You’ve heard the saying. When deciding on a business, follow your passion for the work will seem like play.

This is so true. Designing has always been a passion that I’ve had since I can remember. The spark however, was more recent. Glancing at an illustration at a hotel I stayed in earlier this year provided that inspiration.

With the creative juices in me I went to task creating my first illustration with the intent to market it online at Gerard Aflague Collection and at events. Doing my homework I hunted down my suppliers to assist me in my endeavor. That was in March. It’s now December.

In that time, I wrestled with what my niche would be. I think I’ve settled in the Pacific Island market, more specifically the Marianas. That’s because that is what I know well. In addition, this is a market that is not being served well. Looking back, I realized that there isn’t much online that is being offered to folks that are from the Pacific Islands. The rest is history. That is for now.

With many illustrations created, and hundreds sold at events and online, we’ve expanded into so many other products – aprons, dining ware, kitchen ware, bags, plaques, and more. Much of this broadening was just trial and error, understanding what could be unique was more of the challenge. Today we offer many other things besides illustrations, and have created many other things that have been asked for by our clientele. I’ve become indebted to the hundreds of folks who have come to trust what I do to be able to create something that they would appreciate. Reminders of culture is powerful, it creates feelings of belonging and a sense of identity. This is what I try to do in the products that I create.

Home and office decor, with a Guam/CNMI and island flavor is the focus on my line. With the hundreds of orders  fulfilled to date, I can see success ahead as I continue to identify products that folks might enjoy. Over the next several months even more exciting things are coming down the pipe, as new technologies are being introduced to make some product development a reality. I’ll save this for a later post.

Below I share the many places across the world where my designs and products have shipped. I’d love to hear your perspective and comments, share it below!