b'ART MEETS COMMERCEThat, she says, was the easy part. What followedbuilding their business Ill admit that I did do some digging online proved more challenging. As youngto see how people were responding to social women business owners, Taback and Van Harten often received feedback thatmedia announcements and it was really nice they were "inexperienced" even when competing studios had the exact sameto see fans help to shut down any comments number of years under their belt.that crossed the line. It can be scary to face Rather than taking this personally, the two women leaned into their resourceful- public scrutiny on this level, but the fan base ness and Tabacks Indigeneity and beganwere amazing supporters.seeking opportunities beyond their home base of Sudbury. Thats when their work started to gain traction. It was a chal- Jennifer Taback, Design de Plumelenge to figure out how to stand out in the market, recalls Taback. We didnt origi-nally highlight that we were Indigenously owned, and it really took some time to find our authentic voice and use it in our daily problem-solving."Indigenous businesses face additional challenges, Taback adds, citing lack of access to capital, advocacy work, and procurement issues. It has given me a great sense of accomplishment to know Design de Plume has been successful within this setting. That success includes contracts with major clients over the years such as TD Bank, Royal Bank of Canada and the University of Sudbury.A GREAT TEAMTaback credits her teams natural curi-osity as a driving force behind the agen-cys success. The onset of each new project inspires its own maze of ques-tions: Does the system actually work? Can we bring in more diverse perspectives to improve it? How do we ensure the project remains sustainable beyond the teams directly involved?At the end the day, were just translators for our clients messages, but we need to be active in understanding both the messaging and the people who need to hear it to make change, Taback says. Embracing our Indigenous perspectives has been really key in understanding that were part of a larger team that can shift things for the better with each project. Today, Tabacks work as a visual trans-lator, cultural advocate and changemaker includes work across Turtle Island and beyond. As proud and significant as the symbolism is in each design element, so too is the scope and scale of the proj-ects themselves. With their recent collab-oration with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Indigenous BUSINESS REPORT53'