We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sade Harvison a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sade, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?
Lo’Tuz (lotus) is the name that I chose for the main character of my book series. The Lotus flower is my favorite because in order for it to grow, unlike most flowers it needs the darkness to flourish. The thicker the mud it has to grow through the more beautiful it will become. I feel like that has been the metaphor of my life, so I decided to name my company after the Lotus flower.
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?
I am an Authorpreneur. I have written and published two children’s books. The Power of A Friend and Young Black King. I went through a traditional publisher for The Power of A Friend, I self published Young Black King, with the help of Inspiring Jreams Publishing. I was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. I am a product of Columbus City Schools. I developed the Lo’Tuz Brand during Covid. My first book The Power of A Friend is based off of my own experiences as a child, growing up without my biological Mother. She was not able to care for her children because of her addiction. I wrote an entire book series about the different things in my life that helped me cope growing up without her. I have always been a lover of books and writing. Covid gave me the time to sit down, and remember all the dreams I had as a kid. It was something about that time that allowed me to tap into my creative self. I am a Mother of Three boys. Diego Jr.(16), Dior(12), and Shakur(6). I wanted to show them that no matter what happens in life, you have to follow your dreams.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I am a single Mother, so I pivot all the time. I have had to put my business on hold, to make sure my household is taken care of. I am funding my business on my own, so sometimes I just have to do that. When I have had to pivot in order to stay motivated I always try to remember why I became an Author to begin with. The “why” keeps me going through challenging times.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
I actually used the stimulus money from Covid to help me publish my first book. That money helped me fund my dream.
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