How a Mays Accounting Graduate Became a Full-Time Creator

Carson Gillaspia's '20 unpredictable journey from Mays to internet fame

Sep. 18, 2026 By Tori Bloodworth ’14

2 min. read

Carson Gillaspia '20 stands behind a cooking station holding a loaf of sourdough bread, surrounded by kitchen equipment.
Courtesy Carson Gillaspia ’20

A product of Mays’ Professional Program in Accounting, Carson Gillaspia ’20 thinks like an accountant. In the years since graduating, he’s taken a few calculated risks. The first: transferring to the Deloitte New York office when he knew only two people in the city. 

“I kind of always longed for more and wanted to spread my wings, make my own name, do my own thing,” says Gillaspia. “And so I remember telling my family, ‘Hey, is it weird if I think I want to move to New York?’ And then four months later I moved to New York.”

He quickly found his footing, taking every opportunity that came his way, making connections and forming a community. All the while, his online community was growing rapidly. A former bakery employee, Gillaspia had been casually posting to sourdough-centered Instagram and TikTok accounts, @CrustbyCarson, since college. When he moved to New York, he broadened his content, adding realistic running videos showcasing a lighthearted vulnerability as a new runner and New York transplant, and his TikTok account really took off, growing from 500-250,000 in the span of a single summer.

“There’s lots of negativity in today’s day and age, and it’s really easy to get sucked into your screen, doomscrolling,” says Gillaspia. “I try to push a positive message. I think I’m a person who is not another polished influencer. I’m trying to just be me.”

Opportunities began to flourish as his online presence grew: Searchlight Pictures invited him to interview the cast of The Roses, including Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Coleman, and then he partnered with Credit Karma to explain credit versus debit cards. Balancing these opportunities with his full-time job as an analyst quickly became unsustainable, leading Gillaspia to take another calculated risk: quitting his corporate job to pursue full-time content creation. 

“I can take advantage of what is right in front of me,” says Gillaspia. “I’m going to take this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, even if it means leaving behind a sure thing. My hope is that it turns into a long, amazing career.”