Paving the way: Diné entrepreneur makes history at the Grand Canyon

It was her fifth design that secured Sasha Begay a spot to sell her original Navajo designed mugs in the Desert View gift shop at the Grand Canyon.

After months of hard work, disappointment, and feeling discouraged, Begay created the perfect design. Through perseverance and encouragement from Kristine Laughter, Director of the Kinship Lending Program at Change Labs, Begay’s dream to share her art with the world became a reality.

“It's still a bit of a shocker,” she said. “You know it doesn't feel real and at the same time, it's been very exciting. I never would have seen myself or my mugs go as far as the Grand Canyon.”

But it didn't fall into her lap. Begay approached the Grand Canyon Conservancy at the Emergence 2023:Grand Canyon Intertribal Economic Summit and built an opportunity.

“She would actually be the first Native American business to do business with the Grand Canyon Conservancy,” says Jessica Stago, co-founder of Change Labs on the Navajo Nation and also an organizer of the Emergence 2023 Summit. “It’s a gateway to open up Native owned businesses and the products they produce to the tourism industry.”

The tourism industry hasn’t always been an open market for Indigenous business owners to access if they weren’t going through a trader or gallery owner but there is a want for local, affordable Native American made and owned products.

“Visitors come to the Grand Canyon, they know it’s Native Land. They’re looking for the Native influence, they’re looking for Indigenous people, they’re looking to hear about Indigenous People,” Stago said.

But the branding and how a Native American business is displayed is important to the success of selling their products.

“Every Native business owner has some sort of personal story, personal connection to their product or their service,” Stago said. “There’s a lot of storytelling there that can only be done by the Native person, by the Native business owner, by the Native entrepreneur.”

And Begay's products are filled with stories and personal connections. Her final design submission and the one that was selected is an original rug design created by her mom Daisy Nez, who has been weaving since she was 14 years old. Nez learned how to weave from her mom, so the design holds generational meaning.

“I went ahead and took a picture of it and then fixed it up a little bit and changed some of the pictures, but It still looks like the original design,” Begay said. “I sent that one in and they said that's definitely what we're looking for.”

Begay, an alumni of Change Labs’ Business Incubator and Kinship Lending, owns Twin Warrior Designs. She started the business when she was staying home with her kids during the pandemic and her twin sons helped her name the business.

“I'm able to do something I've always wanted to do and still be able to be home and be there for my kids,” Begay said.

Through imagery of Coyote stories, sacred mountains, rug designs and everyday life on the Navajo Nation, Begay feels she is helping fill a cultural and language gap. Each design comes with a story or a teaching.

“The Coyote stories, I've done designs for those ones and also stories from my grandparents,” she said. “Showing bits and parts of the culture that's not just surrounded by the Blue Bird Flour [design].”

Begay said she gets a lot of compliments when she sells and having people share their stories with her and their experiences makes her mug business worth it.

Sasha Begay in front of her home and studio on the Navajo Nation - credit Raymond Chee 

“The cool part is when I go out to sell. I'm able to connect to people and they tell me stories of when they were younger and sharing stories of their grandparents. It's pretty amazing,” she said. “They're able to relate to my experiences growing up.”

Begay’s journey is just the beginning of a broader movement. With each mug she sells, Begay is not only preserving Diné heritage but also paving the way for other Native entrepreneurs to follow in her footsteps. Her success at the Grand Canyon is a victory for all Native businesses striving to make their mark. It is a testament to the resilience of Indigenous creativity, breaking through barriers and finding a place in the heart of one of the most iconic landmarks in the world.