Life & Work with Ivy Arbolado of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ivy Arbolado.

Ivy, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
In December 2025, I walked away from high-ticket sales, burnt out and knowing I wasn’t living authentically. I kept being pulled to being creative again and making content, something I used to do as a kid.

With zero experience and no social media following, I bet on myself. I used all my savings, went all in on content creation, and challenged myself to post every day for 30 days on TikTok. I built a community on TikTok, sharing all the highs and lows of risking everything to do something I love and inspiring them to feel confident to do what they want and make money doing it.

A month later, I landed my first UGC deals. Fast forward to April, I’ve gone from $1K months to signing contracts for my first $10K month.

Now I’m building a community of creators who are learning to show up for themselves and be “delusional” enough to create the life they actually want.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It wasn’t a smooth road at all. I hit a lot of challenges along the way. On New Year’s Eve, my car broke down and I had to spend $1,500 from my savings with no income coming in.

Some UGC deals fell through, payments were delayed, and there were moments I had as little as $15 in my bank account. This all happened while navigating a major personal loss and covering $6K in hospital bills.

It was brutal. I was constantly in fight-or-flight mode.

Even though I was landing deals quickly and had support from friends, it felt like I was living in two realities at once, one where everything was working out, and another where I was still struggling financially and felt like maybe this was a mistake.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a Content Creator, specializing in UGC and personal storytelling that inspires others to live authentically and realize they can get paid just for being themselves.

The thing I’m most proud of is betting on me. Creativity was always there, but I ignored it for years because I didn’t think I was good enough to be on camera.

Now I get to show up as myself, build income from it, and open doors for others to do the same. That’s what fulfills me the most.

My biggest strength is connecting people to opportunities. I’ve helped friends and even my brother start UGC from scratch and land deals by tapping into my network and using my digital marketing skills to help them with strategy.

I genuinely love seeing people win, and I use my background in SEO and sales to help them grow faster and turn their content into income.

What’s next?
Long-term, I plan to launch my own podcast where I can connect with others and inspire them to pursue what they truly want. I also want to collaborate with creative home and kitchen brands like Anthropologie, and act as a bridge between brands and creators, helping them land content campaigns they genuinely love even if they just started.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.byivyann.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ivy.arbolado/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/
• Twitter: https://x.com/byivyann
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@byivyann