Beyond The Sidelines: Redskins Cheerleader Charo Launches Online Boutique
By Stephen Czarda
Redskins.com
Sure, balancing two full-time jobs can be tough, as intermingling schedules can be tough to manage and time is always crunched, but try doing the same for three different positions.
That’s exactly what Washington Redskins Cheerleader Charo, who is also a captain this year, has been doing for the last few months as she’s a tax accountant, a cheerleader and now the owner of a new online boutique called & Such Shop.
“I’ve been working on this diligently for about three months now, squeezing in time on the weekends and burning the midnight oil to prepare for the launch, and I couldn’t be more excited to hopefully watch my very own company grow,” Charo told Redskins.com of & Such Shop. “I came up with the idea of launching an e-commerce women’s fashion website in late January and since then, I’ve been teaching myself the ropes.”
Charo has also been “curating and buying clothing and jewelry, developing relationships with vendors, designing my website, performing my accounting and business functions, styling the photo shoots, playing photographer and photo editor for the shoots, designing my logo and marketing materials, and so much more.”
“It has been a one-woman show, but I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the help of so many integral people,” she said. “My network here in DC is so unbelievably supportive and competent, I couldn’t be more grateful. From here on out though, I’m just excited to hunker down and see what I can make of my tiny little internet imprint.”
Beyond getting & Such Shop further integrated into the online shopping sphere, Charo has been a tax accountant over the last two years for a large digital media, broadcast and publishing company.
“I made the transition from public accounting to private about two years ago, and feel fortunate that I’ve been able to see both sides of the industry,” she said. “At my job, I help in preparing the provision and return for our 300-plus entity consolidated group, which consists of tracking book-to-tax differences to estimate tax liability. Our company is also undergoing a large restructuring, so there’s never a dull day in the office as far as the tax department is concerned.”
And what about being not only a cheerleader, but one of four captains, which, of course, requires more time?
“As one of the captains of the Washington Redskins Cheerleaders, maintaining a positive and uplifting disposition helps me get through the day, and hopefully it helps others through theirs as well!” she said. “I’m also a firm believer in efficiency and preparedness. Fortunately, when I come to practice each night, it truly is a form of escape from reality. I am so in love with the girls who make up this team, the values of the team, and dancing, that I lose myself in it – having been bestowed the title and privilege of a Washington Redskins Cheerleader Captain can hardly be considered “work.” The only difference between an adventure and an ordeal is your attitude.”
