Gen Z CEO lists the failed businesses she launched before finding success

In a society that glorifies being your own boss, starting a business or setting up a side hustle looks enviably glamorous. After all, it’s easy to get caught up in whimsical tales of overnight entrepreneurial success, especially as more than half of U.S. workers experience burnout—with 42 percent of those employed reporting that they now dread their return to work after time off.

It’s no wonder that so many want to escape the rat race and live their professional lives on their own terms. Wannabe startup chiefs may fantasize about a life where they don’t need to answer to a boss or file notice whenever they want to take leave. They may picture themselves hitting a million sales in just a few months, perhaps, they could even trade in their current home for a luxury condo in Beverly Hills or Monaco.

Sadly, it’s not always that easy, and one entrepreneur wants people to know that while success is possible, it doesn’t always come in the form of a steep upwards trajectory. Valeriya Yusupova had “failed” at eight businesses before she found enjoyment and success in her ninth, a jewelry line named Val Jewellery.

“Over the past three years, I’ve gone through a lot of failures, but I have also learned a lot,” Yusupova told Newsweek.

“Every time I succeed in something, I often receive comments like ‘you had it easy.’ That’s why it’s important for me to show failure and the process,” she added.

Yusupova grew up in Geneva, but is now based in Madrid. She’d studied a public relations, advertising and communication course at Missouri Southern State University in the U.S., but became yet another victim of the pandemic job drought when she graduated in 2020.

“When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, my life took a different turn. I had finished my studies, but I wasn’t able to find a job in the PR field. This is when I decided to follow my dreams,” the business owner said.

But before she could do that, she’d tried and tested eight other business ideas—all of which either went bust, weren’t profitable or were quickly abandoned.

Yusupovas’s endeavors ranged from crafting and selling bath bombs, which lasted three months and made her zero dollars in profit, to launching an online vintage store, which did make her a healthy $2,000, but only lasted four months.

It’s important to show the real side of entrepreneurship

Over two years, she tried to sell digital planners, market handmade home decor items, and upcycle watches—all to varying degrees of success. She told Newsweek that her digital planner e-commerce project generated precisely zero dollars in its entire run.

Yusupova then spent a short few months making soap bars from scratch, producing soja candles and knitting crochet bags—the latter of which she never even got round to selling.

In 2022, she dived head first into her latest ambition, Val Jewellery, a hypoallergenic jewelry line that’s for the most part assembled in her native Switzerland. The business has, in a surprising turn of events, lasted to this day, but Yusupova hasn’t forgotten the many setbacks and failures that she met on her journey to becoming an entrepreneur.

“It’s important to show the real side of entrepreneurship,” Yusupova said.

“We often see a lot of ‘how to become rich’ or ‘how to build a business in a month’ books or videos, but few talk about the real struggles behind building businesses.

“I’ve always had big dreams and goals in life, and I’ve always been passionate about many things. I’m the type of person who never stops trying, even during hard days,” she added.

Just How Many of Us Are Side Hustling?

Findings have revealed that as of 2024, 69.6 percent of U.S. citizens now have a side hustle, with 12 percent reporting that they earn $1,000 or more from the extra venture per month.

Still, 68 percent of side hustlers can also generate a nice profit from their free-time efforts. Though, they report earning less than $500 from their side business or endeavor per month. Around 115.9 million Americans, aged 16 and older, report working on a side gig in their spare time.

In the U.K, 43 percent of Brits have a side hustle that can double up as an additional source of income. The average income from the ventures in Britain is £900 a month, which equates to $1,122.80.

There is a growing trend of young people embarking on a side business or seeing one as being a beneficial addition to their daily lives.

Around 68 percent of Gen Zers in the U.K earn money from one or more side hustles, while only 7 percent of the Silent generation—that’s those born between 1928 and 1946—can say the same, but why?

Around 115.9 million Americans, aged 16 and older, report working on a side gig in their spare time.

Of course, most people aged between 12 and 26 have, and will have, plenty more time, energy and opportunity to spearhead a side business—or a part-time job outside of school hours—than those in their 70s, 80s, and 90s. But with such a vast generational gap comes different financial needs, priorities and ways of seeing the world.

To put it simply, young people today may need the financial safety net that a robust side business can provide. On top of that, rates of burnout and job dissatisfaction have risen, while at the same time younger generations have a world of digital tools at their fingertips that can help them start business projects and find success with more ease.

Vipin Porwal is the founder and chief executive officer of Smarty, a shopping app.

“Today’s consumers are between a rock and a hard place,” Porwal, who has over 20 years of entrepreneurial experience, told Newsweek.

“Wages are stagnant, while expenses are going up, so now they have to figure out how to financially navigate this new world.

“The cost of living, which 82 percent of consumers say is too expensive right now, is affecting multiple areas of respondents’ lives to a survey that I’d like to bring forward. One area is their mental health, causing 52 percent to worry about the future,” he added.

The entrepreneur says that most consumers believe rising costs aren’t going anywhere, with 59 percent now worrying that “stagflation”— the idea that inflation is here to stay — will be the new normal.

Ernie Goss is a professor and regional economist at Creighton University in Nebraska. He agrees that more people are feeling disillusioned and that living costs have risen.

“From the beginning of the pandemic to the present, rents have expanded by a compound annual growth rate of 5.2 percent, or by 22.5 percent in total,” Goss told Newsweek.

“Over the last several months, both housing prices and rental rates have softened, but continue to move higher, but at a rate less than the consumer price index,” he added.

Sharing Her Story Online

Yusupova told Newsweek that she is concerned founder content on social media, that often glamorizes what it’s like to launch and run a business, is prompting more people to pursue a side hustle without taking into consideration its difficulties and challenges.

In January, she shared a video to TikTok (@valjourney) that chronicled the eight failed businesses that predated the surviving jewelry line she manages now. The 1-minute-long clip has been viewed more than 13.4 million times, and resonated with people across the world.

“I must say that in that video, I only showed a small part of what I went through, I couldn’t possibly have shown everything,” Yusupova said.

“But, by trying so many different business ideas, I’ve learned a lot, especially patience and discipline. I am a firm believer that anyone can succeed by building a strong mindset. All the hobbies-turned-hustles shown in the video didn’t make it, but as you know, my jewelry business did.”

“I believe that in order to succeed, we do need to fail a lot and be OK with that. Every idea can potentially become a source of income. Trying, failing, and keeping going is the only way; there are no shortcuts,” she added.

Yusupova advises budding business owners to never be afraid of trying.

“Many businesses have started with seemingly silly ideas and small investments. In my case, while some may have judged me or said that I’m wasting my time, for me, as long as I’m learning a new skill and enjoying the process, it’s a win,” she said.

“Those who want to start their own business should ask themselves these questions too.”

If you have a personal dilemma, let us know via [email protected]. We can ask experts for advice on relationships, family, friends, money and work and your story could be featured on Newsweek’s “What Should I Do? section.