OUT For Business Youth Entrepreneurship Cohort 2021 – Scarlett McAllister, Printmaker, Rabittown Press
The CGLCC Youth Entrepreneurship Program empowers LGBT+ entrepreneurs between the ages of 18 and 39 by providing them with support and tailored guidance to help them establish or grow their own businesses. The one-year program has four components:
- networking
- access to funding
- building business skills
- mentoring
Launched in 2017, the program helps a new group of young entrepreneurs each year. Each week, we will be spotlighting a member of our 2021 OUT For Business Cohort.
Thank you to our program partners: TD Bank Group, Scotiabank, Higgins & Burke Naturals, City of Toronto and Shopify.
Meet Scarlett! (Pronouns: she/her)
Scarlett is a printmaker at Rabbittown Press in Fredericton, New Brunswick, where she keeps herself busy making notepads, sketchbooks, posters, chapbooks, and literary publications using a combination of antiquated and modern printing methods. Her work at the press endeavours to be humorous and helpful, and is inspired by jokes, sayings, outlooks and images found in and around the rich maritime region.
Name: Scarlett McAllister
Name of Business: Rabbittown Press
Rabbittown Press makes unique paper products that aid and enhance our customer’s lifestyles, leisures, and hobbies. We combine high-quality materials, traditional and contemporary printing methods, and specialized page designs to create magical spaces where busy days are organized, imaginations roam free, and cherished hobbies get honed.
What drew you to this program and what are you looking forward to most?
After operating Rabbittown Press for two years and having some wonderful, minor successes with the business, I was adamant that I could continue to prosper if I had access to the resources a chamber of commerce could provide. Now that the OUT For Business program is in full swing, I’m excited to grow alongside this year’s cohort of wonderful entrepreneurs.
What does having access to a program like OUT For Business mean to you?
The OUT For Business program has given me the confidence to succeed and the tools needed to get there. Most of all, being a participant in the program affirms to me that there is a place for LGBT+ individuals in Canada’s economy.
Why do you think it’s important to support LGBT+ businesses?
The plain fact of the matter is that there are business that do not support LGBT+ people. These business owners often donate money to organizations that conspire to strip away our dignity and our rights. To me, supporting LGBT+ business is a no-brainer. It means supporting individuals who similarly see the importance of self-expression, diversity, and freedom from other’s beliefs.
What inspires you?
Smallness inspires me. Little gestures, actions, and thoughts are deceptively powerful. I like to think that the things I make, though seemingly small and insignificant, can affect some kind of positive change. To this end, I’m inspired by the little things – a hot cup of tea, a walk through the woods, a single leaf of paper – that make my life meaningful.
Interested in learning more? Click here for more information about our OUT For Business Youth Entrepreneurship Program.
