Outside the classroom: Teachers’ businesses

When math teacher Alice Hu’s friends encouraged her to sell her paper crafts on Etsy, Hu decided to give it a shot. Inspired by her three kids and the classic fairy tale “The Three Little Pigs,” Hu founded her Etsy store StrawSticksnBricks in 2017, which has since received a lot of attention.

Hu creates customized crafts for kids’ birthday parties and has recently started branching out.

“I like making things with my hands and … I like the idea of being able to help kids celebrate,” Hu said.

Although her designs are intricately made, Hu creates a sustainable balance between all aspects of her life by making her side hustle as easy for her as possible. Hu ships her creations and uses Etsy’s app to keep track of her orders and communicate with customers.

“Making [orders] takes a lot of time,” Hu said. “After designing it, I have to put it through [a] machine to cut it and then glue or put it together. It’s usually a few hours a day that I’ll be working, including the weekend. I … do maybe five to eight orders a day.”

Hu hopes to expand her business while having fun and without having to spend too much time on it.

“There are definitely other avenues I can take where it’s worth more like a passive income,” Hu said. “So I could just keep making money from it rather than having to spend extra time creating and making the [crafts]. Although, I still really like making stuff. It’s fun for me.”

English teacher Vince Bravo began buying and selling antiques while he was in high school. He officially turned his hobby into a side business at 19 and has been working on it ever since.

“Business isn’t always about money as much as it is about [the] … representation of something that you believe in”

Bravo specializes in mid-century furnishings, and his passion for his hobby inspires him to participate in modernist art shows. Early into his business, he participated twice a year in Art Deco To Modern, an antique show focused on modern design in San Francisco.

“[The] show … was super stressful, especially being a teacher at the same time,” Bravo said. “But [it was] also really important for me to be able to take my inventory to a show that was specialized, so that the clientele that was there was specialized as well.”

Now, Bravo sells his antiques at Stuff in San Francisco and Antiques Unlimited in San Carlos. Despite his success, Bravo isn’t doing it for the money.

“I do [my business] because I love it and not because it’s work,” Bravo said. “I think of my business as an extension of who I am. [For] one [to] become successful in business or … in the things that they’re doing, they need to be fully invested in it. Business isn’t always about money as much as it is about [the] … representation of something that you believe in.”

With people adapting to the new normal the pandemic has forged, Bravo looks forward to displaying his period furniture in more exhibitions.

But Hu and Bravo aren’t the only teachers at Aragon with side business. About 15 years ago, Aragon’s Orchestra and Vocal Ensemble Director John Chen decided to start Jcymphony, a vocal coaching studio to help prepare advanced students for auditions and performances.

“It is important to have personal and business profession boundaries. Sometimes you give more to one or the other, but never both at the same time”

While he initially started his business for fun, Chen — a highly qualified vocalist and pianist himself — eventually realized he wanted to pursue his side business for longer.

“It … was just one thing leading to another,” Chen said. “I started vocal coaching for various schools, musicals and auditions. Then it became clear that I needed to make an official business outline for the work that I was doing already [at that time].”

At Jcymphony, Chen’s priority as a music teacher is to train his students in healthy vocal technique and encourage them to develop musicality while working on their goals. Being a music teacher in and outside of Aragon, Chen has to prioritize his responsibilities.

“I make it very clear to my clients that I am a high school teacher and this profession comes first,” Chen said. “So everything is scheduled around my school teaching schedule. When I do have clients, they know that we won’t meet all of December, because [of the] Aragon [concerts]. It is important to have personal and business profession boundaries. Sometimes you give more to one or the other, but never both at the same time.”

Because of their efforts at school, teachers’ lives outside of school are often overlooked and underappreciated. Ultimately, some of Aragon’s teachers are passionate individuals who work hard to mold their hobbies into a side business while educating their students — putting their very best in both worlds.