Keep CTOAN Alive: Support Black Queer Art

Hi! I'm Jodyann Morgan (she/her), the founder of CTOAN Co ., a small fat art company, and I need your help. I started making candles in my kitchen during the summer of 2020 in an effort to find a little joy during the protests following the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. In March of 2022, after celebrating my 35th birthday, I left my security career with over a decade under my belt to become a full time business owner.

It's been nearly three years since then. My small team makes magic in my basement, on folding tables that have seen better days, in a space that's far too small, dragging 50 lb boxes of wax and all of your packages up and down the stairs every day. I've learned so much, fought so hard, and spent countless 100 hour weeks making candles, responding to social media comments and suffering through death threats and the most vile, racist and homophobic comments imaginable. Instagram is openly suppressing our content making certain that we're always swimming against the tide.

But we persevered.

Despite it all, we've donated well over $15,000 to non-profits and mutual aid funds benefiting the Black, queer and trans community along with contributing the fundraisers benefiting the families of victims of police brutality. We've empowered and inspired countless people by simply existing and exchanging their humanity and worth. CTOAN's candles have received the highest accolades from prestigious publications, including the New York Times, Cosmopolitan, InStyle, Essence Magazine, Afropunk, and so many others. Tess Holliday, Gabrielle Union, and countless influencers from across the spectrum showcased our art.

Now, I need your help to ensure my little company survives and THRIVEs. For the first time, I'm raising money for CTOAN. For me. Giving up means letting down the community of over 100,000 people that we've built in less than 3 years - and I'm not going to do that if we can help it. Fat people deserve to see our bodies glorified and celebrated in art of every medium. We deserve beautiful things and companies that celebrate who we are 100%.

We'll use your gift for:

1. Payroll: Sales are down 21% this year over last. Given how hard it was to survive last year, this year is scary. As a Black, queer, woman-owned small business that celebrates fat bodies, stands on our values, and does so unapologetically, the deck is definitely stacked against us. We've done everything we can to ensure we can pay our employees a living wage and provide consistent hours, but with sales down, this has been a struggle to say the least. This year, we've started offering paid time off, in addition to paid holidays and birthdays. Your help will ensure that CTOAN's employees, including me, will be paid on time every time, for as long as possible.

2. Moving Somewhere More Practical: Being confined to a basement, employees in and out of our house at all hours, and not having a place I can escape to recharge and rest has been brutal. I've been holding my breath, just waiting until we could finally afford a warehouse, but that day just hasn't come. We need an in-between—something more affordable than a warehouse. In the meantime, I'm suffering. My business is suffering. My creativity stifled. The good news is that I found that perfect production space, but I need your help to make it a reality. We have to build shelves for the candles, buy tables that aren't ready to collapse, pay movers, upgrade our aging equipment and furnish the space.

3. Paying Outstanding Bills: The growing pains of having a business that went from zero to one hundred in months are quickly becoming painfully evident. Being bigger comes with bigger expenses, insurance, accountants, lawyers, and contract assistance that we've been desperately trying to afford just to keep going. Your help will get us current on all outstanding bills and allow us to continue paying for the necessary professional services to operate a business the right way and avoid problems in the future.

4. Creating a Rainy Day Fund: It's time for CTOAN to get off the roller coaster. Every February and June (Black History Month and Pride Month, respectively) we thrive. Our community and the world comes out in droves to support our work and it's simply magical. But every January, March, April, May, August, and September we struggle to get all the bills paid and barely skate by. There've been times I couldn't pay myself in order to make sure everything else is covered. We operate without a reserve and it's untenable. This rainy day fund will provide a cushion and allow us to focus on creating, empowering, and doing the work.

Please consider chipping in and helping me and CTOAN get over this hurdle. Whether you donate through GoFundMe, buy something from our website, join our subscription clubs and become a patron of fat art, or simply help promote this fundraiser, I am so unbelievably grateful for your support, now and always. You can also donate through venmo - @jodyann-morgan - if that's more convenient.

We have big plans for our future, and with your help, they'll be reality thanks to your support.