In the middle of summer 2016, sisters Lizzie ’14 and Catherine Everett ’17 started Giving Sol, a business focused around bringing awareness to specific charity organizations through the sales of choker necklaces.

“We both love creating things, jewelry and fashion so this was something we thought we could put our own spin on, and hopefully other people would like too,” Catherine said. “We focus on spreading the word about the organizations that we support in order to bring awareness to them, and not necessarily the items themselves.”

With 20-percent of the proceeds given back to charity, Giving Sol chose certain charities that they were passionate about, Catherine said. Each launch has a different organization that the company focuses on for that season. The summer launch sponsored Glide, a organization fighting to end poverty and homelessness in San Francisco. Due to the effects on friends and family, the fall launch sponsored the American Cancer Society and the winter launch plans on donating to ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) research.

“We aren’t in it for the money,” Catherine said. “We just wanted do something to create a charity based organization upon and also create jewelry that we would actually wear, that our friends would wear and something that would benefit not just us.”

After becoming popular in the late 1990s, the choker resurfaced most recently in 2015 and has been on the incline ever since, hence Giving Sol’s interest with the trend.  The summer launch had six different types of chokers, while the fall launch added four other types. Each choker is priced between $12.99- $14.99 and can ship anywhere in the U.S.

“We are going to start moving into different types of jewelry, not just chokers because we want it to be more unisex and more available to people who maybe do not like that trend,” Catherine  said.

While away at college, Lizzie handles the website: photo editing and social media aspect of the company, and Catherine focuses on processing the orders and making the necklaces.

“I make all the chokers myself,” Catherine said. “They’re all handmade so I buy separate pieces that I think are the best quality products. I go to places around here in Lagrange. I go to Circle of Stones and buy our beads and try to support the local businesses and make everything ourselves.”

Sales have become more steady due to social media posts, with almost two orders everyday, Catherine said.

“We started off strong but there’s been highs and lows in sales,” Catherine said. “By contacting models on social media we’ve been able to spread the word about the company which has been a good tactic to keep sales up.”

Venturing into the business world was always an interest for both sisters, Lizzie said.

“I have really enjoyed every minute of starting a business,” Lizzie said. “It has been an incredible learning experience that I will always be able to use in the future.”

Lizzie and Catherine both agree that this company is in its early stages and they are excited to see this business grow for a long time.

“My sister and I have a lot of aspirations for the future,” Catherine said. “We can still do a lot more with Giving Sol and the potential is really exciting for me. We want to continue to use our resources that we have and try to make it better for someone else.”

To purchase the chokers and check out the upcoming winter launch, visit www.givingsol.net.