Let's Get to Know Destiny
What inspired you to start your business, and what keeps you going?
My business actually began as an online boutique for women. I wanted to shift the mindsets of Christian women when it came to fashion. Yetser is Hebrew for imagination, and the key scripture for Yetser Co. is 1 Chronicles 29:18 where it states, “O Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep this forever in the imagination of the thoughts of the hearts of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee.” The online boutique was to remind women to keep their love for God at the forefront of their minds and their fashion— ultimately, honoring Him through their style. After about a year, The Lord instructed me to go a different direction with apparel while also expanding the business to other facets. Yetser Co. currently helps others imagine themselves as God sees them through custom merchandise, coaching, and community. Impacting others for the glory of God is truly a mission and vision for Yetser, and that is what keeps me going.
As a social entrepreneur, how does your business positively impact your community?
While I am a ministry leader at my church, Embassy City Church, ministry should not be restricted to the four walls of the church. As a social entrepreneur, I have had the honor and privilege to host many gatherings and events for women of all walks of life. In 2021, I started hosting these gatherings called Date Yourself that would put emphasis on the worth and identity of women, regardless of their relationship status. While I started this movement from a place of brokenness, it helped mend and restore the trust, fellowship, and hope of women in sisterhood. Because of this, I am currently in the process of establishing a sisterhood nonprofit that will help implement principles of unity and togetherness within the community.
Can you share a time when you took a significant risk in your business? What did you learn from that experience?
The biggest risk I’ve ever taken as an entrepreneur is quitting my full-time position as a design engineer to pursue entrepreneurship full-time with little savings or strategy. I received a very clear word from God instructing me to do so. Being an entrepreneur will indeed cause you to gain a relationship with Christ if you lack one, and it will cause you to be stretched in your faith, if you do! However, the most significant but promising risk you can ever take is one that The Lord instructs because this implies that He’s already prepared a path of prosperity for you. Putting my faith in anything or anyone else would guarantee me failure on some level, but putting my trust in God has positioned me to have access to connections, resources, opportunities, and relationships that hustling, work ethic, or man could never provide. Taking this route has taught me the power of prayer and fasting as a business owner. It is imperative to commune and consult with God because He is the One with the plan of perfection.
How do you define success, both personally and in your business?
Success is simply accomplishing goals, and goals are interchangeable amongst the many facets and aspects of life. As a woman, I have goals that can contribute to my business as they contribute to my womanhood, and vice versa. When I accomplish my goals in one area of my life, that success automatically compliments the other aspects of my being. For example, I had the privilege to do custom merchandise for Tiphani Montgomery’s ministry, Covered by God. I had a goal to fulfill her order of well over 1,000 pieces of merchandise within days, and once I complete the order it helped me achieve a goal of going deeper in God because completing that quantity of custom items within 4 days caused me to grow in my faith, gain perseverance, and get a better understanding of how delegation and assistance is helpful in producing excellence. That in turn helped me to exercise dependency on community, so success happens across the board when it comes to the grand scope.
What’s the "why" behind your business? What motivates you to keep pushing forward despite challenges?
Yetser Co. aims to give others an image of themselves that they have not yet experienced by reminding them of God’s intentionality when it comes to who He’s made them to be. I love to affirm others. I love to provide spaces where others can not only be changed, but they can be transformed. Change is inevitable; we’re forever evolving, but transformation takes intentionality. Obedience keeps me going. If God did not give me this, I would not have to keep going, but since He has gifted me with this business, I must do my best to steward it in the most efficient way possible, regardless of challenges.
How do you see your business evolving over the next few years?
Over the next few years, I see the aspects of Yetser Co. being shifted, so that more people can be impacted by the brand. Changes that are currently underway include: the removal of the coaching aspect as well as the community aspect for better integration and expansion of printing services.
What advice would you give to someone considering starting their own business, especially in your field?
For anyone considering becoming an entrepreneur and possibly stepping into the space of custom merchandise, consult with the Lord FIRST. Do research second, and see if you can find workshops and courses that will allow you to test out the space before investing your time and money. Bonus tip: marketing is a huge key to custom merchandise and apparel sales.
How do you maintain balance between your business life and personal life?
When you do business for and with God, there is a grace that you have access to. That grace gives you access to wisdom for strategy and structure that may look abnormal to the natural eye. Also, praying before or while I do majority of my work helps me to operate in the grace of the Lord. God is not bound by time; He’s the creator, redeemer, restorer, and orchestrator of it, so anything I aim to do that aligns with His will, can be done with or without balance. Balance in business with God looks like focus— not busyness, but a very specified focus for the moments I’m trusted with.
We shine brighter together. What we are looking for:
- Location:
The entrepreneur must be based in the State of Georgia. - Business Stage:
Businesses that are less than 3 years old. - Impact:
The business should have a positive impact on the local community, either through its mission, community involvement, or other contributions. - Innovation:
The entrepreneur should demonstrate creativity and innovation in their business model, products, or services. - Resilience:
Consideration of the challenges the entrepreneur has overcome in building their business. - Ethics and Integrity:
The entrepreneur and their
business should operate with a high standard of ethics and integrity. - Nomination and Support: Self-nominations are allowed, but be sure to include supporting stories or testimonials.