TAMPA, Fla. — As deadly gang attacks wreak havoc in Haiti, its impact is stretching beyond the island to places like Tisaksuk, a local store in Tampa.
Daphne Bourgoin opened Tisaksuk in Haiti about 10 years ago. She got the idea after the devastating earthquake in 2010. Last year, she decided to bring her dream the Tampa Bay area.
"If I really wanted to have an impact, it needed to go towards the Haitian economy," Bourgoin said.
To do this, Bourgoin travels back and forth from Haiti to Tampa. Her workshop is based in Port-au-Prince.
"We went to different schools, like trade schools, sewing schools, etc. We partnered with their schools to get their graduates to come and work for us. For most of them, this is their first stop. This is the first time they're getting a job," Bourgoin explained.
Over the years, they've had many challenges, gang violence being one of them.
"We've had to shift and not sell a lot of these products anymore because it's hard for the artisans to produce them," Bourgoin said.
Bourgoin said there are some days they can't even open.
"While we were working, there were so many gunshots in our area that we had to shut down a little bit early. We even had shelling cases from the bullets in our shop's yard," Bourgoin said. "For Tampa to work Haiti has to work."
Challenges in the island country are causing Tisaksuk to suffer. Things may be difficult but Bourgoin believes Tisaksuk can persevere.
"We were suppose to launch a collection for Spring for adults. We can't get it to Tampa to promote or sell it. We're struggling extremely bad," Bourgoin said.