We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Régine Théodat. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Régine below.

Alright, Régine thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

I am 100% Haitian and 100% American, and I cannot remember a time when I didn’t fiercely love my Haitian background. I grew up in the US but always felt a pullback to Haiti.

In 2010, I left a budding corporate legal career to move to Haiti and work as a human rights attorney. From there, every career move was influenced by Haiti. I started a food & beverage company, worked in human rights, and did consulting work, but most importantly, I dove deeply into my culture. I learned all of the things I wish I had learned in the US: my language, the food, the stories, the history, the pockets of culture.

When I was about to have my daughter, I wanted her to skip this “self-finding” journey that had brought me to Haiti and cost many years of identity searching. I found all the stories and anecdotes I learned along the way didn’t exist in an accessible way for kids, so I started making her things. From there, I asked my sister to help me with some things, and Isse & Lo was born.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a Haitian American, mom, entrepreneur, strategist, and cultural enthusiast. I love Haiti the way I’d love a person, I know she has better days to come and I want to be part of that journey.

I started Isse & Lo because I want parents to be able to transfer their heritage onto their children with ease. I am a cultural preservationist and enthusiast, I believe if we aren’t active in preserving our culture, the mass movements and shocks we’ve had over the years will cause us to continue to lose it.

In 2010, I made a significant shift in my career trajectory, leaving behind a promising corporate legal path in the US to pursue human rights advocacy in Haiti. I went for 3 months, and stayed for over a decade. My family thought I’d lost it. But it was the greatest decision of my life.

It led me to open up a food & beverage company, a fish farm, and multiple other random endeavors.

Because I was young, free, and fearless. I got to travel the country and learn so much about my culture. So many new feelings, emotions, thoughts, and identity markers unlocked.

The catalyst for my latest venture, Isse & Lo, was my pregnancy with my daughter. I have 3 stepsons, so I’d already started seeing patterns with what was missing for children, but once I was faced with a newborn I realised it was even as deep as board books, children’s room decor etc.

Recognizing the absence of accessible resources for children to connect with their Haitian roots, I began creating materials for her. Partnering with my sister, we birthed Isse & Lo, an online learn-and-play shop that sells a curated collection of bilingual books, toys, instruments and other tools. Through Isse & Lo, we aim to manufacture products that bridge the gap between children and their cultural identity. Our products are authentic transfer tools, as they are based on the same process that I went through in my 20s.

What sets us apart is our genuine passion for preserving and sharing culture with the next generation. Our commitment to authenticity and inclusivity ensures that our offerings resonate with diverse audiences, both within and beyond the Haitian community.

I am most proud of the impact Isse & Lo has had in fostering a sense of pride and connection among Haitian children and their families. Our work is not just about selling products; it’s about empowering future generations to embrace their heritage with confidence. Every 5-star review and shared story from parents is another heart flutter.

Ultimately, what I want potential clients, followers, and fans to know is that Isse & Lo is more than just a brand —  it’s a labour of love born out of a deep-rooted commitment to celebrating and preserving Caribbean culture for generations to come.

Do you sell on your site, or do you use a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc?

We’ve made the deliberate choice to operate our e-commerce platform independently rather than utilizing third-party platforms like Amazon. While platforms like Amazon offer extensive reach and visibility, we found that their ethos didn’t align with ours, particularly in terms of their pricing structure for independently published books, which can be prohibitively high and problematic within the industry.

Instead, we’ve opted to maintain a presence on Etsy. We appreciate Etsy’s built-in marketing features, which help amplify our brand and reach our target audience. Additionally, their pricing is fair and more conducive to independent sellers like us. Most importantly, Etsy’s ethos resonates with ours, emphasizing community, creativity, and inclusivity.

While there are certainly pros and cons to each approach, we believe that maintaining our own platform and utilizing Etsy as a supplementary channel allows us to uphold our values while still reaching a wide audience of customers who share our passion for celebrating Haitian culture.

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

Yes, we handle the manufacturing of our products. My manufacturing journey is a long one, and Isse & Lo greatly benefited from my prior experience. I used to co-own MyaBèl, a food & beverage company. MyaBèl started as a restaurant and eventually expanded to include bottled hot sauces, cooking sauces, cocktails, and iced teas. What set MyaBèl apart was our commitment to the farm-to-table concept, with many of our ingredients sourced from our 19-acre farm.

Manufacturing food products presented its own set of challenges, particularly regarding safety and regulatory compliance. However, it provided valuable insights into the intricacies of production processes. However, the heavy regulatory compliance required in food set me up for success with Isse & Lo.

Transitioning to Isse & Lo, the manufacturing process became more streamlined, albeit with its unique considerations. For products sourced from China, we simply used Alibaba, which offered a straightforward and efficient experience in finding suitable vendors. We held a bid, got samples, and just picked the company that worked best for us. All of our printed items are from China. Everything else is sourced from the Caribbean.

Products sourced from the Caribbean required a different approach. Utilizing our network, we connected with local artisans and craftsmen. We largely used WhatsApp to facilitate the sample orders. We did one site visit, which required careful planning and coordination but ultimately provided invaluable insights into the manufacturing process. At this time, most of the travel through the capital of Haiti was locked down from gang tension.

Throughout this manufacturing journey, we’ve learned important lessons about the importance of due diligence, clear communication, and building trusted relationships with suppliers. Each step has reinforced our commitment to delivering products of the highest quality while staying true to our values of authenticity, sustainability, and cultural preservation.

The products sourced from Haiti, obviously also have a different community impact.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.isseandlo.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/isseandlo
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/isseandlo
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/isseandlo
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@isseandlo

Image Credits
Katrin Kocsis Regine Theodat Justine Jean Baptiste