Hello, I'm Tena...
...And I decided to use my love for the written word as a tool for change. It goes a while back, really.
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Writing has always been my favourite form of art. I was that nerdy kid who would spend most of the summer break reading books and sketching her characters. I even got a BA in Comparative Literature, despite people telling me it's not worth it!
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However, as a curious person, social research became my wonderland. I first studied sociology and then anthropology. I quickly understood that there's nothing more fascinating than human society and cultures. After graduating, I worked in the market and later in digital communication research for close to 5 years. Most of the time, I truly loved my work. The rest of the time, I tried to ignore that my clients were big corporations that often went against my sense of justice or sustainability.
That is, until one day, as a part of an NGO project, I had a chance to talk with Nasreen Sheikh. Nasreen is a survivor of modern slavery, a social entrepreneur, and an activist. I'm not exaggerating when I say this was the most transformative 60 minutes of my life. As a child, Nasreen worked in a garment factory and experienced the worst in the industry. Because of her, I became interested in fashion and soon started advocating for slowing it down.
Fast forward to spring 2020 and the early pandemic, when I lost all my market research clients. Like many people around the world, I suddenly had no income or savings to rely on.
After a couple of months of panic and desperate attempts to find new projects, I decided that maybe this was the moment to try something completely new. As we all know, 2020 was everything but a normal year, so what's the point in trying the normal stuff?
That is how I discovered content marketing. I learned that I could combine my love for writing, passion for research, and belief that fashion can be better.
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With time, I started learning about other industries too.
I work with ethical businesses, organisations and entrepreneurs who are making the market a little bit better for everyone. My job is to support them in their mission.
Questions people ask me...
What do you look for in brands/companies?
Ethics come first. Is the brand treating everyone as partners? That includes people making, as well as people buying their products.
After this, I want to hear how are they actively reducing the environmental impact of their products. I don't believe that there's a perfectly sustainable brand but I am I'm looking for passion and commitment!
How do you work?
I highly value collaboration and good communication. I devote my full attention to every project and every client. I'm the person who will cheer for your brand and be there when you need advice. When you grow, I grow too!
While I offer one-time services (you can see a full list here), I prioritise creating a long-term relationship with the brands and businesses I partner with.
What are the topics you care about?
I am always looking for a way to introduce different perspectives into the sustainability narrative and open a true discussion about fashion, fair trade, green policy, and technology. I care about placing ethics at the centre.
Where are you based?
I'm based in Brussels (Belgium) and am absolutely in love with that city, as my Instagram Stories will show you. However, I work with brands all over the world, mainly from the US and UK.
What's the cat's name?
There's a big chance that you'll see a kitty in my Stories or during our Zoom calls. Her name is Mitten the Kitten :)