Rising Stars: Meet Mattye Crowley

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mattye Crowley. 

Hi Mattye, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I was sort of forced into starting my own business in 2015. My three-year-old son started having seizures, and I lost several jobs because I couldn’t leave him to go to work. I was at my wit’s end when his grandmother suggested I start a business. Owning a business wasn’t new to me but the idea of owning my time was. I thought back to a few years earlier when my favorite professor, who has become like a second mother, suggested that I write children’s books as a career. That night I went home and wrote Sankofa, my first book. 

I started by literally saving pennies and using every dime I could to self-publish. The search for an illustrator was difficult. After learning the cost of illustrations could go as high as $5000, I was discouraged but didn’t give up. One day, I was speaking to one of the students I worked with as a supplemental instructor in college. I learned that she could draw and was more than willing to draw my book on an IOU. 

I started selling at Brother Jeff’s Cultural Center on Black Dollar Saturdays. 

When the book was released, I had 100 copies, but knew I needed more at my booth to catch people’s attention. I used my last $315.00 and invested it into African jewelry, and that’s where my journey began. The African jewelry and the children’s books have evolved into the two halves of my business. 

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
For me, as a single mother, I wanted to validate my ability to care for my sons as well as myself and to live by my own standards. I used to want to find a position that was flexible, but what I ended up doing was creating flex jobs for myself and others. 

Starting a business with very little capital is a challenge in itself, but with every challenge comes one of two endings. I lose and give up, or I keep going, learn, and grow. I’ve learned to listen to my instincts and to take chances because without taking a chance you’ll never know where you will land. 

One of the most challenging times was when my van was stolen right after Colorado’s Black Art Festival in 2018 with my store inside. When I got my van back, the engine was busted and all my stuff was gone. I felt so defeated, and I wanted to throw in the towel. But I ended up doing a small fundraiser on Go Fund Me which was semi-successful. I was able to pay my rent and reinvested the remaining $500 into jewelry and started all over again. This time I changed my entire routine. 

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Everything I do in my company is rooted in my upbringing. For instance, creativity is something that is very rich in my bloodline, and what I do now is very much connected to my childhood and the ways my family and community supported my talents and growth. For instance, at the age of 7, I was given the task of being the Sunday school teacher, so at an early age, I developed leadership skills and the ability to speak in front of others. My students were both younger and older than me, which gave me the ability to navigate within different generations. I had a weird love for paper as a child. I would create books, crafts, and all kinds of things. I remember my mom would get on my case about cleaning up my mess but was always open and willing to let me explore my talents in ways I deemed necessary. 

And lastly, my love for dolls, fashion, and things that stood out also began in my childhood. Every kid has their weird thing and mine was cutting my dolls’ hair really short and recreating their looks. I had some sewing skills, so I would attempt to create my own looks using scraps of materials left over from my grandmother’s quilting and dress-making business. 

Everything I do currently is like reliving the best times of my childhood. As a Sunday school teacher, I got to teach others facts that they weren’t aware of or maybe uncertain of. I do this in my Inclusive Family Workshop Series which builds bridges of better understanding in families composed of mixed ethnicities. The workshop is primarily for non-black parents of black children, whether it’s through foster care, adoption, or interracial relationships. There are grey areas parents face, and my job is to give a different perspective and insight to how racisms’ byproduct – internalized racism – affects the child and hinders their future. How to spot changes and what to do about them. I plan on having a similar course for anyone to access online. I saw a need and made a way, all created through extensive research. 

Writing has always been something I love to do, and children’s books are one of my many lanes. For me, black history children’s books are my way of righting a wrong. During my k-12 school experience, Black history was initially my favorite subject, but due to its repetitive nature, it quickly became a month I didn’t much care for. But I always knew there was more to the narrative. There are only so many times you can review American slavery, Jim Crow, and the Civil Rights Movement before becoming depressed. But when I enrolled in an intro to Black Studies class at Metro State University of Denver, I discovered there was in fact more to the narrative and also my passion. I found a way to combine my poetic writing skills with my Africana Studies degree to create black history children’s books with corresponding workbooks. 

I’ve also always been a fashionista and the youngest and only girl child on my mother’s side of the family. I was always dressed up in a matching outfit, so much so that to this day I match from head to toe. For me, African jewelry was another avenue to teach black history and help others reconnect with the motherland – and as a bonus enhance their attire. Sankofic Gems grew during the initial shutdown caused by Covid-19 when I found my partners via Facebook. 

My partners in Kenya, Khadija, and Jackie, created their companies as platforms to give others in their communities a way to earn an income. They’re artisans that make jewelry, skilled seamstresses, and leaders among women in their communities. They hire and train each of their workers personally, in addition to investing in the talents of each person working with them. Each purchase goes directly to support these people. 

I am a natural creative who has managed to earn a living doing the same things I did as a child. Everything I am able to do is personally rewarding because from my own mind and hands I can create things that are actually needed and necessary. I don’t know too many things that could be better. 

The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
Covid wasn’t a crisis for me. As a historian, I understand that things like this are possible and I’ve managed to shut down for a year and grow, rather than shut down for good. At the age of 20, I lost several of my closest family suddenly and unexpectedly, so for me, the word crisis means something different. 

I believe that things happen to slow us down, to get us to see things that – when we are busy – we are unable to see. For me, Covid gave me the space to completely reconnect with my sons. As a single mother who is building a company, I sometimes lose sight of who they are, what motivates them, and what their inherent creative talents are. I was also able to reconnect with myself and gain an understanding of who I am today, what drives and motives me. 

Covid gave me space to reconnect and appreciate the life I have and the journey I have walked. My main focus is to create a life in which I thrive and not just survive. As a single mother, it’s easy to get discouraged, so I consistently and constantly give myself pep talks and remind myself daily that hard work pays off. And so far, my growth in terms of space, product, and quality has grown tremendously. 

Pricing:

• Sankofic Children’s Book and Workbook are 20.00 a set
• All Things African my second book to be released on September 18 also comes with a workbook and are $25.00 a set
• Earrings Start at $8 and go as high as $25.00
• Jewelry Sets range from $25 and up
• Clothing starts at $30 for children and $45 and up for adults.

Contact Info:

• Email: mattye@sankoficjourney.com
• Website: sankoficjourney.com (Books) sankoficgems.com (Jewelry) sankoficedu.com (programs)
• Instagram: Sankofic_Journey, Sankofic_Gems MissMLC83
• Facebook: sankoficjourney, sankoficgems, sankoficeducation
• Twitter: Sankofic Journey, Sankofic Gems

Image Credits
Misha Marie
Pressley Farrell