Roxanne Kotchilea (Behchoko, NWT)
Through the Inspire NWT course, Roxanne has started to look at her business with a different lens. She sees the power of using a business to build community resiliency. She envisions expanding her projects to include indigenous youth programs to support her community.
Born and raised in the Behchoko region, Roxanne is a recent social work graduate.
The idea of a jewelry/beauty brand appeared to Roxanne through the event of an unfortunate circumstance. She had spent time creating beaded pieces to sell at the Treaty 11 ceremony, but it was cancelled due to COVID. She decided to look into selling on social media, and was successful! Since then, she has continued to create and is now looking into a bigger picture plan for her brand, Tundra Beauty.
Roxanne’s reclamation of beadwork and sewing is something very special to her. This skill set connects her to ancestors and she is looking forward to passing along to her daughter and generations to come. She states “Each piece is part of my legacy. They have a part of my energy and spirit in them to live on even when I am gone.”
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