A whim takes wing

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This article was published 25/10/2022 (1397 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Teekca’s Aboriginal Boutique could have been a wedding shop.

It was 1997. Nurse Marilyn Tanner-Spence had just moved to Norway House with her husband Walter Spence, a social worker who’d gotten a new job. Tanner-Spence agreed to a nursing contract in the northern community.

A new mall was opening in Norway House and, without much forethought, Tanner-Spence decided to rent space there.

“I had no clue what to do,” Tanner-Spence said.

“They had one spot that they needed to fill before their grand opening. I asked if we could take the space, just on a whim… I like to do different things.”

She got the 800-square-foot unit — but she’d never been a retailer before. She considered focusing the shop on weddings and babies before landing on general giftware.

“We just thought about, ‘What don’t they have in this community?’ And that was one thing… they didn’t,” Tanner-Spence said. “Everybody has a birthday, anniversary, wedding celebration of some kind.”

The entrepreneurs sought wholesalers in Winnipeg and read articles about business. They stocked the store — then called Teekca’s Boutique — with cards and presents.

Over the next quarter-century, she and her husband planted Teekca’s Aboriginal Boutiques across Winnipeg and beyond city borders.

Tanner-Spence’s business has led to non-Indigenous customers carrying Indigenous wares, allowed former reserve dwellers to access cultural materials in Winnipeg, and inspired Indigenous women to pursue entrepreneurship.

But the road to expansion wasn’t smooth. That first year, Tanner-Spence flew to Toronto for a trade show with her manager.

“(Almost) every time we walked by a booth, the vendor would stop and stare at us,” Tanner-Spence said.

She’s Indigenous, from Waywayseecappo First Nation. Nearly every person in the place was white, she said.

“When I walked down each aisle, I did feel like, ‘This must be a first for them,’” she said.

The solution was to keep walking and ignore the stares. Still, Tanner-Spence’s skin colour affected business relationships — some vendors agreed to partner over the phone, then reneged upon seeing her in person, she said.

Tanner-Spence said many people questioned the company’s viability. The first January, sales were slow.

“I thought, ‘Maybe people are right; maybe I can’t do this,’” Tanner-Spence said.

But she pushed through; every year got busier. Locals came for lottery tickets, moccasins, engraving and embroidery services.

Teekca’s Boutique expanded to three units within the mall, taking over the 2,500-square-foot space next door and setting up a toy shop across the hall.

Soon, locations in Thompson and The Pas appeared — general stores, like the one in Norway House.

More than 15 years ago, a business contact matched Tanner-Spence with The Forks. The tourist hub was looking for an Indigenous shop.

“They did not want a general gift store,” Tanner-Spence said. She realized she’d have to make a shift in her offerings.

“I might be Native, but I (didn’t) know where to get Native products,” she said.

After scouring for handmade goods, she presented the The Forks with Teekca’s Aboriginal Boutique — freshly branded to emphasize its Aboriginal-ness.

“I struggled for 18 months,” Tanner-Spence said. “I didn’t make a profit at all at that location.”

People had a hard time finding her store, she added.

She began setting up tables at events across the city, touting her shop and its location in The Forks. While travelling, she met Indigenous makers and new customers, expanding her network.

At one point, Tanner-Spence’s house was overflowing with stock — there was no room to accommodate all her orders.

She opened on St. Matthews Avenue and in St. Vital Centre in 2020. Both stores have survived despite slower sales during the pandemic.

Customer Christy Unger bought a black wallet peppered with colourful Indigenous art during one of her forays to Teekca’s at The Forks.

“Any type of cultural influence or accessibility to items like this is great,” the Brandon resident said during a later visit.

She likely wouldn’t have bought an item so prominently displaying Indigenous art if it weren’t for Teekca’s, she said.

“Just walking through, you’re like, ‘Oh, that’s so beautiful — yeah, I’m going to buy that,’” Unger said.

Earlier this October, Justin Martin browsed through stones for smudging, which were displayed near piles of sage for sale.

“It’s hard to come by this stuff,” said Martin, who moved to Winnipeg from Sandy Bay Ojibway First Nation. “It’s good to have.”

Teekca’s Aboriginal Boutique opened in The Village, Pineridge Hollow’s new venture, earlier this year.

This time, Tanner-Spence has taken a mentorship role. She co-runs the space with Amy Der-Ironstar.

“Marilyn represents basically everything that I hope to be… a very successful First Nation lady and entrepreneur,” Der-Ironstar, 26, said.

Der-Ironstar is learning to liaise with suppliers and operate retail. She and Tanner-Spence met years ago through a mutual friend.

“I don’t think I really see many First Nations businesses that are 25 years (old),” Der-Ironstar said. “It’s very inspiring. It says, ‘Hey, I can do this too.’”

She plans to be with the company for the next 25 years.

Caitlin Blackbird, 20, has worked her way into a supervisor position for Teekca’s three city locations.

She joined the business, in part, to reconnect with her culture — she’s from Keeseekoowenin Ojibway First Nation, near Riding Mountain, but grew up in a Christian household.

“I’ve learned more about the medicines,” Blackbird said.

Co-workers and customers have shared their stories, contributing their knowledge, she added, and she’s learned through watching a female leader.

“(Tanner-Spence has) inspired me to keep working harder,” Blackbird said.

The early days of business were tough as an Indigenous woman, according to Tanner-Spence.

“I think you had to stand up for yourself,” she said. “I didn’t want people saying they’re not going to give me something because they don’t think I can do it.

“Today, I have no problems with anybody. They all know me, they give me credit,” she said.

In October, Teekca’s still had its Norway House location, plus its three Winnipeg shops and one in The Village. Tanner-Spence closed the general stores in Thompson and The Pas around five years ago.

She said she has no plans to open another site and hopes to slow down, letting Der-Ironstar take further control if she wants.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com