Char Anderson took a winding road to success

For Char Anderson, owner of Creations by Char at The Village in Washington, the road to success was long and riddled with teachable mistakes.

“I’ve learned as I went, I don’t know that I have a lot of skills per se, I just like what I do, and I make mistakes,” she said. “You just remember the next time. You move on, and being a small business, you don’t invest real heavily in any one thing. If I’m not sure if something’s going to sell, I don’t invest in 100 of them, so I don’t have any good losses, it’s manageable.”

Anderson started her business painting shirts and selling them at art shows, a side gig to her day job as a middle school art teacher. She and her husband would travel, often for days at a time, to conventions to sell the products as the craft business became a bigger and bigger part of her life.

As time went by, the option to settle down and set up shop in one place became more appealing.

“It was fun, we were young and had a lot of energy, but it was really hard work,” she said. “It was getting physically difficult, and to be gone a lot … we just thought it was time to slow down a bit.”

With that change came an expansion of the business. Without the restrictions of craft shows, the store started buying products from other companies for sale in Washington.

“When we went to art shows, you had to sell things of your own creation, you couldn’t sell commercial stuff,” she said. “When I got in here, I had the opportunity to expand a little bit and not just have that narrow market.”

Anderson said she was happy to have found her passion as a local fashion business owner.

“I guess I just love fashion, it’s fun to be able to buy such a variety of fashion and have people like it,” she said. “And I’ve got an art background, so I like displaying and arranging things, that type of thing.”

On top of that, Anderson said working in the Village had many of its own appeals.

“It’s a great cooperative thing,” she said. “All of us couldn’t have a store front in this size of a town and make it work. That’s what’s unique about this shop, we have a variety of stores within a store, and none of us has to take a big risk with our own storefront.”

As much as she loves it, Anderson said this would likely be the last year in business for Creations by Char, as she plans to retire soon.

“I still love doing it, it’s just that I think it’s time to turn it over to somebody younger,” she said. “This community has been so supportive, we really are getting people back that are shopping local.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com