IMPACT 0101: TENDER DEEDS FOR THOSE IN NEED

Ng Pei Shan is the founder of Tender Deeds, a gift shop that makes a conscious decision to use environmentally friendly and sustainable packaging, such as recycled mailers and boxes and using biodegradable string instead of tape.

They also regularly donate to different causes around the world at the release of each collection, such as to help purchase oxygen tanks for COVID-19 relief in India.

Through her efforts, Pei Shan hopes to inspire more people to pick up an eco-friendly lifestyle while finding different avenues to give back to their communities.

Tender Deeds is a vintage retro and botany inspired gift shop. Think homeware and stationery with old-school prints or merchandise for the plant parent and outdoor lover.

I started Tender Deeds in hopes of gaining some autonomy over my own creativity outside of work as a designer and also to encourage others to find joy in the little things, and to embrace slowing down and going outside. Not to mention, it’s a childhood dream of mine to run my own little shop!

With Tender Deeds, I hope to share my own journey of learning to be intentional with my time and actions, being grateful for the simple things and the manifold loving act of gift-giving.

I ensure that my packaging is as eco-friendly as possible, and I also give a portion of revenue to different causes after every launch of a collection.

It’s been very heartening hearing back from patrons who appreciate these gestures and who have paid it forward in their own ways. And I think that’s what I want to achieve moving forward – building a more positive, loving community.

It has definitely not been easy and there was an occasion I didn’t think I could continue. I hadn’t anticipated the true bandwidth it would require to run my own thing and come up with original content with myself as a client!

That aside, I think the first thing I had to unlearn was my perfectionism. Letting go of my unrealistic expectations of myself was the only way I could have ever posted my work online, to take the leap before I felt “ready”.

I always found it scary putting myself out there because it gives others the liberty to judge and play critic, but once I started believing I was “good enough” for myself, that was when I could get the ball rolling. And I’ve come to understand that self-assurance is possibly the most important part.

In that same vein, I’ve also learnt what it means to be resilient. Every time I am overcome by self-doubt, I’ve had to talk myself back into pursuing what I’ve started despite its challenges.

I really appreciate entrepreneurs and their strength – I think believing in yourself is a sort of courage that is unmeasured and is a daily practice of how we talk to and about ourselves, and of how our actions reflect our hopes and not our fears.

Tender Deeds has been an amazing avenue for me to meet kindred spirits all across the globe and has also opened up a lot of possibilities as it continues to grow slowly. I really hope everyone gives themselves the permission to pursue their own creativity!

It’s a pleasure being able to connect with others and to bring a little joy to their days. May this be the beginning of building a tender and empowering community in my little corner of the Internet.

This article was published on Aug 17, 2021