My Candles Studio flooded IDA Hurricane
Hi Everyone,
I'm Yui, a candle small business owner.
I moved to the US from Japan 5 years ago with my husband and 2 cats. I am not a native English speaker, so please excuse me if my writing is hard to read.
I make and sell candles in Brooklyn, New York. My goal is to spread Japanese KAWAII (=Cute) to the world through candles. I don't have a store yet, but I have a web store called YUI BROOKLYN, and I distribute to Madewell ,Urban Outfitters and more store.
My studio was completely submerged by Typhoon IDA on September 1, 2021. I am embarrassed to say that I did not know that it is the tenant's obligation to have insurance...So I did not have insurance. I was told that the water pump was broken and that it had been damaged in the hurricane a week and a half before but that it had been fully repaired. But the landlord only said, "It's your fault for not having insurance.
My husband's job brought us to the U.S., and since I don't speak English well, candle making was the job I finally found and loved. Just last month, I got become a permanent resident and live in the US forever. And just as I was getting back on track, I hired an assistant and started receiving more orders every day.
Thanks to the love of so many people, I was able to get about $10,000 in donations through Instagram and other social networking. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. According to my calculations for the total amount of damage and future recovery, I need about $7,000 more. This does not include any damage to my personal belongings. In fact, I store a lot of my personal belongings (clothes, bags, shoes, etc.) in my studio, and most of them were submerged in water, so the damage is more than $7,000.
【Estimated amount of damage】
・Electronic equipment $300
・Packing materials $2,000
・Candle materials $500
・Candles for sale $1,000
・Canceled jobs $3,000
・Sales until recovery (1 month) $10,000
・Cleanup costs $300
・Employee compensation
When I was in Japan, I had no self-confidence and did not like myself. But when I moved to NYC, many people pushed me forward. They welcomed me as a friend, even though I was Japanese and could not speak English. I really love you guys and thank you for that.
Thank you for your supporting. I'm extremely shocked and disheartened by the damage but hope to push forward in the near future. I truly appreciate donation as nothing is too little or too small. For those who cannot donate, please share this link. Thank you for reading my story.
YUIBROOKLYN
https://yuibrooklyn.com/
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/yuibrooklyn/