Editor's Note: Story discusses violence against women and girls, including stalking and harassment.

An Ottawa resident is launching a retail business “by women, for women, to empower women.”

Abigail Wilkes said she's grown tired of being objectified and mistreated because of her gender in every facet of her life: at work, on dates, in relationships, at the bar—even walking down the street. 

Like many other women, Wilkes has experienced sexual intimidation, harassment and violence. After leaving an abusive three-year relationship, Wilkes began dating again, only to experience further mistreatment at the hands of the men she went out with. On one occasion, Wilkes’ date attempted to drug her. On another, she was followed home by her date after having rejected him.

Through sharing her experience with others, Wilkes learned that she was far from alone. 

“After a while, I started to open up about my experiences,” says Wilkes. “I've told men and women. Women have a completely different reaction, which is almost always, ‘Yeah, a similar thing happened to me, or that happened to my cousin, my sister, my friend.’”

Wilkes says she had conversations with hundreds of women who shared similar experiences. That’s when she decided to start a women’s apparel company called Lorraine & Mae.

“Our brand stands beside our sisters in the female empowerment movement,” says Wilkes. “Women who are sick of walking home with their keys between their knuckles, girls who are sent home for wearing tank tops and shorts because it's distracting the boys… It all just comes back to women empowerment.”

Wilkes started from the bottom, funding the endeavor out-of-pocket, designing her own logo and clothing and building her own website. She works two jobs, and spends all her spare time focusing on her business.

Her clothing designs are influenced by the “empowerment quotes” she says have given her strength since she was young. Some of the designs are humorous, while others are uplifting.

The name “Lorraine & Mae” is a combination of two names belonging to women in Wilkes’ life—she named her company after “the strongest woman and girl” she knows. 

“Lorraine is the name of my late grandmother,” says Wilkes. “She was the strongest, toughest, sassiest and most stubborn woman ever, but she did this with the utmost kindness.”

Some of Wilkes' designs are humourous, while others bear slogans of empowerment. Photo by Abigail Wilkes.

Wilkes decided to pay tribute to her grandmother by replicating her handwriting from old birthday cards to create the Lorraine & Mae logo. The second part of the name, “Mae,” is the middle name of Wilkes’ niece, who was born eight weeks premature.

“She was four pounds,” says Wilkes. “And she was put on feeding tubes and a whole bunch of other stuff. We didn't really know what was going to happen with her. But she was a fighter, and she continues to grow into the toughest, sweetest little baby as ever. But like her great grandmother, she's totally stubborn and sassy.”

But Wilkes says her clothing isn’t just for women. She wants her brand to be accessible to everyone. Her entire line is unisex, and includes sizes from extra-small to double-extra-large. She also wants to enlist designers from the BIPOC and LGBTQQIP2SAA communities to contribute to future lines.

Wilkes’ clothing is also environmentally friendly, as it is printed on-demand, reducing waste from fast-fashion, and many of her products are made with 100 per cent recycled cotton.

Additionally, Wilkes is donating a portion of the proceeds from her business to women’s charities in Ottawa.

“They definitely do their part, and we want to ensure that we're helping them and that my business is really doing everything that we possibly can for female empowerment,” says Wilkes. 

Although she is currently working overtime to get her business off the ground, Wilkes is hoping to one day be able to turn the company into her sole income.

Lorraine & Mae is set to launch at the beginning of next month, according to Wilkes.

For more information about Lorraine & Mae, visit lorraineandmae.com or visit Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.

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