Melton began creating, engraving, and marketing pet memorial headstones on Etsy in March 2021. In addition to working 60 hours per week as a maintenance lead at Mars Pet Care, he had long worked with concrete and stone as a hobby.
He already had a $15 000 engraving machine. Additionally, he had access to his own workshop in Alma, Arkansas, a community of less than 6,000 people on the border of the Ozark Mountains, which he had built himself.
Melton spent the first two or three days molding the headstones, followed by another five hours of engraving time before his wife put epoxy filling. He utilized revenues and savings to put another $51,500 into other projects as his side gig increased and cash began to flow.
Melton was able to sell more headstones by reducing production time with each new piece of machinery. When his Etsy shop made about $20,000 in May 2022, Melton quit his full-time employment. Following the hiring of his daughter and daughter-in-law last summer, he now works fewer hours and spends time with his family.
The four-person business earned more than $207,000 on Etsy last year, per the documents examined by CNBC Make It. Melton calculates that around two-thirds of that is profit, and he expects to earn about the same amount this year.
Here, he talks about how he started his company, why he enjoys working with family, and what you might need to do in order to achieve his level of success.
Melton: This is doable by everyone. I’d estimate that $10,000 or less is required to get going. That is for sandblasting equipment and cement molds.
You only need to be passionate about it. At the end of 2020, my mother passed away, and my dad and I were devastated. I began to create items, such as concrete crosses, 3D roses, and plaques. Simple remembrance items that came out beautifully.
Then, Carlos, a buddy of mine, misplaced Molly. Those items, in my opinion, significantly influenced the course I took. My sympathy has been with the people [who lose their dogs] throughout. But as a result, you earn more money if you serve more customers.
