I never meant to compete with my employer.
I just wanted a little extra money and some creative freedom.
I’m Taylor, 32 now. This blew up from 2022 to early 2025, turning my stable corporate job into a nightmare I’m still recovering from.
I worked as a senior graphic designer at Pinnacle Marketing Group — a mid-sized agency in Chicago specializing in real-estate branding. Great benefits, decent salary ($85k), hybrid schedule. I designed brochures, billboards, website mockups for luxury condo developments. The work was steady but soul-crushing — endless revisions from clients who “wanted it pop more,” beige color palettes, stock photos of smiling families.
In summer 2022, bored and burned out, I started a side hustle on Etsy: printable wall art. Minimalist line drawings, motivational quotes, abstract botanicals — stuff I actually enjoyed creating. I used skills from my job but in my own style: bold colors, playful typography.
I listed my first 20 designs on weekends. Priced low — $5–$8 digital downloads. No printing, no shipping, pure passive income.
It took off.
By Christmas 2022, I was making $2k/month extra. Bought a new laptop, paid off credit cards. Told myself it was harmless — I never worked on it during office hours, never used company equipment or software licenses.
2023 was explosive.
I niched into boho nursery art and wedding signage. Studied SEO, ran Pinterest ads, built an Instagram to 50k followers. Collaborated with influencers for shoutouts. Revenue hit $6k–$8k most months — more than my salary some quarters.
I was careful.
Separate computer, separate email, separate bank account. Never mentioned the agency. My bio said “full-time designer, part-time digital artist.”
I even turned down real-estate clients who found me — “Sorry, conflict of interest with day job.”
I thought I was safe.
I wasn’t.
In September 2024, everything imploded.
A new client came to Pinnacle — a big developer launching a luxury condo tower. They requested a “fresh, modern” brand package. My boss, Karen (VP of Creative), assigned me lead designer.
During the kickoff meeting, the client’s marketing director said, “We love this Etsy artist’s vibe — boho minimalism with gold accents. Can you do something similar?”
She showed my shop on the projector.
My designs. My shop name: “TayMadeDesigns.”
The room went silent.
Karen stared at me.
I turned red.
After the meeting, she pulled me into her office.
“Taylor… is that you?”
I admitted it.
She was stunned — then angry.
“You’re directly competing with agency services. Using skills we pay you to develop. Profiting off trends we track for clients.”
I explained: digital downloads only, no physical printing like the agency, no overlap with real-estate work.
She didn’t care.
Sent me home “pending review.”
HR got involved.
My contract — the one I signed in 2019 and barely skimmed — had a non-compete clause: “Employee agrees not to engage in any business that competes with Company services during employment.”
Graphic design? Broad enough to cover anything visual.
Moonlighting policy: “All outside work must be disclosed and approved in writing.”
I’d never disclosed.
They demanded I shut down the shop immediately.
I refused.
It was my biggest income source — $96k gross the previous year after expenses. I’d hired a VA, paid quarterly taxes, built a brand.
Karen escalated to the CEO.
They gave an ultimatum: close the shop or be terminated.
I asked for compromise — keep it running but rebrand away from anything remotely corporate.
They said no. “Conflict of interest is clear.”
I chose the shop.
They fired me in October 2024 — “for cause.” No severance. Fought my unemployment claim (I still won, but delayed).
The fallout was brutal.
Lost health insurance mid-open enrollment. COBRA was $800/month.
Reputation in Chicago’s tight design community tanked — word spread I’d been fired for “competing with employer.”
Job interviews dried up. Recruiters ghosted after reference checks.
I went full-time on the Etsy shop — doubled down on marketing, launched a website, added custom commissions.
Revenue spiked to $12k/month by early 2025.
But the stress was constant — imposter syndrome, burnout from doing everything solo, fear it could vanish overnight.
Former coworkers unfollowed me. One sent an anonymous message: “You brought this on yourself.”
My parents — proud of the hustle but worried — said, “You should’ve just closed it.”
I couldn’t.
That shop was the first time I felt truly proud of my work.
Pinnacle sued me in February 2025 — claimed I’d used “proprietary techniques” developed on their time.
Case was weak — no evidence of company resources used.
Settled out of court: I paid $15k (lawyer fees ate another $20k), agreed to a narrow non-compete for real-estate branding only.
I’m okay now.
Shop cleared $180k in 2025. Hired two part-time designers. Moved to fully custom work — no more direct printables.
Credit recovered. Savings rebuilding.
But I lost the security of a steady paycheck, benefits, 401k match.
And the trust in corporate America.
I wasn’t stealing clients.
I was just good at something they didn’t value.
My side hustle didn’t anger my employer because it competed.
It angered them because it proved I didn’t need them to succeed.
They wanted to punish me for that independence.
I’m freer now — and wealthier.
But the cost was two years of stress, lost friendships, and the harsh lesson that some companies don’t want employees with options.
They want employees who need them.
My side hustle didn’t just make me money.
It made me realize I’d outgrown the cage.
Getting fired was the push I needed.
Even if it felt like a fall at the time.
TL;DR: Built a successful Etsy side hustle selling digital art while working as a graphic designer at a marketing agency. Shop earned more than my salary; employer discovered it, claimed competition and contract violation, and fired me when I refused to shut it down. Lawsuit followed, but I went full-time entrepreneur — proving the side hustle was my real path, even if it cost me the “safe” job.
