New brand Right Deadly helps Indigenous customers and allies show pride

Anna Isaac grew up in a family committed to community and creativity, education and entrepreneurship.

While she always had a side hustle, she never imagined herself as a full-time entrepreneur. Today, she is the successful owner of a parent brand, Welteg, and is launching her newest brand, Right Deadly.

She says she started Welteg in 2016 as a "family-friendly, elder-friendly brand that tries to stay neutral."

In contrast, Right Deadly will make "more of a statement about treaty rights and how we see ourselves in the world as Indigenous entrepreneurs," she said.

"My parents and stepfather really taught me how to live within my means, how to be careful about reinvesting profits and not just spending, assuming the profits will never stop," Isaac said.

They also taught her to value every individual who comes through her business.

"You have to be cognizant and respectful of everyone's struggle. As Indigenous people and business owners, we're not operating in a vacuum," Isaac said.

"Are we balancing profit with what we are doing for the territory? Can we create jobs for ourselves and for others? There are a lot of factors to consider when you decide whether you are successful."

After her parents were in a car accident, Anna moved back from Toronto to her home community of Listuguj, Que.

"My family received a lot of community support at that time, and it really helped change my thinking and realize, maybe, starting a business was possible."

"Tons of people who knew my mom, who knew my grandma and my aunties said: 'We trust you.' They invested. Starting Welteg is definitely not something I could have pulled off without the community drawing around me," Isaac said.

At the beginning, Welteg was based entirely on social media. When Anna eventually launched a physical location, it was on an auspicious date: her late mother's birthday.

Reflecting on her mother's legacy, Anna says she was very involved in the community at the political level and the grassroots level.

"She taught me a lot about hard work. It was normalized in our family for my mom to be doing really cool stuff and be really busy with all us kids running around underfoot," Isaac said. "I'm really grateful for that."

Isaac, herself a mother of three now, says it can be a challenge to run a business while parenting.

"It's definitely not a one-woman show. There is an entire support system around me that plays a very important role for the business."

Right Deadly: 'A labour of love'

Every summer, Anna and her family pack up and travel the Atlantic Canadian powwow circuit, a series of Indigenous-led cultural, ceremonial, and social events.

"It's super important for us to get out and meet people face-to-face. We have been fortunate to build up this cool customer base, including a lot of non-Indigenous supporters."

"The idea for Right Deadly actually comes from our travels. Everyone was saying 'that's deadly, that's right deadly' about our Welteg products and we thought: 'That's a really good brand.'"

"Over the last two years, we started working on the artwork and concept behind it. It's something we really nurtured. It's almost like a child. It's been a slow, steady build over a long period."

Anna wants Right Deadly to give Indigenous customers and Indigenous allies a way to show their background, culture and pride.

"There was a time when people wanted to hide the fact they were Indigenous. I used to be told, 'You're lucky, you pass [as white].' Meanwhile, growing up on the reserve, I wished for dark eyes and dark hair like everyone else. Now, it's okay to be proud to be Indigenous. Society is allowing us to embrace that."

Over the years, Anna has received a lot of requests to make orange T-shirts, but never wanted to profit from the sales.

For 2023, she created a plan to give back in a structured way.

"We decided to establish a scholarship fund, like a real grassroots level scholarship fund with no administration fees. All the money will go directly to Indigenous students and people struggling with after-effects of the residential and day school system."

Proud of her Listuguj roots

Isaac says she loves being from Listuguj.

"I want the rest of Canada to know that we are kind, funny, resilient, and generous. A lot of people here have stories that will absolutely break your heart, but a lot of people have stories that will heal you, uplift you, and inspire you."

"We are so very committed to hanging on to our language, our culture, our sense of community, our ways of being, our territory — but that doesn't mean that there is no room for non-Indigenous neighbours."

"We don't want to take from anyone when we try to regain what we lost."

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Do you know an entrepreneur in Listuguj with a story to tell and business insights to share?

Contact us at listuguj@cbc.ca and someone from our team will be in touch with you to learn more.

with files from Nation Isaac