Embracing the Girl Boss Within
I’ve always been hesitant to talk about my personal goals. I ‘suppose it’s because I’m afraid that if I didn’t “make it,” then I let myself and others down. I believe this “hesitant” behaviour stems from putting a lot of pressure on myself and not having the confidence to pursue those goals whether it’s due to a lack of time, money or dealing with the fear of failure - (which is a BIG obstacle in my books).
For the last year and a half, I’ve been working on an idea that can empower women through fashion. While pursuing this project, I found it challenging to balance working full-time while building a business of my own. As priorities grew, I lost track of time and more importantly, motivation. My fear of failure was getting in the way. I was afraid to talk about my business in case it didn’t work out. I spent months looking at things from a high-level because I thought that’s what you have to do in order to make things work. I was operating like a “CEO” but didn’t truly feel like an entrepreneur because I didn’t know how to start from the bottom up.
To my fellow entrepreneurs and side hustlers,
Balancing work while pursuing other goals such as building a business, studying part time, working towards grad school, etc., is a tough space to play in. We live in a society where having one hustle doesn’t seem like a enough, and even if it is, I find that so many people are motivated to take on more to improve not only their lives, but the lives of the people around them.
Just don’t forget to take care of yourself in the process and own your space with confidence!
I’ve kept my business under wraps for a long time. I only told people I knew in person, but it’s definitely time to own my space and build it with confidence. So, without further ado, I present to you, my business, Sonder Toronto:
Sonder Toronto is a peer-to-peer dress rental service. The purpose of Sonder is to create a community of women who empower each other through fashion.
WHERE DID THE CONCEPT COME FROM?
As a business student, I found myself attending multiple networking events and having to look presentable. Sometimes I did not have the means to afford a new outfit, nor did I want to re-wear the same dress / outfit with the same crowd of people. So, I thought to myself, "Where could I rent a dress for a one time occasion while being cost-effective?" Shortly after attending my last conference of undergrad, the idea for Sonder was born.
THE PURPOSE of Sonder is to connect women who have dresses to women who need dresses for a one time event at a lower cost than what you would find in a retail store or a high-end dress rental company.
THE MISSION is to create a community of women who empower each other through fashion while showcasing the styles of dress collectors and designers across the city of Toronto.
THE VISION is to build a community that not only connects women based on fashion, but reinforces body positivity and self-love while creating a “sisterhood of the travelling dress.”
HOW IT WORKS - Women can connect and view profiles through sondertoronto.com. The website will act as an intermediary for women to browse each other’s closets and select dresses they would like to rent. Monetary exchanges are made online and women will have the option to exchange goods in person or opt for courier service.
NEXT STEPS: Creating the narrative via social media and launching the website. This is my biggest challenge as it involves me putting myself out there. Thank you to all the inspiring ladies from Wild Collective and Make Lemonade who have provided me with support and motivation (whether they realize it or not)!
If you made it this far in the blog, thanks for reading! If you have questions or comments about Sonder - please feel free to send a message or leave a comment below.
Here’s to a successful new challenge!
Good luck to everyone out there pursuing their goals - it’s scary, but you’ve got this!
