Business a run(a)way success

Page 5

When she was eight years old, Gerri Many Fingers sewed her first dress. It required buttons or a zipper and unable to do that, she used safety pins creatively.

Fasteners, gleaned from garage sales and flea markets, are now a trademark of Many Fingers' work.

In April, Many Fingers returned to the University of Lethbridge to oversee a fashion show of her designs as part of Native Awareness Week.

It was at the University of Lethbridge that Many Fingers got her start when, in 1982, she was asked to display her designs. From there, orders took off and Many Fingers was able to focus exclusively on outerwear for men and women.

"I've been in business long enough that people call me," said Many Fingers, whose one outlet is at the White Eagle Gallery at the T'suu Tina reserve near Calgary. She has been approached by others, who want to carry her line, but "I'm too involved with my life to do more," she said.

Many Fingers' "life" is in part her efforts to get funding for social housing and abused women's housing on the Kainai nation, as well as in the city of Calgary. Indeed, her work in Calgary in this area garnered her a YWCA's Woman of Distinction award in 1994.

While her clothing is no longer her full-time endeavour, she has an impressive list of people who can boast owning a Many Fingers' creation.

She was commissioned by the Alberta government to produce matching white buckskin coats for Prince Charles and Princess Diana, as well as a coat for the ambassador of Mexico.

Actor Robin Williams purchased two coats from her when he was in the Waterton area filming "What Dreams Are Made Of" and his producer bought the jacket off of Many Fingers' back.

Arguably the most famous person to own a Many Fingers' creation was prime minister Pierre Trudeau. Trudeau was on the Blood Reserve for an official opening in the 1970s. He spotted Many Fingers wearing a buckskin dress and asked her where he could get a buckskin coat. Many Fingers made Trudeau a jacket with fringes.

She sold the jacket to him for about $500. Today her creations sell for no less than $1,200. A full-length white leather coat with blue fox trim is her most expensive item at $2,000.

While Gerri Many Fingers was surprised at the way her business took off, she is not surprised at the consistency of her sales.

"Because my coats are well made, they have a certain flair to them and my prices are right," she said.

While Many Fingers knows how to buy and sell, she hasn't lost touch with the spirit of her business.

"I believe that the coats are so close to our culture that I only make six per design, so that people feel they have one of a kind.

"People like to be treated special. You just treat people the way you want to be treated," said Many Fingers.

And that treatment extends to the models who show off Many Fingers' work.

"The thrill of having fashion shows is not necessarily showing my coats but watching the girls who are modeling. It just develops their self-esteem. That's what I enjoy the most. For some of them it gives them the start for serious self-esteem," said Many Fingers.