After the success of my first ecommerce website, I was eager to start my next brand, now equipped with valuable first hand experience. One lesson was clear: keep it simple. The complex logistics of my first store eventually forced me to shut it down, so I made a conscious decision to focus on a single product from a single supplier on AliExpress. 

While scrolling through TikTok, a brand new platform at the time, I started noticing a trend across countless viral videos: nearly every creator had LED strip lights outlining the perimeter of their bedroom. I began researching the product and quickly noticed that, although there were countless sellers offering the same LED strips, none of them had any real branding. Most were unrecognizable names with minimal effort put into presentation. 

That’s when I saw the opportunity. Not just to sell the product, but to create a brand people could actually get behind. I envisioned a name, an aesthetic, and a website that felt modern, trusted, and aligned with the lifestyle these lights represented. That’s when “Lazerwave LED” was born.

The initial branding drew heavily from the then-popular Vaporwave aesthetic, tapping into the nostalgic, digital vibe that both resonated with the early TikTok audience, as well as matched the nature of the product itself. 

Since I discovered the product through organic TikTok content, it would have been the perfect platform to start advertising. But at the time, TikTok’s ad platform had not launched yet, and wouldn’t roll out until the following year. So instead, I opted to advertise on Snapchat. Its user base closely mirrored my target demographic, making it a great channel to test my first campaigns. 

When designing my ad creatives, I wanted to ensure they felt as Snapchat native as possible, and wouldn’t stand out too much from the rest of Snapchat’s content. I realized I could leverage the countless TikTok creators who already owned the product and began reaching out to them directly, asking if they’d be interested in making UGC-style videos for my brand. To my surprise, many were eager to collaborate, and I was able to secure authentic, engaging content for just $5 – $10 per video.

I soon began running some initial ads, targeting various groups. Almost immediately, I noticed they were performing well. I was getting a really high CTR, and already making some initial sales. That’s when I received an email that would change everything.

A Marketing Specialist at Snap had taken notice of my campaign, and reached out to book a call to discuss optimizing my ads. At the time, I was 16 years old and had never been on a business call before. I was hesitant and unsure if I’d be taken seriously. I responded cautiously, saying I’d check my schedule and get back to him soon. He replied almost instantly with: “Even if you have 10 minutes right now, I'd love to hop on the phone and check in!”

Screw it. I called him right then and there.

The call ended up being incredibly helpful. Up until this point, I was entirely self taught. He gave me concrete advice on optimizing my budget, improving my bidding strategy, and fine-tuning my targeting. Within days, everything changed. 

We stayed in touch and continued scaling through December. There were moments where I had over 1,000 active visitors on my site at once. I couldn’t believe what was happening.

At this point, I was gaining dozens of orders and generating well over $1,000 in sales per day. As the new year rolled around, I got an email from Snap. I had been assigned a new account manager, and we had a call scheduled to discuss plans for the new year. 

I truly felt unstoppable, and couldn’t wait to see what the new year had in store. 

But just as fast as everything went up, it all came to a halt. News started coming out of China about a mysterious virus that was disrupting manufacturing and exports. Within weeks, COVID-19 was making headlines worldwide. I had to put the entire business on pause for the unforeseeable future.

As I sat bored in quarantine, I couldn’t stop thinking about how wild December had been. I would’ve done anything to get that momentum back. I started reflecting on the bottlenecks I had run into as the business scaled.

Toward the end, dropshipping was quickly becoming unsustainable. I was getting dozens of emails a day from frustrated customers about long shipping times, and managing the flood of individual AliExpress orders had become overwhelming.

That’s when I made the decision to pivot. I would no longer rely on dropshipping. Instead, I’d order inventory in bulk and fulfill the orders myself.

I began reaching out to various manufacturers on Alibaba and started requesting samples. I wanted to make sure that if I was going to invest in bulk inventory, the product quality had to be solid. I compared each sample, tested them, and took notes on everything from brightness and adhesive strength to packaging and instructions.

Once I narrowed it down, I began negotiating, going back and forth on pricing, lead times, and minimum order quantities. Eventually, I landed on a supplier I trusted. After ironing out the details, I placed my order for 600 units at the end of April. 

3 months later, they arrived on my doorstep.

For the first time in 6 months, my ads were live again. Although I didn’t see the same level of success as the holiday season, I spent the rest of my summer packing orders, and driving to the post office. My trunk would oftentimes be completely filled with orders, requiring numerous trips back and forth at the post office. It was hard work, but I loved every second of it. 

After only ever dealing with digital dashboards and metrics, seeing the physical volume of packages I was sending out each day put everything into perspective.

In almost perfect timing, I sold my last unit just as school started. I had just wrapped up one of the most fun and fulfilling summers of my life. But with senior year and college applications quickly approaching, I knew I wouldn’t have the time to continue packing boxes and driving to the post office every day.

That’s when Shopify reached out.

They invited me to apply as an early member of the Shopify Fulfillment Network. I hopped on a call, went through the process, and was eventually accepted. Now, I’d be able to send my inventory directly to their warehouse, and they’d handle all fulfillment from there. It felt like the best of both worlds. Fast shipping and professional logistics, without the daily chaos of doing it all myself. I could finally focus on what I loved most: building and scaling the brand.

I used this moment as an opportunity to completely revamp my product. The version I had been selling was starting to feel outdated. Customers were asking for smartphone control, WiFi, and Bluetooth functionality. So I began reaching out to new manufacturers who could offer the features I needed. I worked closely with one who understood my vision, and together we developed a smarter, better version of the product. I added custom branding directly to the device, and hired a designer to create premium packaging that felt worthy of a modern consumer brand.

I had reinvested almost everything into this next version and I couldn’t have been more proud of the result.

This no longer felt like a simple eCommerce store. This felt like a real product. A legitimate brand.

At the end of August, I placed an order for 1,000 units and geared up to relaunch in time for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday season.

My shipment was delayed—stuck at the Port of Los Angeles for weeks. The warehouse didn’t end up receiving my inventory until late January. By then, I had completely missed the holiday window.

 When I went to relaunch my ads, they were not performing to the same caliber as they once did. I continued to pivot and come up with new ads, audiences, and channels. I was gaining orders, but not at nearly the same rate as what I once had. It became clear: the product just wasn’t as hot anymore. The market had moved on and I was too late.

Over the next two years, I slowly chipped away at my inventory. I relied on repeat customers, word of mouth, and creator videos that were still live. Inventory storage was cheap enough to justify holding onto the product, but the monthly costs were starting to add up—and the brand was no longer growing.

Then, in the summer of 2023, I got an email from Shopify Fulfillment Network. They’d be shutting down soon, and offered to either transfer my inventory to another provider or donate it free of charge.

I took that as a sign. It was time to let go. I made the difficult decision to donate my remaining supply and officially closed the chapter on Lazerwave LED.

Although it had a difficult ending, Lazerwave LED was an incredible experience—one I still value deeply. The amount I was able to learn, and the first-hand experience I gained in such a short period of time, was incredibly meaningful. I taught myself how to build a brand, run ads, manage logistics, and adapt to change. I experienced the highs of viral success and the lows of unexpected setbacks. While it didn’t end the way I had imagined, the lessons I learned have shaped how I approach every project since.