Today we’d like to introduce you to Michelle Tran.
Hi Michelle, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I graduated from The University of Texas at Austin from the McCombs School of Business. At the time of deciding on majors, choosing business was a no-brainer for me. I was raised in a very entrepreneurial family and have been an entrepreneur ever since I can remember. At a mere 11 years old, I was selling candy to all my classmates – essentially buying in bulk and selling during class when classmates needed a quick sugar fix. Don’t worry, I was still an honor roll student during this time. The business quickly boomed, so I hired a trusted friend to help expand until I was told to stop since it was “against school policy.” This business plan was short and very sweet but gave me my first taste of what running a business was like. All this to say, it was only natural to choose business in college.
Somewhere along my college career, I had it engrained in me that the ultimate goal was to get into corporate and eventually climb my way up the corporate ladder. That’s what success was to me. Post-college, I took the steps to do just that. I landed my first big corporate job in oil and gas. What happened next? I wasn’t happy as I thought I would be. Although I met a lot of great mentors and colleagues along the way, it was male-dominated and had very little room for creativity. The only colors I worked with were the limited selection I could use to color code the cells in my spreadsheets; that just didn’t cut it for me. I knew it wasn’t something I wanted to do for the rest of my life, but I kept at it for a few years.
One random Christmas, my boyfriend gifted me a Cricut machine. I’ve always loved arts and crafts and my friend’s golden birthday (when your actual birthday is the same number as the age you are turning) was just around the corner. With my new machine in hand, I set out to learn how to make some custom cupcake toppers for her birthday cupcakes. They were a hit! The next thing I knew, Popfizzcheers was born. I listed a picture of the toppers online and got my first sale the next day. It usually takes a few days for the algorithm to do its thing, but here I was, feeling very lucky that someone decided to take a chance on my shop that literally had zero reviews. That first customer unknowingly drove me to create more, and very soon, I was addicted. The orders came but so did the late nights. I realized that juggling a full-time job and this new side hobby wouldn’t be feasible. I was essentially working an 8-5, staying up late to fulfill orders while trying to maintain a social life—all of this on repeat. I basically slept in glue and glitter for a year, but still, I kept at it.
Finally, after crunching some numbers and with support from family and close friends, I took the biggest leap of my life and quit my stable corporate job to pursue my dreams. I became obsessed with all things paper and expanded from luxe, custom party decorations all the way into the world of wedding stationery where some of my best friends entrusted me with designing stationery for their weddings, and soon afterward, random clients around the internet followed! During this time, I also got to collaborate with local bakeries and wedding shoots with my custom cake toppers, designed invitations and holiday cards for numerous companies and even created custom party favors for a large trade show. It was all a blast.
Fast forward to 2020, when the pandemic hit, with the world on pause and social gatherings at a halt, I had to temporarily move with the times to sustain my business and tried my hand at sewing cotton face masks. My Mom is a professional seamstress, so I’ve always grown up around textiles and the constant sound of humming sewing machines. My Mom closed her business during the pandemic, so with her newfound free time and guidance, we collaborated and created, pulled all-nighters, and cranked out thousands of handmade face masks for the local and online community. We got featured by a few well-known publishers such as Vogue Magazine and Marie Claire and were even worn by celebrities! From there, my love of textiles inevitably grew, and I have since expanded to hair accessories with all the leftover mask materials.
This temporary decision changed the entire trajectory of my business, and I am so lucky to have been able to take my Mom along for the ride. The bond we have now is so much closer and special, and it’s been really cool to learn her trade – something that I’ve wanted to learn since I was a child, but because she was always busy making ends meet for our family, didn’t have the time to teach until now. Not many people get a chance like this with their parents, so I am soaking all this in for as long as possible.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As much as I’d like to say that this is the best decision I’ve made for myself, I didn’t know it at the time. I actually didn’t know it for a very long time, and I’m talking about years. I still, to this day, have moments of imposter syndrome. Did I make the right decision in pursuing this? Do I know what I’m doing? Are other people in the same industry judging my work? Will I be able to continue growing this business to support my lifestyle and the children I hope to have one day? This imposter syndrome got the best of me. At one point, I blocked many of my friends from my business Instagram account because I feared them following along and judging my work and the (what felt like) slow speed I was growing – basically anything I was doing with my business. The thoughts haven’t disappeared, but I’ve learned to quiet them time and time again because through all the late nights and sometimes 12+ hour days, I would still choose this over the cubicle life I once had. I love the grind and creative stresses of it all. It may feel very grueling at the time, but the result when all the beautiful, tangible pieces are created and are physically in front of me always feels worth it. Now, I welcome all the social media followers I can get!
