Grabbing her sewing machine, she imagines intricate designs tailored for her client. She begins to work immediately, rummaging through colorful fabrics. After a few days, the result is a vibrant, patterned tote bag. This is how Charlotte Delowery ’24 runs her small business, CharlieBellCreations.
For many, starting a business is a means of making a profit. However, for Delowery, her love for sewing blossomed at a young age and led her to be the entrepreneur she is today.
“I grew up sewing. My great-grandma sewed, and she made clothes … What changed the game for me was a summer camp with Helmick Workshop in Iowa City; it was so cool because I was able to learn how to sew with someone guiding me. It taught me that, ‘Wow, this is really important to me,’” Delowery said. “What really got me started was giving back to my community, like making masks for people. That was important to me.”
Delowery started her business in 2020 at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Using fabric from people in the community, she sewed masks in exchange for more fabric. Following the pandemic, Delowery hoped to repurpose the many pieces of leftover material.
“By the time people stopped wearing masks, I had so much [leftover fabric],” Delowery said. “I started making other things like scrunchies, little makeup cases and tote bags and expanded into making full-blown aprons, dresses and extravagant backpacks.”
Business teacher and Business Professionals of America advisor Diane Fickel noticed Delowery’s inclination for business as a freshman in Entrepreneurship.
“She just seemed to be beaming every time she walked in the door. She was in her element, being with like-minded people [who] wanted to start a business,” Fickel said. “All of a sudden, she started staying after class and asking me questions about her business idea. I realized that she had actually started a business; we connected at that level.”
Recounting her time with Delowery, Fickel describes how her entrepreneurial skills have helped build her character.
“She [has] the whole entrepreneurial package because she has people skills, finance skills, creativity, innovation, design, marketing and she’s willing to step out of her comfort zone,” Fickel said. “That’s what it takes to be an entrepreneur—she’s willing to, most importantly, take a risk.”
As such, Delowery has tried many different mediums of art to further adapt her business.
“Recently, I’ve been upcycling old clothes into denim and T-shirt bags. People will bring me their old jeans or T-shirts, and I’ll make them tote bags, pencil cases, aprons or anything like that,” Delowery said. “It’s been pretty fun to be able to [take] people’s [old] items and make them into something new.”
Delowery recognizes the importance of advertising her business through various platforms. She began selling on Etsy and even created her own Shopify website. Delowery also promotes her business on social media as well as around the local community. She can be found at the Iowa City Farmers Market in the Chauncey Swan Ramp from 7:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday mornings through Oct. 28.
Aside from selling, Delowery has also been actively involved in competitions for her business.
“She entered a competition at the University of Iowa: Biz Innovator Competition,” Fickel said. “That year, she was a freshman and got [an] honorable mention in the nation from the University of Iowa. She continued to take her idea to the BPA competitions and did well there as well.”
The Biz Innovator Competition was an important milestone for Delowery and helped her expand her business.
“My business had never been recognized and I was very new to it. I kind of just started on Etsy the past year and I was very new when I applied for the competition. I was not expecting anything at all and I think I ended up getting an honorable match,” Delowery said. “But I ended up getting a monetary award of $250, which was amazing because I was able to enter the farmers markets for that year, which paid for a new sewing machine which paid for new opportunities. It was a really big jumpstart in qualifying for that.”
Design by Anna Song
Outside of her small business, Delowery is an active member of BPA and was one of 41 students from West who qualified to attend the National Leadership Conference in Anaheim, California in April 2023.
“I absolutely love BPA. I love the community,” Delowery said. “The trip [to nationals] was a life-changing experience, which is kind of crazy to think about. I met so many new people, and it was so amazing to be able to [meet] other like-minded people who enjoy business.”
Delowery’s love for business not only fuels her, but also brings energy to the BPA community.
“I would describe Charlotte as a member who brings value to BPA because of her entrepreneurial spirit, her innovation and her work ethic,” Fickel said. “She is driven by her projects and takes a lot of pride in what she does for the club.”
While many of her peers are just starting to think about their futures, Delowery is already making moves for her life after high school. She plans on graduating a year early and is excited for the next step in her life.
“I’m doing all the regular senior stuff: taking the SAT, going on college visits, applying to colleges. My main college right now is the University of Colorado Boulder,” Delowery said. “I’m definitely wanting to major in science and then minor in something related to business. I really want to go into some sort of DNA-field commercially.”
Delowery expands on why her interest in business has led her to want to continue that passion into college.
“I want a minor in either marketing or communication, some sort of business, but I think the marketing minor would be really helpful towards my business because it’ll allow me to learn things that I can’t learn on my own,” Delowery said. “It’ll allow me to be able to learn things I can’t teach myself.”
Delowery hopes to continue her business in the future but understands the obstacles she might face.
“[My business] definitely has to take on a new leaf, because right now, I’m able to do it whenever I get the chance. [But] in college, I’ll be doing a lot more,” Delowery said. “I think it will just have to morph into something new.”
