ABOUT

Native Threads came onto the scene in 1990, when Amy was an infant and Rachel wasn't even only a hope and dream. Over the decades the company built a reputation for quality clothing made with Indigenous pride. As the new owners, ushering the business into a new era, Amy and Rachel plan to take the brand even farther for the Native community. Their goal is to make Native Threads an environmentally sustainable business while helping relations throughout Indian Country. 

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Amy, the older of the two sisters has always been creative. As a child she was always drawing pictures or painting, in fact she did most of Rachel's art projects and presentations in high school. She eventually learned about more traditional arts like basketry and beading. When the time came she attended the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA), receiving a B.A. in Museum Studies with a minor in Indigenous Liberal Studies. During her time at IAIA she was actively involved in student government. She helped to organize a trip to Standing Rock and was pivotal in the schools divestment from Wells Fargo Banking. These experiences helped to solidify her to drive to bring awareness to issues in Indian country while helping to find solutions.

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Rachel, the younger sister, did not pick up Amy's knack for the arts. In fact she still draws stick figures. Growing up Rachel was always absorbed in books and loved learning new things whenever she could. She was the kid who used to get books confiscated by teachers. After high school she left California to go to school in Pennsylvania where she graduated from Waynesburg University with a B.A. in Early Childhood Education and Development. She went on to teach in the Carolinas for a few years and then moved to working for an educational non profit. This work made her see the inequities in quality and access to education even more clearly and made her determined to do what she could to advocate for others and amplify the voices of the people who are on the front lines. To this day she still loves to read and research and hopes to use these passions to amplify the voices of others throughout Indian Country to bring awareness to Indigenous excellence and the issues the community faces. 

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