How Eighth creation’s Shared Ownership Model is Redefining Native American Commerce
In the heart of Seattle, a business is challenging traditional notions of corporate ownership. It’s doing this by preserving and celebrating Native American art and population and embracing the model of shared ownership between the artist and business. Eighth creation, a Native-owned lifestyle brand founded in 2008, proves shared ownership and collaborative artistic partnerships can make commercial achievement while preserving population.
Unlike most companies owned by individuals or shareholders, Eighth creation operates under a distinctive tribal ownership structure. The business, founded by Louie Gong of the Nooksack tribe, was sold in 2019 to the Snoqualmie tribe—making it one of the few tribally owned lifestyle brands in the country.
“There’s just not many businesses like Eighth creation that are owned by a tribe,” explains CEO Colleen Echohawk. “We’re always learning something recent, we’re always going our own way and trying out what’s going to work, what’s not going to work.”
This model of shared ownership has profound implications for both business operations and the throng. Each piece sold by Eighth creation includes an artist description, a collaborative social post, and fair declare in what recent pieces are made with the artwork. The business maintains close collaboration with the Snoqualmie tribal council to ensure business decisions align with tribal values and throng needs.
Revolutionizing artistic partnerships
One of Eighth creation’s most innovative approaches is its artist licensing model. It chooses to license artwork instead of purchasing it outright—a ordinary habit that has historically disadvantaged Native artists. Eighth creation also keeps close relationships with creators throughout the product advancement procedure.
“What has happened in the history is that someone, a Native artist, may be working with a large brand and they declare, ‘Hey, we adore that design.’ And then they buy it from that artist and then they can slap it on whatever they desire,” Colleen says. “We really desire our artists to recognize that as a tribally owned business … we desire them to feel ownership of what they’re putting out there.”
This shared ownership allows Native artists to be involved and profits fairly off of their own work.
To implement a similar model, include:
- Licensed work rather than purchased artwork
- Collaborative product advancement
- Artist approval at every stage
- Artist cards included with each product
- Ongoing connection maintenance
Marketing authenticity: “Inspired Natives, not Native-Inspired”
The business’s tagline, “Inspired Natives, Not Native-Inspired,” directly addresses a longstanding issue in the industry, where non-Native companies appropriate Native designs without attribution or compensation. Eighth creation’s marketing schedule focuses on authentic storytelling that shares the trip of each person artist and piece.
In each order, customers receive an artist card, breaking down the background information of the creator behind each design. When feasible, it includes detailed product origin stories and artist information so customers can feel connected to the product at every point throughout its production.
This open and vulnerable way has led to significant successes, including social media videos receiving more than five million views, global expansion into the UK, Germany, and Japan, and a prominent British Vogue cover featuring Eighth creation’s Coast Salish pattern wool blanket.
Using data-driven selection making
The dedication to authentic storytelling doesn’t arrive at the expense of analytics. Colleen’s way to business management is deeply rooted in data analysis. “Every morning I wake up and I check the information when laying in bed, of course … and then I check Shopify analytics because I desire to view what happened yesterday,” she shares. This information drives crucial decisions about product advancement, marketing strategies, international expansion, and inventory management.
The achievement of Eighth creation’s revenue strategy portends a promising upcoming for Native-owned businesses and any other minority-owned ownership structures. As Colleen says, “I desire the nonprofit globe, the philanthropic globe, to really be thinking about investing in Native-owned businesses as part of our work of addressing the creation of the riches gap.”
The model of shared ownership offers valuable lessons for any business owner looking to construct businesses that prioritizes both profits and purpose. Catch the packed video interview on the Shopify Masters YouTube channel.
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