By Brandi Thring
It started with a sewing needle, some brightly coloured ribbon and a willingness to learn.
Secwépemc artist, entrepreneur, TRU alum and educator Ashley Michel (BEd ’23) is the founder of 4 Generations Creations — a business born from the desire to provide her daughter with access to culture and identity.
In 2018, Michel launched her business, providing ribbon skirts, apparel, accessories and DIY kits that celebrate Indigenous identity and resilience. Named for the four generations of strong women in her family — her grandmother, her mother, herself and her daughter — the company is both a tribute and a vision for the future.
Since her daughter Aveah’s birth in 2013, Michel has been working hard to ensure Aveah has something she never had: authentic Indigenous representation and a strong sense of identity. She is raising her daughter in a world rich with colour — beads, ribbon skirts, powwow dancing and vibrant stories that are infusing her self-identity with pride and purpose.
Now 11 years old, Aveah is a confident powwow dancer who speaks her mind, knows her history and shares her mom’s entrepreneurial spirit, often selling bracelets alongside Michel’s creations.
“I wanted Aveah to be part of her culture, and to me at the time, that meant powwows. I didn’t know how to sew, but I couldn’t afford to purchase these traditional garments from other Indigenous artists — it takes a lot of technique and a lot of materials to create these pieces, and they are fairly expensive,” says Michel.
“So, I decided to take initiative and teach myself. With each new garment, I learned new techniques. I got a little bit better over time and eventually, people from the powwow circuit started to notice.”
New skills alter career direction
Michel began getting requests from family and friends. Once she started posting on social media, orders started coming in from much further afield. In 2020, the pandemic shut down the powwow circuit, forcing Michel to adapt. She turned to digital design, creating stickers and apparel infused with cultural messages. A self-taught digital artist, she shared her journey on TikTok, offering behind-the-scenes content and educational videos. Her personal, heartfelt storytelling resonated, earning her a place on TikTok Canada’s inaugural Indigenous Visionary Voices list.
Michel now has 72,000 followers on Facebook, almost 60,000 on Instagram and nearly 180,000 on TikTok, recently earning the coveted blue checkmark identifying her as “verified.”
Michel’s digital reach is matched by her physical presence in the community. In 2023, she opened her first storefront in Kamloops, offering a wide selection of Indigenous-made products, crafting supplies and educational resources. Within six months, overwhelming demand pushed her to expand into a 2,000-square-foot space. Today, 4 Generations Creations supports more than 50 Indigenous artists and businesses. Despite the rapid growth, Michel remains grounded in her purpose.
“Everything I do is for my daughter and for future generations. I want them to grow up proud of who they are, to take up space and to have access to their culture and language,” she says.
Education allows alum to amplify message
Michel’s entrepreneurial success is deeply connected to her academic journey. In 2023, she completed a Bachelor of Education, motivated by the need to Indigenize curriculum and revitalize Secwepemctsín, the language of her people.
“One of the main reasons I wanted to go back to school and be in education was to help revitalize the language for the future generations,” she says, adding that she had a positive experience being part of an Indigenous cohort of students.
“It was nice to be amongst peers who had the same vision and aspirations to Indigenize the curriculum and educate others about Indigenous history and resiliency.”
She spent over 600 hours in language immersion with her late grandmother, an experience that further anchored her commitment to cultural preservation. While she chose to focus on her business full-time after graduation, Michel integrates her educational background by creating Indigenous curriculum and using her platform for cultural storytelling.
Looking ahead, Michel envisions expanding 4 Generations Creations into an Indigenous gathering place that functions as a community hub. Plans include welcoming Elders, hosting workshops and launching mobile retail units to serve remote communities. Her long-term dream is to establish a permanent location on reserve — a goal she is actively pursuing.
With her dedication to uplifting Indigenous identity, Michel is inspiring a new generation to create boldly, heal loudly and lead proudly.
