But finding something cute in a size 16 was difficult.
Disheartened when she couldnt find anything to wear, she canceled her date.
She r eturned home to Brooklyn after graduating and threw herself into the fashion business.
Model Kenya Morris wears a dress from Pop Up Plus. Photo by mjonesimaging
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She worked for different corporate retailers but never forgot about the need for plus-size inclusion.
Then, in 2009, she got laid off.
I said, You know what, Camille?
Nows the time to try, Newman says.
She dreamed of opening a brick-and-mortar boutique in Brooklyn, but doing so was just too expensive.
In an effort to find the least costly option, she chose to do pop-up shops instead.
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But Newman also turned to microloans and business contests for funding.
In 2010, she won thePowerUP!
She has participated in over a dozen other contests since.
She calls herself a pitching queen andestimates shes raised more than $100,000 over the years.
Though she didnt break even, Newman refused to let that little hiccup stand in the way.
Im passionate about the community because body image affects women in such a deep way, Newman says.
The joy in Newmans voice is palpable when she talks about seeing women transform in front of her.
She still does pop-ups from time to time, but not as often as shed like.
In an industry as fickle as fashion, willingness to change and adapt is key to success.
Clearly, she did something right.
Newman is amember of the Facebook Small Business Counciland won the Facebook for Business All Star award in 2014.
Also, thePop Up Plus Instagramcurrently has over 80,000 followers.
Newman credits social media for a lot of Pop Up Pluss success and international clientele.
Despite the initial success, over the last year Pop Up has endured tough times on social media.
New algorithms and higher prices for paid advertising have made online growth more difficult for small business owners.
Its a setback, but shes had plenty of those before.
Newman currently has her eye on YouTube, where she hopes to find organic growth.
Shes been tossing around different ideas such as how-to videos and fabric tutorials.
But ever-changing social media hasnt been the only hurdle shes had to clear.
Trials of Entrepreneurship
Newman comes from a family of entrepreneurs, so its in her blood.
But she thinks theres somewhat of a glorification culture surrounding startups.
Shes all about the raw truth: If I had to do it all over again…
I dont know if I would, she says.
Entrepreneurship is really, really,verytough.
But shes also learned a lot and hopes she can help others avoid similar pitfalls.
Your whole mission as an entrepreneur is to be the leanest startup it can be.
She puts that concept into play in the Pop Up Plusfashion consultant program.
Consultants purchase the clothing from Pop Up at wholesale and get 25% commission from sales.
Pop Up handles the customer fulfillment, so the consultant doesnt hold any inventory.
We realized that fashion is a very local thing, Newman says.
Looking Ahead
Over the years, Newman has worked full-time in corporate retail while running Pop Up.
In 2017, she decided the time had come to devote all of her attention to her own company.
Sales declined that year.
The year that I leave to go full-time!
says Newman, laughing.
Always looking ahead, she continuously works to refine the voice of Pop Up Plus.
She stays relevant by expanding the product line and changing out vendors.
She also hopes to grow her team from the current two to five.
Charles used to follow Pop Up on social media.
When she saw an opening for an operations job, she jumped on it.
Charles says Newmans positivity and passion for the plus-size community make this job special.
Its crazy how one dress can really transform your thinking.
Kaitlyn Blount is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder.
(Can you sense my millennial sarcasm there?)
You know which ones were talking about: rent, utilities, cell phone bill, insurance, groceries…
