Photo Credit: Yukon Soaps Company
This International Women’s Day we’re putting the spotlight on not just women-owned businesses, but specifically Na-Cho Nyäk Dun & Northern Tutchone women. Crossing multiple industries and impacting all corners of the Yukon (and often beyond), our women are true leaders and entrepreneurs. They’re not just succeeding in their sectors, but they’re tapping into Traditional Knowledge and values to change the game. Check out just some of these incredible businesses - and support them by following their social channels, or purchasing their products and/or services, if you can.
Important Note: This is by no means an exhaustive list, or a list that seeks to capture “best of”. We know that there are MANY MORE NND & Northern Tutchone women-owned businesses out there, and we want to celebrate them too. Drop your recommendations here:
Christine Lewis | Bannock Slap Catering
Described as “Indigenous soul food” and named after warm memories of making bannock with her mother, Christine feeds the Yukon with her delicious food. With ingredients harvested from the land, Christine’s business is an opportunity for ongoing reconnection with her culture and heritage.
Learn more about Christine, from our friends at EntrepreNorth:
Joella Hogan | Yukon Soaps Company
Joella is a force in the Indigenous business world. Her soaps are made from ingredients from the land, but are also used as a medium to build upon and share Traditional Ecological Knowledge related to the land, language, and honourable harvesting practices. Joella creates her soap using sustainable practices, and in doing so, reminds her customers about responsible consumption, and only taking from the land what you and it needs to live in relationship with one another.
Read More about Joella and The Yukon Soaps Company here: https://yukonsoaps.com/
Photo Credit: Yukon Soaps Company
Kaylyn Baker | Kaylyn Baker Designs
Using traditional techniques with modern colours and flare, Kaylyn’s work is beacon of how Indigenous women and designers are modern and thriving! Kaylyn describes that each piece of her work is inspired by a memory or a story or a friend. “I heard a phrase one time – symphony of thoughts – that I really like,” says Kaylyn. “It is what my pieces are. So many textures, never flat. I give myself permission to try things. I do whatever I feel like in the moment!”
See all of Kaylyn’s work (and maybe purchase a piece for yourself) on her website here: https://kaylynbakerdesigns.com/
Jodie Buyck | The Yukon Smash
Operating out of Salmon Arm BC, The Yukon Smash is a food truck created by Na-Cho Nyäk Dun business woman, Jodie. Serving incredible, mouth-watering, and what the word around the block is “the best burgers south of 60”, The Yukon Smash is a summer staple and a continued legacy of four generations of Northern Tutchone cooks and makers. Jodie continues this legacy and is an inspiration in how business can be community building, and delicious!
Follow The Yukon Smash on Instagram here: @theyukonsmash
Diane Olsen | Northern Construction
Co-owned with family members Jerrid Hozack and Rickey Vance, Diane Olsen is a NND Citizen and leader in her industry. With a broad scale of constructions and landscaping projects, Northern Construction is an ongoing employer for many in our region and are working towards developing our territory in a good way. Of course, NND women have many talents, and when Diane is not managing a construction project, she’s creating incredible artwork that has been showcased in museums and galleries across the country.Follow Northern Construction on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/p/Northern-Construction-100064100472905/
Dawn Moses | Haldane Services
Co-owned by Dawn Moses, Haldane Services is an expediting and transportation service based out of Mayo. Haldane Services is an excellent example of how women-owned businesses are present across all industries, including major infastructure projects. In 2023, Dawn accepted the Community Award at the 2023 Yukon Geoscience Forum hosted by the Yukon Chamber of Mines.
"Dawn Moses, has been awarded for providing essential standby evacuation transportation and in doing so, unwaveringly protected human lives, and minimized environmental damage in the community. Dawn’s work continues to show community driven leadership and commitment to the community."
-Yukon Chamber of Mines, 2023
Interested in working with Dawn? Reach out to Haldane Services at haldaneservices@gmail.com
Photo Credit: Archibald Photography
Amanda Taylor | Lotus Esthetics Studio
Amanda is the owner and operator of Lotus Esthetics Studio in Whitehorse, and has been a certified esthetician for over 20 years. As an NND Citizen, Amanda brings wellness and services including a wide range of spa services and currently healing and energy work. You can book a session with Amanda via her website, and follow her on Facebook and on Instagram at @lotusestheticstudio
Teri-Lee Isaac | Tutchone Tours
Living on, working on, and sharing the brilliance of her Traditional Territory, Teri-Lee Isaac is the owner of Tutchone Tours. Teri-Lee is Selkirk First Nation and Northern Tutchone and has built a tourism business guided by her identity, values, and deep relationship with the land. Situated in a place where history intersects from a moment of settler arrival to the Yukon, but also a place where her people have gathered since time immemorial, Teri-Lee is evolving what responsible tourism can be in her work.
Book a trip with Tutchone Tours, and listen to more of her story here: