Marcy Budwick's first dream to become a fashion designer came true.
Over the past seven years the Land O' Lakes-based Kaiya Designs evolved from an at-home hobby for mom friends into a custom-fit style staple for on-the-go women all over the country.
"I really just center all of my designs around making women feel more comfortable," says Budwick, a mother of three/
Her daughter Kaiya is the fashion house's namesake.
Now it was time for Budwick's other dream.
"I felt the number 11-11 just come to me, and I'm like, that's it, I'm going to donate $11.11 of every sale that I make to a local charity," Budwick says, embarking on charitable arm that would blend fashion and philanthropy.
Her first charity was an Ybor City support group for victims of sex trafficking called Created. She then began helping victims of Hurricanes Irma and Harvey.
Budwick's sales representative also gets to pick personal charities, ranging from programs that deal with eating disorders to others that handle postpartum depression.
This holiday season it will be Feeding Tampa Bay that benefits from fashionable moms in the area.
"It's gotta be a movement and I gotta give people the ability to feel the way I felt," Budwick says.
