Meet Isabel Horowitz | Student/Founder and CEO of Sew Isabel

We had the good fortune of connecting with Isabel Horowitz and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Isabel, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
I was a junior at the University of Michigan studying abroad in Sydney, Australia. COVID-19 made its way through the world and I was sent back home to Los Angeles, California. I was now looking at months on end with very little to do but take my remote classes and play fetch with my Labrador, Walter. I began with Tie Dyed apparel as that was the trend at the time (and still very much is). I mostly tie-dyed sweatshirts and sweatpants which I very quickly came to understand was an extremely laborious process. I created an Instagram for my business which served as the platform wherein I sold most of my products. I spent a lot of time gaining inspiration from other businesses and soon caught on to the rampant trend of hand embroidery. After taking an online embroidery class with my mom, I embroidered my first smiley face on a tie-dyed sweatshirt. After that, I never looked back. I fully transitioned into hand-embroidered apparel, created a website, and named my company Sew Isabel.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
As a student, I never thought I would have the opportunity to explore my creative passion. I have always loved doing fun, crafty things but never had imagined that I would turn it into a small profitable business. After signing up for an embroidery lesson, I never thought that it would lead to something more than a hobby. COVID-19 took so much away from so many of us. I lost almost two years of my college experience. This hit me hard, but I did not sit back and let it impact me in a negative way. I took the free time that I was given and made something out of it. I did not start my business looking to make money or get customers. I was looking to have fun and distract myself from the new reality we were handed during a global pandemic. It was only after I had interest from friends and family to purchase the creations that I realized, “Hey, maybe I have something here”. I began to research wholesale apparel websites in order to get the most for my money. Unlike most things, my parents weren’t involved in my business which meant that I was using my own money. This was important to me. It meant that each time I purchased something, it was my own risk which made the reward that much better. As my business grew and I transitioned into hand-embroidery, I began to learn about revenue, profit, spreadsheets, budgeting, LLCs, and even taxes. As I would describe it, it was a steep learning curve. However, I feel that I know much more about the ins and outs of business and entrepreneurship at this point in my life than most recent college grads.

My business is special for one particular reason – it revolves around hand-embroidery. There is no machine doing the stitching for me. It is me sitting on the couch or at the kitchen table, stitch by stitch, making each piece of apparel for my customers. It is impossible to identically replicate hand-embroidery. It is simply one of a kind. It takes patience and often results in higher prices, but they are a result of the time, effort, and love that is put into each piece of clothing made for my customers.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to dedicate this shoutout to my mom who has been nothing but supportive throughout the process of building my business. She is always there to help me brainstorm new, creative designs and dedicates an enormous amount of time to my business. My mom always inspires me to keep pushing and growing as a person even when the stress of being a student, young adult, and entrepreneur seems to be all-consuming. Without her, Sew Isabel would surely not be where it is today.

Website: https://www.sew-isabel.com/

Instagram: @sewisabel