that I’ve sold beautiful clothes and fashion accessories to hundreds of people on six continents in over two dozen countries, and all with zero negative feedback. The good news for you is that the internet is still accepting applications for the next ecommerce success. With eBay the start up costs are minimal. Equipped with a nine year old digital camera, no knowledge of html and no budget, I entered the marketplace and experienced no difficulties finding buyers for my goods.

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