Happy Monday! If you are reading this from New York or anywhere close by, you’re in another week of quarantine. If you are reading this from a state/city that has recently opened, I hope you are adapting to our new normal and staying as safe as possible.

In case you missed, ThePreppyMAG has been serving up inspiration from some of my favorite entrepreneurs and creatives in the industry every week of quarantine. I have shared my own story in building ThePreppyMAG Boutique, Morgan Julia’s beautiful designs and Angelica Henley’s punny greeting cards. Each inspiring in their own unique way.

Today, I’m sharing a fairly new entrepreneurial story from a personal friend of mine. Introducing, Samantha David of Style by Samantha. Sam and I met a few years back in an NYC Bloggers Facebook Group and have always kept in touch. I love her style and can relate to her NYC lifestyle.

While I’ll always follow Sam for her flawless sense of style, she recently launched a Choose Your Charity, a fashion initiative to benefit those affected by COVID-19, which makes me love her even more. Dive into her story below!

1| Tell us a little bit about your business. What is it? When did you start it? And what inspired you? 
Hi! My name is Sam and I’ve been running the NYC based fashion and lifestyle blog Style By Samantha for about 4 years. Giving back to my community has been ingrained in me from a young age, which is why I started Choose Your Charity. Choose Your Charity is a customized tie-dye to order business that allows the customer to design a tie-dye that is prepared by me in addition to the COVID-19 relief charity most meaningful to them. Half of the proceeds from their order is then donated directly to that charity. I prioritize shopping from stores that donate a portion of their proceeds to charity but have always wanted to choose where my proceeds impact. I thought, why can’t the consumer have a say in where they donate? So I created Choose Your Charity. 

I launched Choose Your Charity in mid-April and was overwhelmed with the amount of support by friends, family, and followers. My parents’ home was quickly taken over by product shipments, tie-dye kits, and a constant washer/dryer running. I’m now switching gears to something a little more sustainable called Shop By Samantha. Here, you’ll be able to shop pre-made tie-dye pieces in addition to some cool new products! 

2| How has the COVID-19 crisis impacted your business? 
The COVID-19 crisis was the motivation I needed to start my business. I was in between jobs and had a little more time on my hands while staying safe at home. I would see so many unfortunate stories told on tv and all I wanted to do was help out at food banks, deliver groceries, etc but didn’t want to put my parents or other at risk by being out. This is when I decided that giving monetary compensation was going to be the most meaningful. I combined the popular quarantine hobby of tie-dying with my dream of creating a clothing line that aligns with my style.

3| What has your daily routine looked like these days? 
I had about a month in between jobs which was when I would be able to dedicate the most time out of my day to being creative and standing up my business. My favorite way to start my day is with a workout. I switch between runs with my dog to Corepower yoga sculpt and random YouTube videos. I’ve really loved trying out a lot of online classes during this time! I also never start a day without writing down my to-do list.  Also coffee, lots of coffee. 

4 |How are you staying motivated on working on and growing your business during this unpredictable time? 
It’s difficult to not worry about how the future will look as an aftermath to these couple of months but I believe the best thing we can do right now is to stay home, if possible. Also to remember that this pandemic is affecting everyone differently. Whether it’s losing your job, not being able to feed your family, having to take care of kids at home while working, being at home in an uncomfortable situation…everyone is different. The motivation for me is making as many people as happy as possible with the proceeds we raise. I know the person receiving the new tie-dye shirt will have something new to wear at home and also feel proud that they donated during this time. Then there are so many people that will benefit from us donating to the Food Bank of NYC, Feeding the Frontlines, etc. There are so many people that can benefit from such a small task. 

5| Do you have any WFH hacks on how to stay productive? 
Don’t forget a to-do list! I’m such an advocate for them because I don’t know what I would do without it. It’s easy for our minds to wander throughout the day and get distracted by social media or the news. If I catch myself getting distracted then I know I can get back on track with looking over my to-do list and at least getting some easy things checked off. 

6| How is your work/life balance in a world where your bed may also be your desk? 
It’s been difficult to get back to a good work/life balance when it’s so easy to just open my laptop or phone and want to work. I’ve had to remind myself to put my phone or laptop in the other room when I’m sitting down to eat with family or we’re watching a movie at night. When I’m on my phone, it may not feel like I’m working…but I am. So making sure I don’t even have access to it after a certain hour is key. 

7| How are you staying connected to your work family? If you are a one-man-show, how are you staying connected to those you care about at this time? 
I’m lucky to be home with them right now! FaceTime and Zoom have been lifesavers during this crazy time. I’ve been staying in touch with loved ones across the country and also have reconnected with friends. I think that’s definitely something positive that has come from this. 

8| Has the quarantine life inspired you in any new ways?  
There are so many things I haven’t had time for in the past couple of years and quarantine life has inspired me to dig into what I’ve been putting off. Starting a business being one of them. I’m also a very curious person so just watching random online videos and courses, documentaries, and so much more.

9| How is your business or you personally giving back in this time of crisis? 
My business was started on the basis of giving back to those in need during this time. I believe that, if we’re able to, giving back and encourage others to do so is so important. Not just during this time, but every day. 

10| We’re about to see an influx of new entrepreneurs join our community, what is your advice to them?
Just like myself, I encourage them to just start. It sounds so cliché but it’s so hard to do! Just think “where could I be in a month, year, 2 years, if I just have the guts now?” Also taking baby steps is key. My business right now is very small and requires little capital. My dream would be to have something much bigger but this is my starting