Chicago drafter leaves corporate job for Yellowstone sewing role

Zoe De La Paz traded a Chicago corporate job for a seasonal sewing role at Yellowstone National Park, a move that cut her hourly pay but also lowered her living costs. For workers thinking about a career pivot, her story shows how pay, housing and long-term goals can matter as much as the job title.

De La Paz, 26, had been working as a drafter for an engineering construction company in Chicago, according to CNBC Make It. She had learned to sew in high school as a hobby, then began picking up side work at music venues while still holding her desk job.

Those venue jobs started outside the wardrobe world. CNBC Make It reported that she handled tasks such as taking tickets, filling catering orders and stocking dressing rooms for visiting artists. Once she was near touring crews, she began meeting people who managed performers’ clothing and costumes.

Her first wardrobe-assistant opportunity came after she catered a concert for The Weeknd in Detroit, De La Paz told CNBC Make It. A crew member said the tour needed sewing help at its Chicago stop to repair costumes for backup dancers, and De La Paz offered her number and sewing experience.

De La Paz told CNBC Make It she saw the moment as luck, but also as the result of putting herself near the kind of work she wanted. Her broader goal is wardrobe and costuming for productions, including Broadway and film in New York City.

From office work to a park uniform shop

In January, De La Paz decided she was ready to leave her 9-to-5 role and look for full-time sewing work, according to CNBC Make It. She remembered visiting a friend who had worked a seasonal job at Yellowstone and began searching online.

She found a seamstress position in the uniform department at Xanterra Parks & Resorts, CNBC Make It reported. Xanterra is a concessionaire, meaning it operates visitor services such as hotels, lodges and restaurants inside the park. De La Paz applied, interviewed by phone and got the job.

Jeanne Holmes, a retired educator and Yellowstone seamstress who helped hire De La Paz, told CNBC Make It that De La Paz’s sewing background and ability to handle several tasks in a fast-moving setting stood out. Holmes said her own first season in 2023 included hemming more than 1,000 pairs of pants.

The work is practical and varied. Since starting in June, De La Paz has been sewing patches, repairing snaps, and replacing buttons and zippers on uniforms for Xanterra employees, according to CNBC Make It. Those workers include housekeepers, security officers and food and beverage staff.

Holmes also told CNBC Make It that the department repurposes damaged or unused inventory, including turning old backpacks into fanny packs for employees. She said De La Paz’s creative projects helped show she could contribute to that kind of work.

The money trade-off

De La Paz works about 40 hours a week, Monday through Friday, from roughly 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. with breaks, CNBC Make It reported. She earns $19.25 an hour and receives subsidized employee housing and meals.

That hourly rate is below what she made in her former corporate role, according to CNBC Make It. De La Paz said she may still save more than she did in Chicago because her expenses are lower and much of her free time is spent on low-cost outdoor activities.

Outside work, she hikes, rides horses and joins free or inexpensive employee activities around Yellowstone, CNBC Make It reported. Her park job is expected to run until around October.

De La Paz told CNBC Make It the seasonal role is one step toward moving to New York City for wardrobe and costuming work. After once choosing a more conventional college and career path, she now sees sewing as a possible long-term profession.

This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.