Tessa Teberg
“I enjoy the hunt.”
For Tessa Teberg, that simple phrase describes more than a weekend hobby. It’s the spark that turned her love of thrift shopping into a campus initiative designed to help fellow students step confidently into their futures.
Tessa, a first-year student in Kirkwood Community College’s Apparel Merchandising and Design program, is bringing her passion for sustainable fashion to campus. Her project, Campus Career Closet: Style Your Success, will give students free professional clothing and personalized styling guidance as they prepare for interviews, internships and first jobs.
Originally from Burlington, Wisc., Tessa began thrifting as a teenager. What started as searching for unique pieces quickly turned into a practical problem: too many clothes and not enough storage space. Her solution was to start reselling her finds on online platforms such as Depop and Poshmark.
In 2024, that side hustle grew into Tessa’s Thrifts & Threads, a business where she sells curated thrifted clothing and offers services like personal thrift shopping, closet refresh consultations, and styling sessions.
“The right clothing can shape confidence and help people express who they are,” Tessa, 23, said.
That belief comes from more than her work in fashion.
“I’m a helper,” she said. “I want to help people find their style so that they feel happy, confident and completely themselves.”
Now she’s applying that philosophy to help other students succeed.
Through her internship with Dr. Elisha Stanley, coordinator of the Apparel Merchandising and Design program, Tessa organized Campus Career Closet: Style Your Success to reduce barriers students face when preparing for professional opportunities.
The project begins with a campus clothing drive, collecting new or clean, gently used business-casual clothing appropriate for interviews and early career settings. Donations may include blazers, dress pants, skirts, professional dresses, button-down shirts, blouses, sweaters, belts, ties, scarves and clean, closed-toe shoes.
These donations will then be featured at a styled pop-up event where Kirkwood students can select professional clothing, free of charge, and receive guidance on how to style it for interviews and career settings.
During the event, students will be able to ask questions about how to dress for different industries, how to style professional pieces and how to balance professionalism with personal style. Depending on the number of donations received, students will be able to take home one or more items.
Tessa brings a range of experience to the project, including work in high-end retail and a thrift store alongside her studies at Kirkwood. But her motivation runs deeper than fashion.
Her own path to Kirkwood was not a straight line. Tessa previously attended the University of Iowa, studying neuroscience and psychology, but realized the field didn’t bring her the same fulfillment she found in fashion. After discovering Kirkwood’s Apparel Merchandising and Design program, she decided to pursue the passion that had been shaping her life for years. Through Campus Career Closet, she hopes to combine her love of fashion with her desire to help others, as well as promote sustainability.
“We don’t need to keep creating clothing items,” she said. “We have great pieces on this planet already.”
Through Campus Career Closet, Tessa hopes those pieces will help Kirkwood students walk into interviews feeling confident and prepared.
Due to limited storage space, clothing donations will only be accepted through the end of the day Friday, March 13. Donations can be placed in the gray bin outside the Apparel Merchandising and Design classroom, 332 Nielson Hall.
The Campus Career Closet: Style Your Success pop-up styling event will be held in Iowa Hall on March 25 and March 26, with times to be announced. During the event, students will be able to select professional clothing and receive personalized styling guidance to help them prepare for interviews, internships and early career opportunities.