I’ve tried a lot of versions of this business.
I opened a retail store within the first year of starting and lived in the back. I ran commercial studios in NYC. I hired employees, worked with contractors, did wholesale trade shows, customer service, designing, sewing, production, street fairs and gift shows —sometimes all at the same time. I took second jobs when I needed to. Some of it worked. Some of it was exciting. Some of it was genuinely wonderful.
And some of it was unsustainable.
For a long time, I thought being a “real brand” meant offering more—more styles, more options, more output, more growth. I absorbed the idea that success had to look like constant expansion, even if it came with constant overwork.
But I don’t run a handbag factory. I run a design workshop.
I’ve learned, through experience, that I don’t want a business that consumes every part of my identity. My hobbies and my family are central to how I define a well-lived life. I want a business that supports that life—not one that requires me to shrink everything else around it.
So I’ve chosen a different metric for success: a business that provides financial security and comfort without requiring constant expansion or overwork.
Today, Crystalyn Kae is intentionally focused. I design fewer bags. I make them in small batches. I work from my home studio, with occasional contract support when it makes sense. Every style earns its place through real-world use, longevity, and thoughtful design.
This isn’t because I couldn’t grow it bigger.
It’s because I’ve tried that—and I’ve learned what kind of growth actually feels good.
I believe businesses can be ambitious and humane at the same time.
I believe craftsmanship benefits from restraint.
And I believe it’s okay to define success in a way that leaves room for joy.
This has always been my North Star.
I just took the long way around to admit it.
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