TL;DR:
Well, I tried. It has not worked out, and I am officially closing out this project. I don't have the funds to continue to keep the lights on - my business bank account is empty, not enough sales to cover Shopify's fees.
WHAT HAPPENED?
Cashflow Issues
I made a pretty good product, if I do say so myself. Unfortunately, I lost my job just a few months after starting to develop my products, and have not been able to find any work since. I mean, nothing. Boomers will tell you that you can just apply at McDonalds and the like, they're always hiring. They're wrong. I literally tried that, and Burger King, and Wendy's. Mind you, I'm FAR more skilled and experienced than that. In short, no company, restaurant, or store will hire me in any capacity whatsoever. And it isn't like I live in bumfuck nowhere, I live in a major US city. I guess I'm just a very bad person. Point is, this venture was more like a profitable hobby as opposed to something I could live off of. My intention was to be a dealer at conventions, make enough money to attend them for "free," and earn a few dollars for Vtubers along the way. Instead, my bank account is almost empty and I am staring down the barrel at homelessness. My rough plan is to cash in my IRA and bugger off to Kuala Lumpur, where it might actually last more than a year or two. And if that runs out before I can find any work, at least I'll be homeless somewhere warm, and hopefully my death won't take too long.
Lack of Interest/Trust
I approached quite a few Vtubers whose content I enjoyed. Most of them ignored me completely. And most of those who didn't outright ignore me said "no." I guess it was the parasocial trap: I thought they'd totally be into working with me. I paid a subscription to a system where they didn't even have to rely on my own internal accounting to get money to them. There was no money asked of them at any point, all cash was to go in one direction, TO them. But no. I will say, though, I was quite pleased at who did say "yes" and took a chance. And to those Vtubers, I say "thank you." I hope I helped make your fan universe a more vivid one. I wound up feeling a bit betrayed by the others who ignored or rejected me, and drifted away as a result. So that experience was kinda bad for me too. Or was it actually good? I dunno, fuck it.
I did try reaching out to other vtuber merchandise companies about working with/under them. No dice. Mostly ignored, one solid "no," same deal as the Vtubers themselves.
I truly believe, even now, that if I had been able to find and keep a job that I'd have been able to make a success of this. I would have gone to relevant conventions. I would have been able to continue to develop new products. I would have been able to build a reputation. I would have been able to pay for ads and sponsorships. But point 1 prevented point 2 from ever being surmountable.
Okay, that's all. Bye.
Current Mood:
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