I’m starting this brand to help Indigenous people show pride in their roots and wear their identity with strength. My family comes from a long line of buffalo hunters who lived in what is now Canada and followed the herds across the Plains. The buffalo were more than just a food source. They were central to our way of life and our spiritual connection to the land. We honored the buffalo, using every part with care and gratitude. Our relationship with them was based on balance, respect, and ceremony.

When the herds began to disappear in the north, my family followed them south into what is now Montana. But the loss of the buffalo wasn’t just natural. Both the Canadian and United States governments allowed and encouraged the mass slaughter of buffalo as a way to starve Indigenous people and force them into dependence. Buffalo were killed off, land was taken, and borders were drawn without us. It was an attempt to erase our way of life by targeting the animal at the heart of it. 

My ancestors were among those who refused to be broken. We come from the Little Shell Band of Chippewa. We are Chippewa Cree. Chief Little Shell III stood firm and refused to sign away our lands or to be relocated. Because of that, our people lived without federal recognition for over a century. We were treated as if we didn’t exist. But we endured. In 2019, the Little Shell Tribe was finally recognized by the United States. That recognition came late, but it was earned through generations of strength and survival.

Many families went through the same struggles my family faced. I carry their stories with me as well. This work is meant to honor all of our ancestors who lived through these hardships. Those who followed the buffalo, who faced starvation, who were pushed from their lands, and who still held onto who they were. It is a way to remember the history we share and to celebrate the strength that continues to live in us today.

I’m telling this story to help explain why I created this brand and where the name The Buffalo Legacy comes from. It’s a name that carries the weight of our history and the strength of those who lived through it. I’m also Indigenous to Mexico, and this brand is my way of blending both parts of my identity. I’m honoring my roots across North America — from the buffalo hunters of the north to the deep Indigenous traditions of the south. Everything I create is made to reflect that connection and carry it forward.

This is more than a store. It’s a legacy. It’s a story of survival, pride, and honoring where we come from.