This entrepreneur is on track to make $23,000 this year. How does she spend it?
“It was hard to accept financial aid from my parents, but it actually brought us closer together”
Keleigh McCall is a 30-year-old entrepreneur living in a one-bedroom apartment near Yonge and Bay. In the spring of 2023, she suffered a mental health crisis, which forced her to pause her career and blow through her savings. After two hospitalizations at CAMH, Keleigh got her entrepreneurial mojo back by creating the Life-Maxing App—a self-improvement gaming platform that recently landed her a spot at TMU’s start-up incubator. Now she’s hard at work building up the business while sharing daily “life-maxing” advice and activities with her 40,000 TikTok followers. She’s on track to make $23,000 this year. Here’s how she spends her money.
Regular Expenses
Rent: $2,000 a month. “I couldn’t have afforded it without my parents’ help, which was hard to accept at first. I’m a very proud person. But it actually brought us closer together. I’m grateful.”
Utilities: $125 a month.
Phone: $65 a month with Rogers.
Groceries: $350 a month. “I mostly shop at T&T.”
More Toronto Budgets
Transit: $80 a month. “I walk almost everywhere, but when I don’t, I take the TTC.”
Dining out: $50 a month. “I love sushi. So, maybe once every two weeks, I’ll get takeout from a spot that’s right below me.”
Clothing: $250 a month. “During my mental health crisis, I threw out everything I owned. It was devastating. I’m gradually building a new wardrobe.”
Skin care: $50 a month. “I get a lot of free products through work. Otherwise I’ll buy Korean skin care on Amazon. I love doing face masks.”
Business subscriptions: $300 a month. “Notion, Typeform, ChatGPT Premium and Framer are my go-tos.”
Gadgets: $30 a month. “Playing with new things is a hobby of mine. I’m constantly fiddling with a new tripod, a light for my phone or a magnetic case.”
Recent Splurges
Ankle weights: $30. “I used to be a personal trainer, and I’m still keen on fitness. These weights are for home Pilates.”
Snacks: $150. “I hosted an event in my apartment building to promote my app. Ten people attended.”
Teagan Sliz covers Ontario real estate for Toronto Life and Storeys. She also writes for Cottage Life and has reported on everything from hidden-gem restaurants to Canadian wildlife and forest fires. She graduated from Queen’s University with a bachelor’s in history and art history and from Centennial College, where she studied Canadian publishing.
