We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kayla Sher a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kayla, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

1. The most meaningful project I’ve worked on is starting my own brand, Hot Girls Hate Litter. It began with a simple frustration: I kept seeing how casually people littered and how little attention my generation sometimes gives to sustainability — despite being the ones who will feel the long-term impact. I wanted to change that, but I also knew traditional environmental messaging didn’t always resonate. It often felt heavy, preachy, or disconnected from youth culture.

So I decided to approach it differently — by blending sustainability with humor, boldness, and internet-native branding. Hot Girls Hate Litter isn’t just a name; it’s a mindset. It’s about making caring for the planet something cool, confident, and unapologetically part of your identity. I wanted to create a platform that sparks conversations and inspires people — especially young women — to take action and rethink what activism can look like.

What makes this project so meaningful to me is that it combines my values, creativity, and a desire to build real change. It showed me that you don’t need to wait for permission or a guidebook to make a difference — you just need to start, even if it’s with a bold name and a trash bag. I also strongly value individuality within this project, sustainability fits everybody differently, and allowing everyone to find a safe community where they can practice it in their own way was so important to me no pressure, no rule book, whatever works for you.

2. Another one of the most meaningful projects I’ve worked on was creating a surprise congratulatory video for Amelia Conley aka Nailz by Mealz, my talented nail artist who was recognized as the Best of Charleston in 2025. She’s not only incredibly skilled at what she does but also someone who’s built a genuine community through her work — her clients love her, and she treats them like family.

I wanted to honor that spirit. So I reached out to her boss, friends, and family from all over and asked them to record short video messages celebrating her achievement. I edited them all into one surprise tribute video that she was gifted with. Seeing her reaction, the tears, the joy, and how loved and supported she felt in that moment reminded me of the power of storytelling and community.

It was meaningful because it wasn’t about going viral or being flashy — it was about making someone feel deeply seen and celebrated. I realized how impactful it can be to create something that brings people together and honors someone’s hard work in a truly personal way.

Kayla, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m Kayla Sher, a 27-year-old creative originally from New Hampshire, now living in the Charleston area with my amazing husband and our two dogs. I’m deeply inspired by creativity, female empowerment, entrepreneurship, sustainability, and building genuine connections within my community — and everything I do is rooted in those passions.

My work is all about helping female-owned businesses tap into their creative power and bring their visions to life. Whether it’s designing a bold, personality-filled logo, crafting business cards that actually feel like you, or consulting on how to show up with confidence and clarity on social media, I love helping women bring their brands to life in ways that are both beautiful and intentional. I understand that for many small business owners, especially women, the creative side of branding can feel overwhelming or out of reach — I’m here to make it accessible, fun, and aligned with who they truly are.

But the project that holds the biggest piece of my heart is Hot Girls Hate Litter — a movement I started that brings together my two core passions: sustainability and creativity. It’s more than a brand — it’s a mindset and a community. It’s about showing that environmental activism can be bold, feminine, stylish, and community-driven. Through clean-up events, merch with a message, and social media content that’s both playful and powerful, I’ve built a space where women feel empowered to care deeply — about the planet, and about themselves.

What sets me apart is my ability to mix design, strategy, and mission-driven storytelling in a way that feels personal and impactful. I don’t believe in cookie-cutter solutions. I believe in listening, creating with heart, and building things that last.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Yes — my creative journey is driven by a mission to empower women and make sustainability feel accessible, fun, and inspiring. At the heart of everything I do is the belief that creativity is a powerful tool for change — whether that’s helping a woman-owned business bring her brand to life, or using bold, playful messaging to get people to care about the planet in a new way.

With my design work, my goal is to help women feel confident showing up as themselves. I love creating logos, brand visuals, and social content strategies that feel authentic and empowering — because when women feel proud of how their business is represented, they show up with more clarity and confidence.

And with Hot Girls Hate Litter, my mission is to redefine what sustainability looks like. I want people — especially young women — to know that you can care about fashion and feminism and the environment. That activism doesn’t have to look one way. That you can be bold, feminine, and make a difference in your community at the same time.

Ultimately, my creative journey is about building spaces — both visually and in real life — where women feel powerful, connected, and inspired to take action.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

Honestly, word-of-mouth referrals have been everything for me. Most of my clients have come through people I’ve worked with who loved the experience and told their friends, or through someone who saw a project I did and reached out saying, “Hey, I saw what you did for so-and-so and I’d love something like that!”

I really believe that community and personal connection are the heart of my business. I’ve never done a big marketing push — instead, I focus on building real relationships, showing up for people, and doing work that feels intentional and aligned. Whether it’s chatting at a local pop-up, collaborating with another woman-owned brand, or just showing love and support online, those little interactions have a way of turning into something bigger.

At the end of the day, people trust people — and when you pour into your community and treat every client like a friend, the word spreads in the best way.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @hotgirlshatelitter @kaylasher_
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaylasher?trk=contact-info

Image Credits

Kayla Sher
Main Street Studios