pandemic required social distancing. “When I just sat in an office,” she remembers, “I didn’t feel alive.” No longer able to interact face
A new PEACHY
W h e n vibe is making R a c h e l the streets of s t a r t e d Columbus more making vinyl colorful and fun, T-shirts, she found as a local designer that her passion for By Natalie Downey finds ways to empower and crafting grew. “I’d get off inspire the community, one t-shirt work and it was the first thing I at a time. thought about,” she remembers. “I was making Rachel Kelly’s passion for crafting is evident t-shirts for everyone. Everything that happened, in the way her eyes light up when the topic I was like, ‘We need a t-shirt for that’,” she arises. It’s easy to see she takes great pride in recalls, laughing.
It’s A W H O L E V I B E
the movement she’s inspired.This is not just an apparel company, but a whole vibe. Though creating unique pieces has always been a hobby for her, Rachel’s career as a designer began in 2014 when she got her vinyl machine. She
started making vinyl monogram decals as gifts for her friends and coworkers for a year before she decided to expand on her craft, experiment with creating new items, and dream about starting a business.
LocaL
to face with clients, Rachel began daydreaming about leaving her job and returning full time to her passion: crafting. As she felt the spark of creativity return to her, she was driven to try something new and return to her brand. In October 2020, with the purchase of a sublimation machine (a type of high-tech printer for transferring designs onto new objects), Rachel saw the possibilities for her creative expression expand, as she began experimenting with new printing techniques. Back in creative
In 2017, Rachel got her business license and launched her website and official brand of trendy apparel called The Peach Shoppe. She expanded her style when she added embroidered items to her shop, creating monogrammed bags and baby clothes which she sold in local craft markets. As momentum picked up and Rachel’s business took off, her small-business dreams began to come to life. Born and raised in Columbus, GA, Rachel is a bona fide southern girl, and the name for her shop was inspired by her love for her home state and all things Southern, from sweet tea to juicy, home-grown peaches. Though Rachel worked hard for several years to see her creative dreams become a reality, she hit a lull in 2019 when she sold her embroidery machine and decided to reconsider the focus of her business. Embroidery just wasn’t for her, and while she still wanted to create, she found herself wondering what her next move would be. In 2020, things shifted. A self-proclaimed “People Person,” Rachel became bored with her full-time job in the corporate world when the 10
AUG UST -SEPT EMBER 2022
