THE NAME

The idea behind NOTLA began in the summer of 2024. I wanted to start a business with my sister and I knew I wanted to incorporate my deceased brother somehow, so I said why not use his name but backwards. The more I repeated it. The more I knew that it was the one. I didn’t want anyone to open the business under that name in the Turks and Caicos Islands, so I guarded it well.

THE JOURNEY

I have always been a created person. Creating keychains, decals, coasters and much more for family and friends. Little trinkets for friends and family. I have also helped my brother and family with labour work like plumbing, roofing and other construction work. I found that these things were more exciting and engaging to me than my 9-5 office job, so in 2022 I left my job and decided to pursue my goals. This goal was to first obtain a degree and then use that degree to pave my future. I started my studies at Leeds Beckett University with my sister and brother. Unfortunately, my brother passed away during his studies. I spent so much time questioning my path and the fragility of life but one day during that summer my mom got the grand idea to start a Airbnb. If anyone lives on a small island you know that costs can be very high for items and buying cabinets was not within our budgets, so we both took and our built the cabinets. They weren’t professionally made and I really wanted them to be so I started looking for schools that I could transfer too that had a furniture making course and one that was close to Heathrow Airport as I wanted to live and explore beyond what I use to. This lead me to Buckinghamshire New University studying Furniture Design. The time spent there I acquired the skills I wanted, made the connections I needed and enjoyed the time creating. It is a wonderful start to my journey.

ABOUT MY BROTHER

My brother was the baby of the family. Sadly, we lost him at the age of 25. He loved hip-hop and his favourite artists were Rod Wave and NBA YoungBoy (YoungBoy Never Broke Again). He loved watching anime, and his favourite was One Piece. You could always find him at the gym or at a car meet. He studied Computer Science and was know to take apart phones and computers from a young age to the annoyance of his family. He was just a funny, lively and also serious person whose life was cut short by an undiagnosed condition, and our family miss him so much.