FROM SELLING DRUGS AND BEING IN PRISON TO A 7-FIGURE CEO
THIS IS MY STORY
THE beginning
I was born in 1975 my mother gave me up for adoption 3 days after I was born. I was adopted by a white couple in the state of Washington where I was raised. Since my childhood I've never felt like I fit in. I was very different and unique compared to my peers. My parents raised me in a lutheran home with good morals and work ethic. However, my parents always told me in order to be stable I would need a college degree. So since the start of my life I always had the thought of never being good enough. I was raised in a white community as a latina this was very difficult for me because I never had a latina role-model nor was I taught my culture.
my adolescent Years
Since I never felt like I fit in I found comfort in the wrong group of people. I was 15 years old when I committed my first crime, I was arrested and charged with auto-theft. After my first crime I was in and out of jail very often. I was convicted of 9 felonies before my 18th birthday. From the age 16-18 years old I served time in a juvenile detention center.When I was released on my 18th birthday I quickly returned to my old habits. Staying in the same crowd doing the same things however shortly after I became pregnant with my first child. I was able to remain healthy although I was not ready to become a young mother.
motherhood
I became a single mother at the age of 19. I gave birth to my first daughter in 1994. Shortly after I returned to the same lifestyle. My parents helped me with my daughter so I could stay in the streets.
In 1996 I met my first husband. Throughout our relationship he was both physically and mentally abusive including before and after I gave birth to my second child.
In 1998 I gave birth to my son. Before he was born I was told that my son would be born with a heart defect. They strongly advised me to abort him. However I chose not to, when he was 3 months old he had his first open heart surgery. 6 days post-op he went into cardiac arrest, the doctors were resuscitating him for over an hour while I was present. My son miraculously survived, two months later they sent him home with hospice as they didn't believe he would survive past 5 months. Little did I know that this would be the start to a very difficult part of my life as my son was left disabled from an anoxic brain injury. However god had a different plan as my son is now 25 years old.
I met my second husband in 2002 and I began selling and trafficking drugs. I was arrested and charged with trafficking drugs in 2003. I spent two years in prison, 7 months in work release, and 3 and 1/2 years on strict parole. My second husband was also abusive physically and mentally. I gave birth to my last daughters in 2005 and 2008. My husband was sent to prison in 2011 for 6 years. I was left alone to care for my 3 children.
how i started my empire
I started my company in 2014. I was a single mother to 3 children including one severely disabled. I wasn't able to have a full-time job outside of my home. I was struggling to make ends meet. I've always been very creative and wanted to have my own clothing brand. I didn't have any college degree in design nor business. I literally un-sewed my daughters dance shorts to create my first pattern.
With $500 and a whole lot of determination I slowly began to create my own dance wear line. I learned everything from the ground up, I started paying attention and making changes. At that time I was teaching zumba classes making $20 per class. Every extra penny went into building my company. At that time I wish there was a course or mentor to teach me everything. But there wasn't, my business only made it this far because of my determination and perseverance. I had to go through so many trials and tribulations to get to where I am now. If I was able to make it this far not everyone can, however the ones with determination and discipline can. In 2017 I rebranded my company and made it an LLC.
My life now
In 2023 we made over $2.4 Million in sales. The last few years I have changed my mindset and redesigned my entire reality. My goal now is to inspire and teach people just like myself who never felt worthy enough, don't have a college degree, but have the determination and work ethic. If someone like me who was the least likely to succeed can create a 7-figure company out of $500 imagine how far someone else can make it with a mentor or course to give them the steps. Your time is NOW there has never been a better moment than right now to get your sh*t together!
