I never pictured myself as a business owner. I never imagined that I would feel such pride in creating a beautiful family portrait or sending in an article I’ve written for a national brand.
Being a full time blogger along with running a small photography business keeps my creative juices flowing…and I love it! I love feeling empowered as I deposit checks and help pay the family bills. Although my work is certainly time consuming and requires a constant flow of creative brain power (not always an easy thing for a mom to maintain!), I have been overwhelmed at how easily this business of mine has been for me to grow. I have so many opportunities, and as each year progresses, I am blown away by all of the doors that are opened to me.
I’ve got it so easy compared to so many other women throughout the world – women who are talented and creative and powerful – but don’t have the resources and the opportunities that I do.
I vividly recall the beautiful Mexican women selling stunning belts, blankets, bags and jewelry at small tables or tarps laid out on the ground when I spent a summer in Mexico, pre-kids. Their handiwork was incredible, but only those lucky enough to walk down their particular street ever saw what they produced or had the chance to buy from them.
This month, Walmart launched Empowering Women Together, an online destination as part of the Walmart website that gives small women-owned businesses around the world the opportunity to sell their products beyond their neighborhood. Empowering Women Together is part of Walmart’s commitment to empower women worldwide to build better lives for themselves and their families.
Not only does Empower Women Together give women around the world a place to display and sell their products, but it offers the rest of us the opportunity to see the beauty that other women, sometimes half a world away and sometimes only a state away, have created. And it gives us the chance to support each other in our efforts to improve our lives and the lives of women around the world.
When women-owned businesses flourish and grow, they are able to give create more jobs, thus empowering even more women with the opportunity to support their families as well.
When Empowering Women Together launched this month, they offered more than 200 items from 19 businesses in nine countries. Products include jewelry from Peru, Rwanda, Kenya and the U.S.; home accessories from Rwanda and Haiti; paper mache from Haiti, apparel and accessories from Rwanda; iPad and laptop cases from Cambodia and Nepal; coffee and tea sets sourced globally and made in America; and specialty foods made in America and Canada. These women include business owners, farmers, bakers, seamstresses, weavers, textile workers and jewelry makers.
Connect with #EmpowerWomen
- Empowering Women Together on Walmart.com
- Facebook Page facebook.com/walmart https://on.fb.me/YPAGby
- Twitter @Walmart
- Be inspired by Empowering Women Together’s Pinterest Board
Disclaimer: I am part of the Mom It Forward blogger network. Mom It Forward and Walmart partnered in support of this campaign. Walmart compensated me for participation in this campaign. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
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I love seeing major brands partner with something that has meaning behind it.