On the Purple Couch

So here’s my story. After living and traveling all over the world-Paris, Dakar, Mauritius, Vienna, New York, Lisbon-… as a child with my West African parents, I decided to settle down in the Washington, DC area in 2001 and change careers. I was finally going to leave social welfare policy and get into the fun business world. 3 days before September 11th, 2001, I moved from Connecticut to Washington, DC. Naturally life changed and I went right back to work in social welfare area. 

Fast forward 1 year; I tried to make a break again but found myself working this time in one of the premier foundations in the country, the Annie E. Casey Foundation. At the Annie E. Casey Foundation I launched my life as a consultant and worked on many projects and with different institutions including the Woodrow Wilson Center, Associated Black Charities, doing work in a refugee camp in Ghana West Africa under my consultant company and several other ventures.  During this time I kept wishing that I might find my passion and find something that I would completely enjoy with my whole heart.

After major back surgery in 2008 and completion of a fellowship in Philanthropy in NYC, I was left again with the question what do I do next…the long and short of it was that God had another plan for my life. Six months after my surgery I met my husband. In a whirlwind we got married, had a baby, and ta dah I’m opening a consignment store in 2012.  The following year we moved the shop to Kensington MD and began focusing more on Home Decor and interiors. I’m “out” of social welfare and philanthropy officially, so I achieved that goal. I’m really not completely out though because I still have a heart and an interest in people and improving communities which I take with everything I do…but now I have the business to support and channel those energies to that.

On the Purple Couch, it’s a store with a purpose and a mission~ to reuse, renew and conserve. It’s a mix of my life and my experiences of living in some of the most beautiful places in the world and experiencing all of the sites, sounds and color combined with a passion for living and doing good in the world. Oh, and the last 2 things about me and most important are my two Eddie’s and my family..so that’s me Bahia. Welcome to On the Purple Couch, a Place to Create – our new venture.