He Laughed at My “Imaginary” Business Trip Until He Learned About My $4M Home Business
The Mockery and the Dream
“How can you go on a business trip abroad as a jobless person?”
“Aren’t you ashamed of yourself coming out with a bare-faced lie like that?”
“It’s not a lie. I really am going overseas for work.”
“Right then, we’re divorcing a liar.”
With that he left the room.
To him it seems I who work from home might as well be unemployed and lazy. I have a steady income and even contribute to the living expenses and yet he won’t acknowledge that.
A few days after I returned from my business trip, I found divorce papers on my desk already signed. I see.
If he can’t understand this far, there’s no point being a couple, is there? I signed the divorce papers and headed to the state court.
My name is Hannah Robinson, 29 years old. My husband’s name is Jake, 30 years old.
We started dating in college and got married when I was 25. We were more like best friends than lovers and we always spoke our minds.
It might be a good thing, but sometimes things take an unexpected turn. For me, it happened when I discussed my dream with him.
My dream is to run an online imported goods store. The opportunity came during my part-time job at a boutique when I was a student.
Having always liked foreign designs, I was attracted to the charm beyond my part-time job. After graduating from college, I aimed to open my own store and became a full-time employee at my part-time job.
Even as a full-time employee, I could not give up my dream. “I really want to have my own shop surrounded by my favorite foreign goods. I want to deliver them to my customers.”
My parents and friends gave me warm words like, “Good luck,” and, “You will surely succeed.” Jake will definitely understand my dream and support me.
So I tried to bring up the topic subtly to Jake when he returned from work. “Hey Jake, you know I’ve been talking about opening my own shop for a while, right? About that…”
“Oh, not this again. It’s not going to work if you do it on a whim. You should quit.”
“Why would you say that? It’s not a whim. It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a long time.”
“Impossible is impossible. Life isn’t as sweet as you think it is.”
“There’s no need to be so harsh. Why do you always negate everything from the get-go?”
I raised my voice without thinking. My thoughts cavalierly dismissed, my husband Jake gives me a scornful glance.
His voice, eyes cold. “Then tell me, what’s your plan if this venture of yours doesn’t take off?”
“We… well, I don’t expect it to be successful right off the bat.”
“And what about your income until then? The rents and living expenses were splitting; now you’re telling me I have to cover it all, right?”
“No, that’s not what I’m thinking at all. I have some savings for the initial investment and I’ll make sure to pay the rent.”
“Oh, really? Then do as you please, but if it doesn’t work out and you regret it, it’s not my problem.”
Building Success in Silence
Every time I bring up going independent, Jake always becomes irritable. The reason is simple: because my income would become unstable.
The import shop I work at is well situated and we have a wide customer base, so we get many customers. Thanks to that, my income is fairly high, nearly the same as Jake’s, who works as an office worker.
In fact, it might be a bit higher. That’s why I’ve been covering meals when we go out and paying a little more for the rent.
My decrease in income is something Jake simply cannot tolerate. At first, he says things like, “Why rush things?” and, “You should take your time and prepare,” in a kind tongue.
Now, however, he has no qualms about breaking my spirit. Even so, I did not give up on owning my own shop.
No matter how much Jake opposed, I prioritized fulfilling my dream. As a result, I overcame his opposition and at the age of 26, I started an online boutique.
In the beginning, as Jake had predicted, it was difficult to get things running smoothly. But over the years, I implemented all sorts of strategies.
I utilize the nature of the online shop: outsourcing to well-known e-commerce companies, promoting on social media, and doing all I could. Thanks to these efforts, a year after going independent, I was able to secure a steady income.
From there, I expanded the customer base and product range, and now the annual sales have reached three hundred thousand dollars. Because Jake was so against it, I never spoke about the sales.
I assumed he wouldn’t be interested anyway. Of course, he never asked.
Still, he never fails to remind me about the rent and living expenses. I had always just given him the money he demanded without any fuss and kept any work-related conversation as non-controversial as possible.
But then one day, something happened. I received this message in the DMs of my online shop.
“I’m a regular customer of your shop. I was wondering, in addition to the international knickknacks, could you also sell furniture?”
Actually, there had been numerous requests for me to add furniture to my offerings. However, unlike selling knickknacks, selling furniture online can be quite difficult.
