Looking for a nice gift for Mother’s Day? Want to purchase some affordable arts, food, skincare, and more, all created by Indigenous vendors? From March 31 to April 4 at the Progress Campus Bridge, Fashion Business students are hosting The Shop, a pop-up retail event showcasing Indigenous vendors from Turtle Island. This unique shopping experience will feature a diverse selection of art, crafts, and more, with the proceeds going back to the Indigenous community.
There’s more going on at The Shop than just The Shop, too. Centennial College Business School students gain valuable hands-on experience throughout their studies, and this is a prime example of that, as the shop is organized, assembled, and run by students in the program. We talked to Michelle Kanfer, an instructor who’s helping with The Shop, and Manarah Abbas, one of the students, to learn more about how this year’s Shop came together.
How they arrived at The Shop
"Two years ago," Michelle narrates, "I was looking around campus, and I saw these beautiful posters of these two indigenous sisters wearing gorgeous big earrings. And that led me to the bridge, which is the location of the pop-up shop. I met Pamela Richards, the program coordinator for the Fashion Business and Management program. I was impressed with what she was able to put together. The following year, she contacted me and asked if I would be involved. I have a huge passion for entrepreneurship and hands-on learning, so it was a really nice fit, I've been part of The Shop for just over a year."
"I actually have a bachelor's in business administration," Manarah says, about her decision to come to Centennial College for a Business School program. "I finished it last year and then came to Canada [from Pakistan]. The obvious choice was an MBA, but I wanted something that would test my potential, let me tap into my creativity and go beyond the traditional business."
How The Shop comes together
"The Shop a student led program where they can launch an entire store," Michelle says, "and that leads them to learn about entrepreneurship, innovation, creativity, things like that."
"The students are playing a very dynamic role," Manarah says about her role in putting The Shop together, "taking on responsibilities in various aspects of the project. It’s more than just a passive learning experience. We research, plan and execute, and our professors review and approve our work."
"It started with Sharon's class," Manarah says. "We were tasked with doing vendor selection, so we compiled our research and put it into a Google sheet. The professors, Michelle, Sharon, Stephanie, Jason and Pamela, approved our vendors, and then we did the buying with Jason, where we were all in different product categories. I was in health and Wellness. We were given a $1500 budget, and within that budget, we selected products from each vendor. That gave me a lot knowledge about fashion buying."
"Students learn everything from designing, to vendor selection, then deeper into that, product selection, lighting, merchandising, and even selling the products," Michelle continues. "The whole lead up to the plan is then to be part of the launch, and the students work one week at The Shop. So, they're learning how to merchandise, not just in the planning phase, but actually in the doing and seeing how the products are being sold, and then remerchandising that entire store every single day. It's pretty exciting for students, and they're getting a ton of hands-on learning, which they will take with them in the future. We're hoping to make them job ready after they've completed the program.'
How it’s worked out
"All the vendors that we're selecting are Indigenous," Michelle says. "Their companies are owned by Indigenous people, and the products themselves are also designed by indigenous people. Not only are we doing that this year, but we've also partnered with the 'Dehwigan Café'. 'Dehwigan Café is an on-campus café selling Indigenous-inspired food and drinks.
"They're going to be selling some of our products at their café," Michelle adds. "And we're going to be selling their coffee and cookies. So, every day you can come and visit us and get fresh coffee and a cookie, and look at all the different indigenous vendors that we're promoting."
"We have four vendors," Manarah says about the Health and Wellness products she was specifically in charge of merchandising from the list of vendors. "Mother Earth essentials, Sḵwálwen Botanicals, ISKOTEW OCHEM, and Wildcraft. Wildcraft and Sḵwálwen Botanicals were with the pop-up shop last year as well. We're getting a wide range of skin care products, body care, those kinds of plant-based products."
"We also have a new vendor called Tanshi Clay," Michelle adds. "They make beautiful beadwork jewelry, stunning earrings. So much effort and time goes into making each piece, because they're handmade, beautiful, unique designs. I'm looking forward to trying them on myself."
"All the profits are donated back to the indigenous community," Michelle stresses. "Each indigenous vendor selects the charity that they would like to donate to."
What the students gained
"They're gaining actual hands-on knowledge," Michelle says. "It's not just a theory class that they're participating in, they're making decisions that are real. They're dealing with real vendors, real business owners who have their own challenges."
"Here I am in my second semester," Manarah says, "and I can confidently say that Centennial has given me everything I came here for. I get to do a lot of practical work, learn everything in a very dynamic hands-on way, so I'm very satisfied."
"I'm very happy to say that these skills that we're learning here, I think I'm going to carry with them in my professional life," she adds.
And whether you’re a student, teacher, staff, or a member of the public, you can visit The Shop on Progress Campus from March 31st to April 4, right at the bridge, and see what our students have put together!
By: Anthony Geremia