IT STARTED WITH CUPCAKES
My first memory of being an entrepreneur was around 8 years old. I was in grade 3 when my teacher announced that there would be a cake and candy sale at the end of the week. I was the first one up to register because like most young kids, I could never have enough pocket money. I can still remember running home that same day to make colourful cupcakes and bags filled with salty popcorn. Needless to say, my first step into the business world was very profitable considering my mom donated all the supplies.
Fast forward a couple of years later and once again I found myself in the kitchen baking to raise funds. Yep, I baked wedding and birthday cakes to fund my way through varsity. That really was the sweetest business I owned but it was also the business that taught me the most about being creative.
CONTINUED WITH BRIDES
Now, this is when I need to disclaim that creativity can be dangerous. I learnt this lesson the hard way when after studying I opened two luxury wedding dress boutiques. I’d spend hours trying to convince brides to say yes to the dress designs I’d created only to hear them leave my door empty-handed. It was during this time that I learnt to hone in on my creativity but I never thought twice about marrying it to a specific need. I believed that if I created it, they would come but in reality, it wasn’t so black and white.
AND it ENDED WITH AN ECLIPSE
While running two boutiques, I’d also been steadily climbing the corporate ladder as a senior marketing manager. But after spending 10 years in the corporate world, I decided that I needed to craft my own space where I could create value through my expertise in marketing. So, I quit my job and began the scary and sometimes lonely journey of going solo in an industry that I love.
Why I hear you ask? Well, simple really. I want to be able to create and the best way I can do it is by creating something for entrepreneurs.
I am almost certain that as a fellow entrepreneur yourself, you can relate to my need to create a space where I have full autonomy to design, to play and to help brands grow in our current economic climate. So, there you have it. Now you know the who and the why behind the brand that is me.