We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Li’Marie Hayes a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Li’Marie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
The story behind my mission I came into this country at a very young age with my 2 siblings ( R.I.P.) suffered various abuse & trauma. I went from being a mother who was once on food stamps homeless had extremely bad credit to becoming a college graduate with a masters degree 1000 or more partnerships & I currently own 5 businessowners. My mission is to let people know that it doesn’t matter where you come back from anything you’ve been through in life. My mission is to continue to help others who grew up in foster care with abuse & trauma in various communities. I will continue to show that you can change your life no matter what you’ve been through in life.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Hello my name is Li’ Marie Hayes who came into the country at a young age with my siblings of Montego JamaicanRaised from Brooklyn NY. I am Jamaican & Cuban woman with one daughter who is also a college graduate in 2020 from Howard University. I have a BA In social sciences from College of Rochelle &. MA in Sociology from Georgia State University in 2018. I current am a business owner who run 5 businesses daily & also a serial entrepreneur. My very first business & brand which is SimpLi’s DeCor LLC which was established in 2003. I am a self taught interior designer who started out being a freelance interior designer who was also self taught before I designed to get my license in interior design. I started doing freelance work in my Clinton hills area if Brooklyn, NY. I travel to various cities to bring luxury into home with affordable prices. What sets me apart from most because I am an also self taught architectural designs as well.. I create designs for all tax brackets. I don’t discriminate at all. I love working in residential, commercial & development projects. I have tons of paid partnerships along with other multiple strings of income. What I am most proud is being the new 2023 Transformational Mentor for the NASDAQ Entrepreneurial Center & too my photo on the NASDAQ tower in New Your City is amazing. What people know & understand about me is that I’m a very driven when it comes to creating designs, expanding in teach others in business finance & life while also growing 5 different businesses as well.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
When I was 7 years I was placed in foster care and through my experience I been through lots of trauma & abuse. I was able to turn my life around tremendously. I lost my older sister in 1998 the same year my daughter was born & my brother a month before me almost losing my life in 2015. I resilience started when I was about 13 when I lost my best friend/one my foster sisters due to murder. Being homeless on the streets I had to learn how to survive & turn all the bad into good for myself which keep me motivated & I kept pushing. I’ve began to participating in science projects in the 8th grade & winning each year. I began to challenge myself each time I accomplished something I would keep going..I use to read books at Central Park because I use to sleep there some nights. I use help people with groceries so I can get change just to eat. I keep going to school once I’ve moved to Atlanta Ga. Today I still live bi coastal between 2 states and I still keep going with volunteering a various shelters speaking & educating others while also creating interior designers.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
I remember when my brother was murdered it really took a toll on me mentally. How I decided to pivot in business was I started to go from house call consultations to also virtual consultations & e-designs until I have to do projects. Being that I own 5 businesses I have to always make sure my businesses are always FOOLPROOF in order to keep running successfully.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/only1limarie
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MsLiMarieHayes?mibextid=LQQJ4dB
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/limarie-hayes421