Chavon M. Howard’s Boss Babes Boutique’s unique items are designed, cut, and crafted in the Tampa Bay area with exceptional quality and choice of wood and some acrylic products.
BY KARIN DAVIS-THOMPSON | Staff Writer
ST. PETERSBURG — It was 2020, and the world was gearing up for the deadliest pandemic in 100 years. Hair salons were shut down, and former hairstylist Chavon M. Howard needed something to do.
Trying to figure out her next move, Howard remembered something she had gotten from a friend – handmade earrings and custom-made products.
“I started asking her questions, and she shared her knowledge with me,” said Howard, owner of Boss Babes Boutique, a custom crafting business specializing in wood and acrylic.
Africa teardrop design earrings
Like many other entrepreneurs, the 53-year-old started working on her new interest as a hobby, a way to keep busy and do something meaningful while waiting for the world to open back up again.
Then, the world awakened again – hair salons reopened, and people began to shop and spend more time in public. Howard, however, didn’t return to her profession. She started a new career in insurance and continued with her new hobby. The more she worked at it, the better she got, and the more she realized how much she enjoyed it.
“I was having so much fun,” she explained. “It was something different, and it was therapeutic, too.”
Howard, the mother of four sons, lost her son Lagarian in a hit-and-run accident in 2016. “It’s still hard sometimes,” she said tearfully. “It was a way for me to mourn his death.”
Personalized cutting board
She and her son both served in the Marine Corps and as she learned her new craft, she made items especially for veterans.
“I gave out key chains for Veterans Day, and I do different memorable keepsake items like puzzles,” the entrepreneur said. “They send me a photo of their veteran, and I replicate it on a wooden puzzle.”
As her passion for her craft grew, Howard began to wonder if working in insurance by day and crafting with whatever free time she had was what she wanted to do. Maybe, she thought, it’s time to try and make her “side hustle” a full-time business.
“I knew I could make it full-time just last year,” she said. “I realized that I would work as a claims adjuster for 10 hours a day, then go to a vendor event and make almost as much as I did in insurance. So, I figured out what I needed to do and how many vendor events I could attend that would allow me to make it my full-time job. I am living my dream.”
Howard has even enrolled in school for an entrepreneurship and applied technology degree.
“I want to learn more about what I need to do to grow my business,” she said. “I am in my 50s, and there is so much I need to learn.”
US Veteran keychain (Marine Corps Semper Fidelis)
And while she has enjoyed growing her business and learning in school, she admits it has sometimes been challenging.
“The hardest part is funding,” she said. “Finding people to believe in what you do, people who get my vision.”
But even in the hard times, she said she wouldn’t change a thing and advises anyone thinking about starting a business to stop thinking and do.
“Feel the fear, but do it anyway,” she said.
To learn more about Boss Babes Boutique, visit bossbabes25.square.site or drop by Tropicana Field or one of the many markets Saturday Shoppes offers throughout the month. While you’re there, visit the more than 1,000 vendors as they sell their wares.
Log on to SaturdayShoppes.com to view all upcoming market events.
This story is part of a series highlighting small business owners participating in the Saturday Shoppes, an initiative creating economic development and opportunities for small business owners.
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