The Story So Far
I spent most of my twenties working restaurant shifts while trying to build something on the side. The seed was planted early — a close friend in university was already making five figures a month online while we were using Psychology class to take naps. I knew from watching him what I wanted. I just had no idea how to get there.
Over the next several years I tried everything. Info products, eBay, affiliate marketing, even a live streaming platform for DJs before Twitch existed. Some broke even, some I lost money on. Nothing really stuck — but I kept my head down and kept digging.
The turning point came at a friend's bachelor party in Mexico. I barely had enough money to get there. Watching everyone spend freely triggered something in me. Back in my hotel room one night, I googled "number one city for digital nomads". A city named Chiang Mai came up. That was enough. I booked a one-way ticket.
I quit my restaurant job of 8 years, flew to Thailand, and rented a $400/month apartment. Chicken and rice every day for $1.50. I got into a routine and started testing business models again — until a Canadian guy at a co-working space spotted the flag on my backpack and introduced me to Shopify and Facebook ads. That conversation changed everything.
First real store: military backpacks, survival niche. I paid a handful of Instagram influencers to post with my link. Went to sleep, woke up to $1,000 in overnight sales. That literally changed my life. From that moment, I was all in.
Two years of dropshipping. Year three, a six-figure store exit. Then Dreamer Designs — a diamond painting brand I built from scratch into a category leader, ending in a multi-seven-figure acquisition in 2025. Now it's 2026, I spend most of the year in Chiang Mai, and it's full focus on the next venture.
