Isadora Alvarez Founded BackBeatRags To Make Cute, Low-Impact Clothing More Accessible

Isadora Alvarez is the founder of BackBeatRags, a sustainable fashion brand based in Los Angeles. She was born in the Philippines, but moved to the United States at 23 to pursue her fashion career. Now, she's a successful business owner creating some of the coolest low-impact clothing on the market. That's why Isadora Alvarez is included in this special edition of Bustle's Must Follow, in which we highlight the incredible Asian American and Pacific Islander voices you need to follow on Instagram and Twitter.

Briefly describe yourself, including how you identify and what you do.

Filipino born and raised woman currently living in Los Angeles running my own low impact clothing brand.

What do you hope people take away from following you/your work in the industry and on social media?

That anyone can do anything no matter where they're from! Being an immigrant and coming from a different culture and then adjusting to a completely new one and navigating a new world makes you so much stronger and that you will be pushing yourself to be outside of your comfort zone. Overcoming big changes makes you stronger and pushes you out of your comfort zone. Being strong is a very important trait that entrepreneurs need to have because we face different challenges every day. Immigrating prepared me for that.

When did you first feel that you were a voice for the Asian American and Pacific Islander community?

When people started commenting or talking about my brand Back Beat Rags and telling people that it's run by a Filipina woman. And fellow Filipino designers would also send me DM's saying they were so happy to find out that I'm an immigrant who decided to pursue this business because we're usually told not to. We're told to stick to dependable jobs.

Who's another Asian American or Pacific Islander person you would recommend to follow on social media?

@geenarocero! She's a Fil-Am transgender model and Ted Talk speaker who is a huge trans rights advocate. Basically epitome of beauty and brains!

Follow Isadora Alvarez and BackBeatRags on Instagram, @BackBeatRags

This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.