How has Zazzle changed your life?

We Are Zazzlers

Some of us are new to Zazzle, while others have been here for many years. Some have devoted a few hours to opening a basic shop, while others have invested 10,000 hours or more. We are Bronze-level designers, Diamond-level sellers, and everything in between.

You’ve created products, collections, and stores, but you’ve also created a life that includes Zazzle.

How has being a Zazzler changed your life? Perhaps it has provided extra income, creative fulfillment, greater confidence, new friendships, or more freedom and flexibility. Share what Zazzle has meant to you, what you’ve learned along the way, and any advice you would offer others on their own Zazzle journey.

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Here is what Zazzle has meant to me.

I started slowly but hopefully about 16 years ago. Over time, I devoted thousands and thousands of hours to creating approximately 25 stores. Many of those stores never went anywhere and I eventually gave up on them. But a few became successful, and I worked my way up to the Platinum level.

In many ways, Zazzle bought me a new life.

In 2012, I wasn’t earning money of my own. I was simply a spouse living in my husband’s house in a small town, quiet as a mouse. The income I earned through Zazzle gave me the independence and confidence to reinvent myself.

I used that money to buy a vacation home in a lively retirement community filled with activities. That community eventually became a major part of my life. I joined several boards, made many friends, became involved in numerous clubs, and devoted much of my time to volunteer work.

Yes, I left my husband behind in the small town. But we are still married, we talk every night, and I visit him often. We simply created a different kind of life that works for us.

Unfortunately, AI and the enormous increase in competition have greatly affected my stores. Today, I earn about one-tenth of what I once did. I can no longer support myself on my Zazzle income alone, but that doesn’t erase everything Zazzle made possible for me.

I still work on Zazzle from time to time, but I have also diversified and returned to creating sculptures, something I have always loved.

Zazzle gave me more than income. It gave me independence, confidence, choices, and the opportunity to build a new chapter of my life. For that, I will always be grateful.

You can see some of my sculptures and find a list of my Zazzle stores at AmeliaCarrie.com.

Now I would love to hear your story. How has Zazzle changed your life?

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Congratulations on Platinum and everything Zazzle has enabled you to do. Your sculptures are goregous! I hope your Zazzle stores rebound.

Amelia, I can relate to Zazzle being a life-changing opportunity. I was diagnosed with an incurable chronic illness at 16, but managed to work full time until 2017, when I ended up bed bound. I started designing awareness graphics for my illness, which were very popular in the community. I opened a Zazzle store in 2018 just to put my awareness graphics on t-shirts and posters, but I loved designing so much that I opened more stores. It gave me a creative outlet and something to do all day. I went from being financially dependent on my younger brother and sisters, which was so difficult, to being able to support myself thanks to Zazzle.

When I became bed bound, I thought I’d never achieve anything ever again, but I recently reached Platinum. I can’t even express how much that meant to me.

Sales started dropping in 2022 and by the end of 2024, I was ready to give up. I couldn’t cover my bills anymore. Being stuck in bed, there aren’t many ways to make a living, especially in South Africa. I struggle with severe brain fog, which makes learning new things challenging, so setting up another business like an Etsy store is just too difficult. I’m so glad I stuck with Zazzle because sales very slowly started climbing again. I’m still not able to cover all of my bills, but I know I will get back there.

It was recently confirmed that my youngest sister has the same illness as me. She may not be able to work a full-time job anymore, which is heartbreaking. There’s not much I can do to help her, but I set up a store for her and will run it unless she wants to take it over some day. It’s great to be able to do something for her.

I’m so grateful for the life Zazzle has made possible for me. It’s also given me something of value I can leave to my youngest sister when I die.

Zazzle is the best thing that has ever happened to me.

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I’ve been selling on Zazzle for nearly 24 years—more than half my life! Zazzle’s changed my life by becoming a standard practice within it.

When I first started on Zazzle, I was selling posters of fractals I made in my free time. Getting those first few sales was addictive so I posted everything I made on Zazzle. Of course, not everything sold well, but I kept posting. As my interest and skills broadened to data visualization, data-driven art, and historical reproductions, publishing posters became a standard practice for nearly every project of mine for those that wanted to own their own piece of a project I created.

What originally drew me to Zazzle is what keeps me on it to this day: ease of use and great quality. I have clear memories of the first poster of mine that I ordered as a test and being amazed at the vibrant colors and great quality. I’ve had my fair share of challenges with Zazzle over the years but far more ups than downs. I don’t have as large a catalogue or as many sales as many others but I keep publishing because Zazzle allows me to “set it and forget it” so I can focus on creating what I love and they handle the logistics that I don’t.

I’ve ordered more test prints than I can count because I like to ensure the best quality before publishing. I can’t bring myself to get rid of them, even though they live in stacks of tubes in a corner. After more than two decades, I still get excited to see something I made in a physical print and love hearing from others who have ordered them for friends and family.

I’m not an active poster on these forums and lurk quite a lot but this post piqued my interest and I wanted to share. Zazzle’s evolved a lot over the years and I’m looking forward to hopefully continuing to be a Zazzler for many years to come.

My personal website is the gateway to all of my projects and products for those interested: https://www.c82.net.

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To me it’s something fun to do and I make some money doing it. It doesn’t cover my rent anymore, but I still enjoy designing stuff. When it’s no longer fun, I’ll stop.

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I had fun, I made some money, I met great people who think alike, who are creative, love designing and like to have their small business. That’s who I am and that’s why I am here. That’s why I love Zazzle, it gave me an opportunity to be who I am and I enjoy it.

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