Singaporean's Cute Cat Guitar Picks Find Fans Worldwide, Even Among Metalheads

Julia Becker, a 24-year-old Singaporean entrepreneur, has turned her passion for art and music into a thriving global business creating custom guitar pickguards adorned with whimsical cat designs. Her company, ThreeStools, has experienced viral success on Instagram, leading to a two-month waitlist for orders.

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You can make money doing that?

Becker's pickguards, which protect guitars from scratches, stand out from standard designs with their popular depictions of cats. Despite the predominantly male customer base, with about 70 percent being men, her creations have found fans across various music genres, including metalheads who appreciate the designs, sometimes ironically, sometimes simply for their love of cats. She has sold over 1,000 pickguards to customers in countries like the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Japan, and Brazil.

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People are, like, you have to go into STEM, law, medicine – that’s the only way to get money. If you’re following any art career in Singapore, you’ll just be like a starving artist.

Starting as a personal project, Becker's venture evolved into a full-time business that combines her love for music, art, and crafting. This success directly counters the common sentiment in Singapore that art careers are financially precarious. "People are, like, you have to go into STEM, law, medicine – that’s the only way to get money. If you’re following any art career in Singapore, you’ll just be like a starving artist," Becker recalled.

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I’m happy that I’m able to do something that, surprisingly, is able to sustain me, despite what everyone says about art in Singapore.

Becker, who previously worked in engineering, is now earning more than in her full-time engineering role. She finds fulfillment in her work, proving that a career in the arts can be sustainable. Her journey began in her mid-teens with a compulsive need to customize everything she owned, from clothes to shoes, and even street art, always with permission. Although a planned internship with Nike and overseas arts degree were disrupted by the pandemic, she pursued a degree in engineering product development, ultimately leading her back to her creative roots.

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I thought my clothes were boring. I wanted something nice, but that would cost an arm and a leg.