A Graduate Born in 2001 Turned Leftover Crystals from Her Senior Project into a Studio: Xiaohongshu Accounts, 300+ Resellers, About ¥500K in Year One, GMV Doubled Past ¥1M in Year Two
SaSa, born in 2001, spent more than two years as an independent portrait photographer in college and was already earning over ¥10,000 a month while still a student. Her senior design project used crystals, and with far too much material left over, she started selling crystal bracelets in 2023. After graduating she worked a job for three months, decided she'd do better on her own, and quit to run SASA工作室 (SASA Studio) on Xiaohongshu: custom crystal bracelets, distributed through a reseller-agent model. In her first year she built two accounts past 10,000 followers each and earned close to ¥500,000; according to a January 2025 report by Cover News, a seller born in the 2000s, given the pseudonym 'Shasha', had by then signed up more than 300 agents, with a best month of over ¥70,000. She sources stones at the Ketang crystal market in Haifeng, Shanwei, but tells beginners that 1688 works just fine and they don't need to start with wholesale markets. In December 2025, when the podcast host caught up with her in Hong Kong, she said her GMV had doubled that year to more than ¥1 million.
Process
A note first: SaSa is a solo founder. Her 300-plus agents are independent resellers, not employees. This story draws mainly on her own appearance on the podcast 搞钱女孩 (Money-Making Girls), episode 094 (January 2025); a follow-up video the same host posted on Bilibili in December 2025; and a January 2025 report by Cover News. Cover News used the pseudonym "Shasha," and the seller it describes, born in the 2000s, matches the story and numbers SaSa gave on the podcast.
Stage 1: A Student Earning Over ¥10,000 a Month from Photography
SaSa was born in 2001. On the podcast, she introduced herself this way: in college she spent more than two years as an independent portrait photographer, mainly campus and portrait shoots, and "was already earning over ten thousand a month while in college."
That photography work became her foundation: she knew what made an image look good, and she was used to finding clients and taking orders on her own.
Stage 2: Crystals Left Over from a Senior Project
The turning point came from her senior design project. It used crystals, and when she finished, she had far too much material left. The podcast's episode notes put it plainly: she "had too much leftover material from her graduation project, so she went with it and started a custom crystal bracelet business."
According to Cover News, this seller spotted the opportunity after one of her posts went viral, and "having just graduated, she started selling crystals in 2023."
After graduating, she did try a job. When the host asked whether she'd ever worked, she said: "For about three months. Then I realized it wasn't as good as starting my own business and making money from photography." So she quit and went full time on crystals.
Stage 3: SASA Studio on Xiaohongshu
Her shop is called SASA工作室 (SASA Studio). She mainly posts content on Xiaohongshu and makes custom crystal bracelets. Cover News reported that she runs an online shop and does livestreams.
She sells lower-priced crystal bracelets, and citrine and clear quartz are what her shop uses most.
On the podcast, she said that in her first year she built two accounts past 10,000 followers each and earned "close to five hundred thousand." Cover News gave more detail: her best month brought in over ¥70,000, and she made ¥500,000 in her first year.
Stage 4: Agents and Sourcing
How does one person sell hundreds of thousands of yuan? Through an agent model. Cover News reported that by January 2025 she had signed up more than 300 agents. The agents sell her bracelets to more customers, while she focuses on product and content.
Where do the stones come from? On the day of the podcast recording, she had just arrived at the Ketang crystal market in Haifeng, Shanwei, in Guangdong, mainly to look at citrine and clear quartz. She said the market had more kinds of crystal and more quality grades, and that "prices went up quite a bit this year": most categories had risen somewhat, because as crystals become more mainstream and more people like them, the material gets scarcer.
But she doesn't recommend that beginners start with wholesale markets. One segment of the episode is titled with her view: "Beginners shouldn't start by buying at physical markets; 1688 works great too!"
Cover News also recorded the trend she was seeing: citrine is associated with attracting wealth, and around the new year everyone wants good luck, so citrine was her best seller lately; strands that sold for ¥15 rose to over ¥40 within a few months.
Stage 5: After the Celebrities Arrived
In late 2024, celebrities such as Ivy Yin (伊能静) and Xu Yiyang (徐艺洋) began selling crystals in livestreams, and a once-niche market broke into the mainstream, drawing more and more sellers.
In her view, many young people buy crystals for their looks. She told Cover News: "Some people also believe crystals bring wealth, romance and better studies. That positive psychological suggestion attracts a lot of young people to buy. They see it as a kind of emotional comfort."
What about the growing competition? The podcast's written episode notes quote this line: "After the celebrities came in, more people learned about crystals... competition has definitely grown, but I'm original, so I'm not afraid." The notes also include a tip for beginners: study what's popular right now, what kinds of crystals people like, and don't go only by your own taste.
Stage 6: Year Two, GMV Doubles
In December 2025, the host of 搞钱女孩 ran into her in Hong Kong and filmed a follow-up. By then she was in her second year.
Asked what had changed, she said: "This year my GMV doubled." Roughly how much? "A bit over a hundred." The host added: "When we interviewed you, it was only about five hundred thousand; now it's over a million."
Thinking
1. What you have left over may be your first inventory. SaSa didn't raise money to buy stock; she started with the crystals left over from her senior project. Selling what you already have first, then investing more once people buy, keeps the risk small.
2. Photography is a real skill for selling on Xiaohongshu. Crystal bracelets sell on looks, so the quality of photos and videos decides whether anyone clicks. Her two-plus years as a portrait photographer paid off directly.
3. An agent model lets one person sell at scale. She handles product and content alone while 300-plus agents do the selling. The upside is reaching more customers without building a team; the cost is that she has to keep giving agents designs that sell.
4. Sourcing doesn't have to be perfect from day one. She goes to the Ketang market herself but advises beginners to start with 1688. With small volumes, wholesale trips may not pay off; test what sells online first, then think about going to the source.
5. Riding a trend means thinking about its risks. Celebrities made crystals hot, and material prices are rising. The buzz brings orders but also more competition and higher costs. Her answer is original designs that follow what's popular now, rather than selling only what she personally likes.
Action
1. Take stock of the materials and skills you already have. Do you have leftover materials from a project or portfolio? A skill like photography that applies directly to a business? Starting there costs the least.
2. Do one platform well first. Pick a platform your customers use, like Xiaohongshu, and keep posting attractive, honest product photos and videos. Watch which designs people ask about and buy.
3. Test bestsellers in small batches. Buy small quantities through online channels like 1688 to find what sells, then move to wholesale markets or the source to lower costs.
4. Bring in agents once things sell. When your designs sell reliably, recruit agents to distribute. Give them clear pricing, image assets and after-sales rules so they can sell easily.
5. Follow the market, not just your taste. Check regularly what's trending on the platform and adjust your products. Watch raw material prices too, and avoid stocking up heavily when prices are spiking.