Promoting indigenous culture

The Côte-Nord entrepreneur has always had her Indigenous identity at heart. She has held several management positions for the benefit of her community, from a Native Friendship Centre , to a promoter of pension plans for First Nations, and even a snow crab processing plant. “Everything I learned led me to where I am now. Everything has served me, from the reality of social service to assembly line work, to the relationships I have built with customers everywhere,” she acknowledges with gratitude.

Josée has now chosen crafts to promote her culture. From her first marriage to the famous painter Ernest Dominique, who exhibited his works at the Louvre and the United Nations, she retains the passion to transmit the history of her people and to preserve their memory through art.

In 2011, the Innu couple founded the Agara Complex in their community of Uashat, located in Sept-Îles. Under one roof, several services were dedicated to the transmission of indigenous art: a gallery, a school and a lodge, Le repos du guerrier . "We wanted to make it a heart for the region's artists, a place where they could come and produce in residence, learn or give training. We also offered tourists the opportunity to immerse themselves in indigenous culture."

Playing in the big leagues

Following Ernest's departure, Josée filled the big void by annexing a craft store in 2014. She bought the scale of an inventory of raw materials and made announcements on community radio to artisans, "the way of doing things at home, in our remote communities." It must be said that the young woman had the entrepreneurial spirit and was not afraid of anything. Determined, she did everything she could to obtain financing, and joined Commerce international Côte-Nord and the Société d'aide au développement de la collectivité (SADC) in her region, who lent her a helping hand.

She also knew that to succeed as an Innu entrepreneur, you had to be seen and heard. For an Indigenous woman, perhaps more than any other, you have to understand the importance of visibility, mentoring and partnerships. Josée had learned to surround herself well in the business community. Agara had been inaugurated in front of local elected officials, and even the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs at the time and a representative from the Canada Council for the Arts had come for the occasion.

So she launched herself by appearing on the show Dans l'œil du dragon . "I had all my funding. My goal was to give visibility to my project, to have access to a larger distribution network, and to be guided by an experienced Quebec entrepreneur." The project she submitted was called " Les Bottes de l'espoir ." Mission accomplished: orders exploded and alliances were formed.

Give yourself a mission

Josée quickly realized that the artisans earned no more than three or four dollars an hour. “They had tired eyes and hands, they were disillusioned by this dead-end future, not knowing how to convince their daughters and nieces to take up their know-how. I had found my mission: to perpetuate the culture, to promote it and to offer them financial independence. The idea of designing a luxury boot naturally imposed itself: the boot of hope.”

Josée has built a network of beaders by partnering with Indigenous friendship centres and organizations like Chez Doris in Montreal. Beading has become a way to transcend suffering and regain self-esteem by reconnecting with their identity. “When you arrive, you fill out paperwork, there are a whole bunch of procedures. It’s easy to drop out and go back to where you just came from. When a woman arrives in distress and we allow her to bead, to put her suffering and her thoughts into this work, we hold a thread of hope.” Josée knows what she’s talking about.

Fair and equitable trade

To be able to help, the business must perform. “This is how I live my indigeneity. It’s my community side that nourishes me.” In less than a year and a half, the businesswoman has built a remarkable business and paid her employees fairly, increasing the hourly wage to $3 to $15, attracting young artisans as well. The mukluks sell for around $1,000: “customers are willing to pay more for an authentic, custom-made, handmade product that has a social impact.” Inside the boots, there is a message from the beader, thanking and explaining that this work pays tribute to the ancestors by using ancestral methods of tanning, furring and weaving and that part of the income goes back to the communities.

At Atikuss, products are created in a traditional way, ensuring reuse, non-waste, respect for nature and eco-responsible hunting. They are manufactured and distributed in Sept-Îles, in boutique workshops in Uashat, in Old Quebec and in Montreal. On the fringes of the Great Economic Circle of Indigenous Peoples, Josée Leblanc won the Business of the Year award.