Meet Anika Poitier of ASP and Company in West Hollywood

Today we’d like to introduce you to Anika Poitier.

Anika, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I have always been drawn to the arts. I have always loved museums and films and dance and art of all kinds. Especially the making of it, I have tried my hand at painting photography, jewelry design and even a brief moment of acting.

It makes sense, my father was an actor, and my mother was a model and actor. They fell in love on a film set so I guess you can say it’s in my blood. This story begins waaaaaaay back, but we don’t have so much time here, so I’m going to begin it when I made my first feature film. I had audited the Directing Workshop for Women at AFI, and I was fascinated and obsessed with how much I learned about making films.

The culmination of this class ended in my first feature film The Devil Cats. It was made on a shoestring budget, I cast my friends, and the entire film was improvised from structured scenes that I had written. The magic of coming together with other creatives was intoxicating, and it paid off. The film went on to screen at numerous film festivals such as The Tribeca Film Festival and The Palm Spring Film Festival. It even won a few awards.

I was hooked, and it was time to write my next film. However, I am a master procrastinator, and if I am being completely honest, I would say that to avoid actually sitting down to write I began helping my mom on her interior design projects. I loved the design aspect of it and telling stories one room at a time with wallpaper, pillows, and furniture. Working with my mom became my “in-between films” job.

Fast Forward a few years later, a bunch of short films, and a kid. I found I was missing design and craving the creative outlet. I had a new feature film to write and a new baby, so obviously it was the perfect time to start a company.

Has it been a smooth road?
The road has been smooth at times, and it’s been bumpy at times. But I think that is the nature of business and life for that matter – it’s the ebb and the flow. For us, there has been a huge learning curve. Our company, which makes interior accessories, was founded by a filmmaker, an interior designer, an artist, and an artisan.

None of had really done this type of sales before. Our comfort zone is creating, the road is smooth when we can brainstorm ideas and come up with new designs. We have all brought our experiences from other industries, but the road got a little bumpy when it came to the sales side of our business, but we are figuring it out.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with ASP and Company – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
ASP and company is a lifestyle brand, we make interior accessories for the home. We offer a collection of thoughtfully designed pillows, soaps, candles, textiles, and throws. All of our products are handcrafted and sustainably made to be down to earth and luxurious.

We believe that the home is our foundation and our sanctuary. We set a high bar for our products, we want them to not only be beautiful, we also want them to be natural and non-toxic, we want them to be Eco-friendly with a staunch dedication to quality and craftsmanship. We are really passionate about organic and sustainable beauty which is why we specialize in creating products to enhance the way we live at home.

We are best known for our soaps and candles.

Our soaps are all vegan and toxin-free. They are handcrafted with the purest ingredients that really nourish and moisturize your skin. Our Candles are 100% beeswax that we source from a local bee farm, they are poured into beautiful hand blown glass containers. Beeswax candles when burning release negative ions which help to purify the air and smell like honey!

ASP and Company was founded by four women, we are all different ages, and we all come from different parts of the world. This brings a unique perspective to our work as it has influences from Mexico, India, Europe, Africa, and The Caribbean. We employ ancient techniques such as block printing, glass blowing and hand embroidery which helps to make us as sustainable as possible.

These techniques don’t use much machinery they rely mostly on the human touch, and this we believe passes a connection on to those who use our products.

What’s your favorite memory from childhood?
When I was little, I was blessed enough to be introduced to many different cultures through travel.

Every chance my parents got they would take us away to a different part of the world, this has given me a deep love of traveling and taste for adventure, as long as that adventure ends in a four-star hotel.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.instagram.com/aspandcompany/?hl=en
• Phone: 310-273-8238
• Email: 411@aspandcompany.com
• Instagram: @aspandcompany
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ASPandCO/?hc_ref=ART9H0rTvn6iPfw6wlW4L4fDX9b8A4oEpt4thJYBBUZLkAhtp13uKmgKAh28xDahK74&fref=nf
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/Aspandcompany
• Other: https://www.pinterest.com/aspcompany/pins/

Image Credit:
Dan Vigil, Sydney Heartsong

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