Broken2Brave is a recently launched Brand by Aliyah Santos, a single Mom, and a Travelepreneur. The brand is dedicated to providing fun travel-themed shirts as well as raising mental health awareness.
Traveling was always on Aliyah’s mind, but with three children, she never thought that it would be possible for her to travel. But the idea had been planted deep in her mind and her kids were on board with going to somewhere new and exotic.
How did you come up with the idea of Broken2Brave?
I decided that I wanted to travel with my children about three years ago. After working in the normal 9-5 sector to save some money, we took off to Europe from the US in September 2018. I wanted to create a business for my children and myself to be able to facilitate our lifestyle of a full-time traveler and also to motivate others who are like me, single parents struggling to make ends meet, barely able to spend time with their children, and dealing with mental health issues. We launched our T-Shirt business, which offers designs dedicated to travel and also mental health empowerment.
Starting on your own can be tough. How did you overcome the challenges?
Knowing where to start and trying to create a shop with limited computer skills was a bit of a challenge for me. However, my kids helped a lot in this and they helped me with some designs and with the website.
Tell us more about your workaway experience?
We started doing workaways in the United States. We worked with a Native American family on their farm and in their shop where they sell their handmade crafts. We worked with a family in Illinois that had a hobby farm and we fed the animals, brushed horses, helped the family care for their small children, and cooked. Then we went to France and worked at a glamping campground, cleaning the tents, making the beds, cleaning the showers like a hotel. Currently, we are in Portugal and about to go to a workaway here and work with a family on their farm. Later, we will go to Morocco and work in a language school. All of our workaways have allowed us to connect with people on a very deep and personal level as sharing your home with strangers and especially a family of four is not easy. We have also learned so many skills that we wouldn’t have just living the 9-5 lifestyle, such as gardening, construction, animal care, etc. Working at the Glamping campground gave me a new respect for hotel maids because there are so many hidden areas which you have to look at and clean, that as a guest you would never think about.
Tell us about the struggles you faced as an entrepreneur who is always traveling.
I struggle with some mental health issues, so it’s sometimes difficult to be away from everyone you’ve ever known and be alone with three kids on the road. We have experienced a bit of oddness in Spain when we were followed around by kids and they scared my son by running after him. It’s a struggle to try and create a business while on the road.
What products are typically available on Broken2Brave store? Also, do you ship everywhere?
Our products are different travel related items, mostly T-Shirts which have unique designs and slogans. We have many sizes and items for men, women, and children. For me, the unique selling point is that most of our shirts have slogans that are not available anywhere else. They’re designed to make you think about travel but there are also some funny ones. We ship all over the world.
Any suggestions you would like to give to aspiring entrepreneurs.
You should be super clear what direction you want to go. Keep fighting to get things done, especially when it’s frustrating at first. Most importantly, keep your head up and keep looking for solutions!
You can visit Broken2Brave Facebook page here.
