Makeup Artist's $8,500 Diaper Bag Brand Tops $1.7 Million in Sales

Alexandra Rutkay, a New York City makeup artist who works on film and television sets, has grown citymouse, the crossbody diaper bag brand she started at the end of 2022, past $1.7 million in total sales, she told Entrepreneur in an interview published on October 12, 2026.

Rutkay, 43, said she put about $8,500 of her own savings into the business, sketching a crossbody bag that could hold a drink and sending the design to a supplier she found on Alibaba. She promoted the sample on TikTok and sold the first run on preorder. The company brought in about $135,000 in 2023, its first full year, and reached seven figures in revenue within 18 to 24 months across its website, TikTok Shop and wholesale. One weekend produced $50,000 in sales over three days after TikTok Shop sales accelerated in the spring of 2024.

The business remains bootstrapped and operates out of the family's apartment. Rutkay's husband left his job to run operations full time, and citymouse began selling on Nordstrom.com and Maisonette.com, she said. She also said larger retailers and Amazon sellers copied the product, and that her main regret was not building inventory and fulfillment systems before demand spiked. Rutkay continued working more than 50 hours a week on set while building the brand.

"Bootstrapping isn't the fallback plan. It's a power move," she said.

This story was first reported by Entrepreneur.