Tell Us Your Story. What motivated you to start your business? Why are you passionate about what you do?

Getting fired from my last job was devastating. As someone who dropped out in 11th grade, got their GED and was really only an entry level, retail employee on paper - I knew I was destined to do something different. When I was a pre-teen, I started reselling vintage clothing on eBay, I then pivoted in to selling my original art and then one day I decided to redesign the Neurodivergent infinity and created my first enamel pin design. What motivated me was seeing how external jobs (jobs where I was hired by someone else) were never accommodating towards me, regardless of how I communicated my access needs. I would feel very upset, anxious and depressed at the end of the day and I felt like I was destined to do something different. Fast forward to today: I have over 250 items avail, I do in person events and I sell online - but this is only a fraction of the work that I do. I am passionate about my work because I want to reduce the stigma of what Autistic and Disabled people are capable of when it comes to self-employment and entrepreneurship. I want to lead by example, breaking down doors and creating opportunities that I never could have dreamed of. The entire goal is to help people feel comfortable communicating their access needs and designing tools that create better experiences, a higher level of comfort and visibility that they may have never dreamed of. The passion comes from being able to help people while being able to help myself. I believe my work is truly full circle and represents absolutely everything that I believe in. I am disabled and autistic, my work caters to the disabled and autistic communities and I fight for people to have greater, more tailored resources. I don't think I could truly live my purpose any more than I already am, but believe me - I try. Every day there is a new challenge to overcome, but I know that learning from it means that I will be able to help even more people learn. Reducing barriers and working hard to walk in to rooms where I am respected, heard and acknowledged means I can open those doors for others.

Describe and demonstrate, including metrics, your community support. How do you support and uplift your community, and how do they show that support in return? Minimum 25 words, maximum 2500 characters.

With over 12,000 sales on Etsy, a multitude of markets, local retailers, over 100 media features and so much more - I am truly a trailblazer in my field. I support and uplift my community by making donations of merchandise at various events, such as public rallies to support disability, non-profit events and volunteering my time to speak and encourage others to run their own business, fight for disability rights and so much more. The support I get in return is on a level that can be very different than businesses that may be more profitable than mine, it's a lot of moral support and publicity - often those who are in high exposure work enjoy sharing my work with their network. I have support of politicians and change-makers who highly believe int he work I am doing. I also have been able to leverage this support to get a multitude of media features, including an AMI episode of their television show "Our Community" with my episode being called "We Belong". My first pin, the neurodiversity pride pin, is in the Museum of Vancouver's open MOV being the first Neurodiversity related item showcased.

Why do you deserve to win the Business Impact award?

I deserve to win the business impact award because it's not often that an openly disabled, autistic, neurodivergent and queer person gets representation. A lot of the time, it's a neurotypical, non-disabled person who gets recognition for hiring these demographics. I would love to showcase what folks like myself are capable of and break down any barriers that say "You can't do this" or "You need to be working for someone else" because for so often, that's all I ever knew. We don't have enough messaging or funding to support people like myself and if I win this award, I want to make sure that people hear my story and consider where the funding should go. I believe i've worked hard enough throughout my life to get the recognition that I feel like I deserve, and to have my very first award could potentially catapult me to the next level where I can walk in to rooms that I haven't ever been invited to or welcomed in because of the stigma that continues to persist. I love public speaking and I want to be able to continue to share the story of feeling so defeated in employment to creating my own employment and inspiring others through my mentorship and unique business structure.

Tell Us About Your Culture. How are you creating a sustainable and healthy workplace where everyone feels welcome? Provide examples of leadership you show in interactions with clients, vendors, contractors, staff and others.

My entire business is all about inclusion. Everything I do is dedicated to that. I write a handwritten note to each and every single online retail order. I work directly with customers when I am in person, and I never fail to express my gratitude to them. I am thankful, gracious and attentive. So much of what I do is inspired by suggestions by my customer base. I want to serve as many people as possible and make sure that they feel represented by what I do. I sometimes include a free gift with orders to both my. vendors and clients and I always want to have very open lines of communication.

Why do you think you should win the Premier’s People’s Choice Award?

I believe that I should win the Premier's People's Choice Award because every single thing I do is "for the people". My business, my mentorship work, the cohort I run with Curiko, the public speaking engagements I do - every single thing is with the sole purpose of helping others. Truly, I do not know where I would be without my supporters. I want to show people that it's possible to be self employed and fight for what is right. I want people to know that my business exists because of my customers and that I listen to each and every single one - even if i'm unable to put a design in to production immediately, it goes on an extensive list of over 200 suggestions. I believe I should win this award because my work should speak loudly. I am doing things that I was told I could never do. I believe strongly in representation, inclusion, diversity and self-expression. My work has the entire goal of making people feel represented, making them feel less alone, making situations easier for them - and I know, FIRST HAND, that my work does these things because of the thousands of positive, five star reviews on both my etsy and shopify store. I have had customers cry tears of joy when they see my work in person, I have them tell me how beautiful it is, how it's such a good idea and sometimes they're very surprised that it's me and my work and they ask me "was this your idea?" and are overjoyed to know that something like these pins exist. The recognition that this award would allow me would mean that more people would be able to see my work and benefit from it. I know I haven't reached nearly my full potential and that the folks out there who need my items are infinite.