Page 22 - ChildArt_2021.Q1_Global Creative Leaders

22 CHILDART GLOBAL CREATIVE LEADERS
CELEBRATING Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday
dear Leigh, happy birthday to you! When Leigh Rawdon
ORIGINALITY was a child, her mother threw her a dazzling Cinderella
birthday party. This was a party like no other. Her mother
created colorful cut-out Cinderella invitations and even
dressed up like Cinderella for the party. Leigh’s mother
valued originality. “She very much honored any kind
of work that was original.” Her mother made open-faced
sandwiches with a mosaic of edible decorations and also
creative wreaths to decorate their door. She encouraged the
same kind of originality from Leigh. “If I were to write a paper
for high school, it could not be like anything anyone else
had ever written. I grew up in the 70s and 80s—well before
Instagram and Pinterest—so my mom found inspiration
entirely on her own. She didn’t do things the cookie
cutter way. I had these values instilled in me through
her example.”
Leigh Rawdon is the founder and CEO of Tea Collection,
a line of children’s clothing inspired by the cultures of
the world. From the company’s beginning in 2002, it has
grown into an award-winning fashion brand. Creativity,
entrepreneurship and a deep respect and appreciation for
the vibrant and diverse cultures of the world have been the
secrets to her success.
Growing up in Memphis, Tennessee, she was a young
entrepreneur, creating what we might today call the
“Door Dash of lemonade stands” as she ran around the
neighborhood delivering lemonade. She also sold tickets
and concessions to neighborhood plays she orchestrated.
Leigh obtained an MBA from Harvard Business School.
While there, she was mentored by academic, business
consultant, and author, Clayton Christensen, who she
recalls was “a magnificent thinker and a magnificent human.
He instilled in all of his students the importance of
approaching all people with humanity and respect, no
matter the circumstance.”
Through her passion for travel, Leigh determined that it was
“deeply important for children, from the earliest age, to be
exposed to not only the world around them, but the world
beyond them.” She wanted to be a part of creating global
connections, and inspiring curiosity in the littlest citizens of
the world. She wanted to help people feel at home in more
places than their own hearth. “We are all just participants
on this planet. We need to treat each other as more
LEIGH RAWDON similar than different. Even when immersed in a part
of the world where everything may look, smell, or taste
FOUNDER + CEO different, at the core, we are all just people.”
TEA COLLECTION Leigh travels the world exploring cultures to find inspiration
for print, pattern and color for her clothing line. “Experiencing
SAN FRANCISCO cultures beyond your own helps you appreciate beauty—
LEIGH RAWDON CELEBRATING ORIGINALITY
JAN-MAR 2021 23
the beauty of different ways of dressing, different languages
and accents, different foods— it can really help you connect to
things that are different from your day-to-day life. You see things
in a new light.”
Leigh and her cofounder decided upon Tea Collection for the
name of their company. “We wanted a name that would evoke
the values that we were trying to bring to life. When you drink
tea, very often, you share a connection with someone else. Tea
is something that is common in so many cultures around the
world. It may taste a little different, have different flavors, but it
all comes back to the same shared experience. It’s timeless. It’s
popular now and it will be popular for years to come. And that’s
also an important value for us—sustainability. Tea, the drink,
reflects these values, so we named the company Tea Collection.”
Kids are quite good at figuring out how to use what they
have to get what they need. Leigh credits this childhood trait
of resourcefulness, combined with hard work and grit for the
foundational growth of Tea Collection. A combination of creativity,
empathy and hard work can result in an element of optimism. “You
have to believe that it’s going to be OK. You have to have dreams
to pursue and believe in yourself—believe you can get there.”
Leigh’s advice for you is to maintain and keep connections, and
to find things to be curious about. “Staying connected to family
and friends is essential—especially in times like these. And
finding something to be curious about is also really important. I
think my generation thinks we should turn off the screens and
get out the arts and crafts, but we must be open to new ways of
being creative with the tools and technology available today. Make
your own little iMovie! Let your brain get lost, in a beautiful way,
solving how to make an audio file or create something with technology.”
Leigh champions originality and ingenuity. Experience has taught
her that creative leaders possess resilience, grit, and empathy.
Most importantly, she believes that everyone should be
treated with respect and humanity. “It’s important to be
yourself and to be celebrated.”
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