Meet Karla Lopez | M.S. Electrical Engineering Student & Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Karla Lopez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Karla, do you have a favorite quote or affirmation?
A quote that strongly resonates with me says, “May your passions be greater than your fears.” Being a Mexican immigrant in this country always made me feel like I was carrying an invisible shield to protect myself. Even if I accomplished great things, I never wanted any attention drawn to me. I just wanted to blend in.
When making life-changing decisions, fear instinctively creeped in: What if I fail? What will people say if I fail?

Now that I am older I realize how my approach on making decisions has changed significantly. I am no longer dominated by fear, instead I try to make myself comfortable being in uncomfortable situations. Having this shift in the way I think has allowed me to encounter more success. If I fail at something, I see it as a learning experience that makes me stronger and more experienced. If someone makes a comment about what I do, it’s completely okay. At the end of the day I remain focused on my work and the only opinion that matters is the one I have about myself. I celebrate my victories, whether they are small or big, because I know how hard I worked for them. Fear is no longer in control of my actions, it is now something I embrace and learn from.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
If you ask people what they think an engineer looks like, the last description you’ll hear will be of someone like me: a Mexican woman who wears make-up and has all these trendy clothes. As a first-generation immigrant Mexican woman in engineering, the future has never seemed clear. Every room I’ve walked into, I’ve had to prove that I deserve to be there. Every decision I’ve made, I’ve had to thought about the effects it may cause.

During my undergraduate years at UCLA, I always wanted to open my own clothing boutique while being a student. I thought it’d be a great way to share my love for fashion with others and to help myself out financially. Clothes hand-picked by an engineer… why not? My field shouldn’t determine whether or not I have an eye for fashion; however, I was always afraid or I thought I needed an insane amount of money. This thought of having my own boutique always creeped into my head, but I never acted on it because of fear.

Quarantine happened while I started my first year as a masters E.E. student at USC. It was such a life-changing period of time for me and it made me realize how uncertain the future is. I decided that I needed to pursue all of my dreams and not have any regrets or fears. This past summer, I decided to take the step to finally open my online boutique and do this with the lowest financial risk possible. This would mean that I had to take care of everything: Permits, licenses, buying inventory, coding the website, figure out shipping, marketing… literally everything. I documented the whole process and time-frame that it took for me to make my dream come true and to share resources with women like me.

My boutique launched two months ago right before the start of my second year in my master’s program. It has been such a great learning experience to create this online business that offers a platform that is safe for my customers and I.
Although it is very challenging to be a full-time engineering student, being involved in several academic projects, volunteering, and now owning my own business… I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love seeing my customers happy and I love proving that stereotypes are just that, stereotypes. We do not have to fit into a mold that society wants us to.

I proudly say that I am a first generation immigrant Mexican woman in electrical engineering with an eye for fashion and I love to share that with the world. ForYou Boutique LA (@foryouboutiquela) is a clothing store for you and for everyone. Each of the pieces are chosen carefully with the best quality and comfort. Each of the pieces have a part of me in them because I chose them with love and care for my customers. Being able to have this business has helped me become more financially independent and continue being a full-time college student. It supports my dreams and it makes me hopeful for a better future where more women like me will walk into engineering classrooms and our intelligence won’t be judged over what we are wearing or what we look like or what our hobbies are.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
LA is such a wonderful and diverse city. There is not a day that I don’t feel blessed to live in this city. Whenever I have friends visiting the area, the activities we must do are the following: -Have a nice beachy picnic at El matador beach, Malibu

-Watch the sunset with a DTLA view from Vista Hermosa Natural Park
-Have a night swan boat at Echo Park
-Visit touristy places: Hollywood, Santa Monica Pier, Venice Boardwalk
-Go to the best rooftops: Perch, Nomad, 71Above, Broken Shaker, The Highlight Room
-Go to the nicest restaurants/Brunch places: Nobu, E.P.&L.P., Lady Byrd Café, Catch LA, Castaway
-Get the best street tacos: Tire-shop taqueria in Avalon blvd
-Visit UCLA and check out the beautiful campus and walk around Westwood
-Visit USC and walk around downtown LA
-Go to little Tokyo and enjoy the afternoon Karaoke shows while having some mocha ice cream
-Check out seasonal pop-up museums or events going on

Improvise and find new fun activities and spots! There is always something new to discover in this beautiful city and there isn’t anything more exciting than being a tourist in your own town 🙂

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Success always comes from having a supportive environment. Although I’ve had a very rough life, I have been very blessed to have the support from my sister, partner, friends, mentors, professors, and Mexican community. They have always been there for me to give me emotional support, guidance, advice, and a lot of love. Without them, I wouldn’t be in the position I am in today. I am always working hard to make them proud and give back the same support that I’ve received.

Website: www.foryouboutiquela.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/foryouboutiquela

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karla-lopez-sanchez-a1587b132/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/foryouboutiquela

Yelp: ForYou Boutique LA

Other: My personal IG: www.instagram.com/karlaalopezsan

Image Credits
All image credits go to my sister: Rosalie Lopez