Prepared for the Pitch

David “Duke” Charles II ’23 created an app to unite the streetwear market, and people are paying attention

BY KATE DUNLOP

David “Duke” Charles II ’23, a junior at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, recently won a $10,000 prize to help develop a mobile app that is already catching the eye of investors.

Charles’ app, named The Wave, connects shoppers interested in streetwear brands with sustainably focused young designers who need a place to sell their products. The app features a rotating selection of brands — up to 100 per month — with the most popular brands staying on the app longer as other designers’ work cycles through in waves.

Charles pitched his idea against that of three other finalists at Hobart and William Smith’s Todd Feldman ’89 and Family Pitch Contest on March 5. After each finalist made the case for their proposals’ market potential and scalability to a panel of expert alumni judges, Charles emerged as the winner.

A business management and entrepreneurship major, Charles started working on The Wave in October and, beyond the prize money, is already reaping benefits from his project that include business connections, internship opportunities, conversations with investors — and a sky-is-the-limit outlook.

“The long-term goal is to get a brand on their feet and be able to consult for them and maybe even take a bit of equity as we go along,” he says. “Right now … we’ll start to hand out the app on campuses and in different regions that are streetwear hubs. The prize will help a lot with making that possible.”

Charles credits his time at St. Paul’s School for his entrepreneurial bent. In Millville, he founded a streetwear club for students interested in fashion and design, and during the COVID-19 pandemic, when barber shops were closed, he found a market for hair cutting among his peers.

And while he cites a number of faculty members who were supportive while he was on campus, including Director of Multicultural Student Support Myra Singletary and Onyx Mosaic Group advisers Dr. Litzrudy Justinvil and Jorane Manuel-Justinvil, he found a special level of inspiration while working with Engineering Teacher Chris Odom. Odom encouraged him to pursue innovation and entrepreneurship and, through the SPS Robotics Team, introduced him to programming.

“St. Paul’s was a whole new world,” Charles says. “The opportunities are immense. If I could advise new students, I’d tell them to say yes to everything. The experiences, the people, the connections — the St. Paul’s community is a beautiful thing, and everything you learn translates to college and the business world.”