VIDEO: Getting To Know Brittany Charek
Mother, Student, Teacher and Local Crafter
Never underestimate the power of motherhood. It led a local Akron woman to become involved with the local handmade goods community and become a successful artisan. Brittany Charek is the mother of two-year-old Holden Allan, her inspiration for something new. The name Holden Allan may sound familiar to those who buy local products in Akron, because it’s also the name of Brittany’s handmade business.
Check out this exclusive Cool Cleveland video profile of HoldenAllan owner and Rowdy Indie Craft Fair founder, Brittany Charek.
Brittany Charek grew up in Fairlawn, graduated from Cleveland State University with a Bachelor’s in English, and dreams of becoming a language arts teacher for grades 7-12. She is currently working her way through graduate school at the University of Akron. Life as a student can be demanding, and Brittany isn’t only a student, she is also a mother. Inspired by her love for her son, Brittany looked for a way to help bring in extra income so that she could spend more time at home with her son. Surprisingly, Brittany found her solution in the local craft scene.
Brittany’s solution turned out to be vintage clothes and guitar picks. Brittany began selling vintage clothes on Etsy.com, and at pop-up markets such as the Cleveland Craft Coalition in Lakewood, the Open Air Market in Ohio City, and other shops that give local artists and artisans an opportunity to sell their handmade crafts. In an effort to promote her website, Brittany began to make guitar picks out of recycled credit cards, gift cards, and even identification cards. Much to her surprise, this unique self-promotion idea became a big hit with customers. Now the up-cycled guitar picks are even more popular than her vintage clothing. Brittany can even cut out a person’s face from an old ID card, which can make a funny, silly, and unique gift for someone special.
Brittany Charek is one of many locals who are creating amazing handcrafted products in the Akron and Cleveland areas. Over the past fifty years, big business has taken over, and it has become rare to find local businesses that not only offer goods and services to their neighbors, but also buy and sell locally made products as well. Brittany feels that it is important to buy and shop local to keep money in our community’s economy so that we can keep prospering in Cleveland and Akron alike. Discouraged that there were not enough opportunities for local artisans to sell their products to a larger audience in the Akron area, Brittany decided to host The Rowdy Indie Craft Fair. The fair got the Akron community involved in all the wonderful aspects of buying local. It also gave local artisans an opportunity to display and share their unique products. The Rowdy Indie Craft Fair was held on Sun, 8/14. Check out a quick review and interviews from the event here.”’
After her big success with the Rowdy Indie Craft Fair, Brittany is looking forward to planning the second annual Rowdy Indie Craft Fair, and of course, to spending time with her son. The wonderful, socially responsible citizens who buy locally made products are doing more than just pumping money back into the pockets of their own community, they are giving one mom a chance to spend more time with her son.
Check out Brittany Charek’s website, HoldenAllan or “Like” the Rowdy Indie Craft Fair Fan Page on Facebook and help Brittany get ready for next year’s fair.
Jayna Thomas is a Junior at the University of Akron, majoring in Public Relations and Business & Organizational Communication. This is her first article for Cool Cleveland, written as part of a partnership between Cool Cleveland and her Public Relations Writing course, offered at U of A. Jayna is originally from Pittsburgh, PA and dreams of one day traveling the world.