The instability at the time was also very hard because this was all prior to the support small businesses movement, where having a side business is now the norm. There weren’t very many people who could relate and tell you that it was completely normal to make thousands of dollars one week but $100 the next. People working more traditional jobs would always comment on how nice life must be working for myself and on my own schedule, but I actually feel like I work more now than I did before. The clock doesn’t stop ticking at 5 pm and begins again at 8 am. I am constantly sorting through hundreds of thoughts and ideas in my head and my to-do list never seems to get any shorter. It can get overwhelming but what has worked for me is to be more organized and diligent with my time because I am ultimately the only one responsible for the growth of my business.
Working from home has its pros but also has its cons. I became so comfortable working from home and being without coworkers that I felt like I had forgotten how to socialize. This fear led me to make the second biggest shift in my business: to start attending local pop-ups and makers’ markets. As an introvert, never in a million years would I think I’d be signing myself up for any of these things, let alone keep at it. I remember arriving at my first pop-up event, parking my car, and not wanting to get out. But I did it. I survived, and I had the best time. I’m not sure how I gained this level of confidence, but I swear by these hair wraps, they really do give you some type of magic because since then, I’ve booked about ten more markets for the remainder of 2022, and I have no plans to stop.
Forcing myself to get out there and connect with my customers and meet other makers and creatives has re-lit something inside of me. From all the kind words from random strangers to my family and friends that have taken time out of their day to stop by, I’ve never felt more loved and supported. Now I’m wondering why this took me so long! All in all, my struggles were all self-inflicted, and I encourage everyone and anyone feeling the same way to constantly push yourselves out of your comfort zone and do ALL the things that scare them! You, too will survive and you’ll be so glad you did it!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I don’t have a title for myself. I just like to make things. My preferred mediums are fabric and paper. My business is named Popfizzcheers – originally for party decorations and wedding stationery. A little paper-focused studio helping you celebrate your biggest moments. I have since almost fully transitioned to hair accessories, but I’d love to continue my love for wedding stationery. My design style is clean and classy with a touch of fun, and I hope you can see it translate into my work, whether it be with hair accessories or stationery.
I’ve always been interested in fashion and wanted to own my own clothing boutique when I was younger. My proudest moment was making it in several Vogue articles during the pandemic. I need to thank the editors who discovered me because they helped me grow and reconnect with a huge part of me that I forgot existed. I love creating things with my hands, and what I thought was supposed to be a temporary shift brought me back full circle to fashion and the humming of sewing machines – except now it’s not from my mom but both my mom and I.
I am not a fashion designer, but this is the closest I’ll ever be to it, so I’ll take it! It truly brings me so much joy when someone loves the accessories that I create. From hand-selecting fabric patterns and playing with different colors and textures to creating these pieces with my bare hands, it’s a compliment in and of itself when someone chooses to wear it out in public!
So whether you are purchasing my accessories to add a little POP to your outfits or you are a bride who trusts me to design invitations for the biggest day of your life, I am beyond honored to be a part of it. I know there are so many options these days, so it means the world when you choose to shop from me!
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I think hair accessories will be around for many, many years to come. While scrunchies are by no means “groundbreaking” (I’m quoting Miranda Priestly in my all-time favorite movie, Devil Wears Prada), there are so many ways to make them different. Whether it’s using different materials and textures, creating different sizes, adding embellishments, changing up the elastic widths inside, or even braiding the fabric pieces together or combining different colored fabrics, the possibilities are endless.
Didn’t have time to wash your hair? Throw on a hair bandana or hair wrap. Going for a workout but want to spice up your outfit? Throw on one of the different sized scrunchies I have available: mini, regular, or XXL. Looking to jazz up your typical ponytail or messy bun? Opt for a scrunchie scarf. It’s one of the easiest accessories you can own to dress up or dress down an outfit and what I believe is an essential item for the modern person.
You can almost always find me with a hair tie on my wrist because it’s that moment when you decide to take it off that you’ll need one! Most of my outfits are neutral, and the POP I give it is with my fun, bold hair accessories. For all you readers that shy away from color, I do offer neutral-colored hair accessories as well. 😉
My motto here is to “Look cute, feel cute” and I hope I can help bring your outfits a pop of cheer, one hair accessory at a time!
Pricing:
- Hair Scrunchies – $8 and up
- Scrunchie Scarves – $12
- Hair Bandanas – $12
- Hair Wraps and Headbands – $15 and up
- Custom Wedding Stationery Suite – $1500+
Contact Info:
- Website: www.popfizzcheers.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/popfizzcheers
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/popfizzcheers
Image Credits
Retro wedding suite and bar sign by @alexiamariephoto
