Albuquerque teen turns crafts into e-commerce

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Who says you have to be an adult to start your own business? An Albuquerque teen is turning her crafts into a business on a new online platform.

Lexi started crocheting just a few months ago. Since she started, it’s been hard for her to stop.

The more she made various pieces, the more convinced she was that she should turn her craft into commerce.

See, Lexi isn’t your typical 17-year-old. After she finishes her homework, her bedroom becomes her office.

“I really like to make clothes and like the plushies and I love when people like I give them to people and they love the reaction makes me feel good,” Lexi said.

Lexi practices the art of amigurumi, a type of art that originated in Japan. She taught herself this art form, where you transform balls of yarn into crocheted stuffed creatures.

“I got on YouTube and I got some yarn and some hooks. And I started out with some hats. I even made some matching hats for my dog and then I found out about amigurumi and I started to like that much more,” Lexi said.

A month ago, she connected with the folks at Treppie. Think of it as Etsy with training wheels.

“She showed me how to use the whole website, which is something that you wouldn’t get, like on the other website. And she shows us how to, like, price it and stuff, so it’s really great,” Lexi said.

Treppie walks kids and teens through running a business, so they can turn their talent into profit.

Since Lexi launched her online storefront, she has already seen sales take off. Now, she encourages other kids to try it.

“Follow your heart and go out and show your stuff and get on to it and it’s really great,” she encouraged.

If you want to browse Lexi’s storefront or see how you can get your kid involved in online entrepreneurship, click this link.