Stringing together life, school and business
Erika Glover | Spring 2020
From starting an apparel and embroidery company out of her college dorm room’s closet, junior Public Relations major, Erika Glover, learns what it’s like to multitask as a full-time student at Bowling Green State University and a business owner. Her company, Word Strings, started as something that brought thrift store sweatshirts and Glover’s custom messages together.
After her first launch on Instagram, Feb. 5, 2019, Word Strings grew to be more than a message, a needle and a thread. Glover says it allows her to bring her customer’s personal meanings to life. With dark hair and glasses, she carries herself and her company with confidence.
“When I started getting many orders and as the weather started to get warmer, there weren’t many sweatshirts available at Goodwill, so I started buying them from a wholesale supplier. Customers could get sweatshirts, t-shirts, beanies and ball-caps from my personal website or Instagram page,” she said.
According to Glover’s website, customers can purchase presets, Word String products, read her blog and learn something new.
“I have always been fascinated in the way that words are able to be sewn together in such a way that are able to inspire sooth, empower or explain. My hope is that with the power of words and the abundance of Christ, we can use words to change the way people think and breathe new life into our souls,” she wrote on her website.
Without the help of Glover’s great-grandmother, Lillian, her passion for cross-stitching wouldn’t have taken off. Her dreams of being a fashion designer as a child turned into reality when her first product received 50 requests on Instagram. An ordinary night at BGSU and a trip to Hobby Lobby opened a window to new inspirations, confidence and goals for Glover.
“From the first sweatshirt I made, people started messaging me wanting one of their own. I didn’t expect people to want them, I thought it was just something fun to do. When people wanted to purchase the work I was creating, it was a very heartwarming and cool experience,” Glover said.
Between Nov. 17 and Dec. 17, Word Strings orders were open for two weeks, just upon the holiday season. After orders were closed, Glover had 78 products to make as exam week was approaching. The apparel has a max limit of 20 characters, that typically take two hours to make. Because of the highly-requested orders, she had to get a subscription from the U.S. Postal Service to print shipping labels at a low rate.
“When Word Strings was getting more popular, I would help Erika ship products out. We would finish getting shipping labels ready around 2 a.m., and then immediately ship them in the morning when the post office opened,” junior Communications major, Xavi Boes, said.
As Word Strings started to grow, Glover developed and practiced entrepreneurship that has benefited not only her company, but has helped shaped her career path.
“Right now, I’m working on creating a capsule collection. I’ve been designing my own logos that I can have premade and sell at a discount rate. Eventually, I would love to get my own embroider machine so I wouldn’t have to keep doing them by hand, so I can create them quicker,” she explained.
Junior Public Relations major, Brianna Blackburn, has seen Glover’s life change for the better after the up rise of Word Strings.
“Word Strings has given Erika a platform, it’s something she’s able to put all of her creative energy into. Not only has it given her financial support, but has been inspiring and has boosted her confidence. It’s something that she created and that people love, which has given her a lot of fulfillment in her life,” she said.
Although time management and support can be tough, cross-stitching has become a second nature to Glover’s life.
“My family has always been very traditional, so when my Dad heard I was going to be opening up my own business, he thought that was far-fetched and outrageous. But, having a business isn’t as much labor and tension as it used to be. Having support from my sisters has been really important to me,” Glover added.
