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How did being a woman help and/or hinder your drive to create your business? 

Where drive is concerned, I'd love to be able to say something inspiring and motivational to any woman reading this, but that's not necessarily my truth. I come from a long line of obstinate people on my dad's side and most of my motivation is rooted in me wanting to prove anyone who said I couldn't do something wrong. Someone once said to me that women shouldn't run the finances for a company. So I balance my own books. Someone once said that girls can't travel in foreign countries alone. So I booked up a one way ticket to Cambodia when I was 19. Someone once said that I wouldn't be able to partner with any male-run companies because I was just a young lady. So I focused primarily on old fashioned, male run businesses while looking for partnerships. There are countless people out there telling us, as women, what we can't do. If we were to prove each one of them wrong, we'd have a wild and interesting life. 

The other day, Jeffrey picked out a toy for himself at the store: a stuffed Rainbow Brite horse (Starlite!). When the woman ringing us out asked if this was for my daughter, I was shocked. It’s a horse. With a rainbow mane. If that’s not cool regardless of gender, I don’t know what is. Besides, how much does this child of the 80’s love that my kid owns something Rainbow Brite? A lot. That’s how much.

So, you can imagine how much the ungendered message of Every Bean Boutique resonated with me.