CMC on the Road: My Top 5 Tips for Travelling Across Canada

I’ve always dreamt to travel the world. I’ve always dreamt to help people. Now the dream is becoming a reality…

This past August, I set out on the biggest road trip of my life - I drove across Canada! My first long-distance trip with CMC and with the goal to sell at pop-ups and various events on the west coast to build the brand. What an adventure into myself, into nature and into my business vision - what beautiful lessons came out of it!

So, let me begin…

The journey started on August 1st, driving from Toronto to Salmo, BC for 5 days straight to make it in time to set up for Shambhala Music Festival. WHAT A LONG DRIVE! We arrived safely after the trek and were excited and ready to set up for our festival adventures. This festival brings in about 20K people, so I was ready for a busy time ready to be open for 14 hours of vending for 6 days straight - yea, for reals. The life of an entrepreneur truly never stops - it was a lot of work but out of it came many beautiful connections and supporters of CMC in a new part of the country!

At the end of Shambhala, I drove to Vancouver to stay with a friend and the plan to be vending at the Startup Fashion Preview Party. A huge thanks to Jodi Goodfellow for having me there (if you didn’t already know CMC will be at SFW this October in Toronto! Grab your tickets before it's too late).

This party was such a beautiful opportunity to meet many like-minded people who care about fashion and sustainability, such as Selina from Van Fashion Marketing, Katy from Attire Media, and Selina from Reclosted. If you haven't heard it yet, catch the podcast recording I did in Vancouver, a huge thanks to Selina! 

After the Preview Party on the 15th, my plan was to take some time off and travel around BC. However, my freedom and exploration drew me to forming organic connections that landed me 2 more pop ups at Be Fresh Local Market in Vancouver and the artisan market on Salt Spring Island. 

Spreading the message of sustainable fashion and giving people the opportunity to think differently about how they shop is the gift I can bring to this world with CMC. My experience in BC allowed me to see a new side of what brings me joy and passion in this business and helped me seek out a deeper and more meaningful connection with others and in myself and my dream of being a traveling nomadic entrepreneur! 

I also learned A LOT about being on the road, going with the flow and being ready for whatever life brings you. Below are my top 5 tips for you when preparing for your next road trip so YOU can have the time of your life:

1. Have a Travel Buddy. It was super great to have my friend and travel buddy Brittney, an adventurous soul who I was able to share in the experience with. We had so much fun together on the road! Laughing, singing and sharing our lives together. But the journey was indeed long and tiring - some days we drove for 10 hours which made me want to fall asleep at the wheel (not that it really happened).

It was good to have company for the ride. On the way home, I did drive the entire way back - ALONE! I made it safe and sound and based on the next 4 tips I learned on my journey there, I was able to feel confident driving alone. However, it always makes for a more easy-going and fun ride having a buddy!

2. Plan your route and overnight stays. This is a must if you want a calm and peaceful ride. On our second evening driving west, we decided we would find a motel whenever we wanted to stop. Around 7:30, we figured it would be a good time to start finding a place before the sun started to set. So, we stopped at the first motel, and the second and third and…..they were all fully booked. The people at the front desks continued to direct us to the next town until we were 5 motels in and feeling quite hopeless about finding a place to sleep, seriously thinking about pitching a tent on the side of the road.

Then, we ended up speaking to someone who suggested driving another 40 minutes to a town called Marathon, Ontario. So, luckily by about 9:30, we were booking ourselves into quite an expensive motel, but happy knowing we were sleeping somewhere that evening. From that point on, we knew to make sure to book the rest of our stays ahead of time. If you aren’t camping, I would suggest using Airbnb, as it’s such an easy and more cost-effective way vs motels. You can find some really cute places to stay in convenient locations across the country! I did a mix of camping, staying with friends and Airbnbs along the journey.

3. Pack food/snacks - and make it eco-friendly! Driving gets tiring and also made us incredibly hungry almost every hour or so. So it’s a good idea to bring lots of snacks and food to keep you satiated on your adventure. Remember to pack your own containers for food and coffee that you can then reuse, bring your own utensils and glass/metal straws, which are easy ways to help the environment. We tried our best to be as plastic-free as possible, remembering the small things really do add up!

4. Pack light. You definitely want to make it easy for you to be living out of your bags every day so remember that less is more! It is easy to overpack so make sure to research the weather beforehand so you know what the climate will be during that time and so you know what type of clothing is best for your trip. 

For more tips on how to pack light, watch my video below on what I packed for a 2-week trip to Cambodia in 2018:

 5. Follow your heart and put yourself out there! Perhaps it sounds cliche, but I truly felt different energy within me on my trip. Without all the stress and busyness that Toronto brings and being separated from my daily routine, it allowed me to really connect with my passion and helped me realize what things in the business bring me joy and light me up. It helped me be open to seeing more of my strengths and the idea that when you are truly following your bliss you will continue to bring opportunities into your field and more of what feeds your soul. 

 So, I encourage you to use these travel tips for your next adventure, be open to new opportunities, say YES to things that light you up and be open to taking risks because that is how you will grow!

What is your next adventure? I would love to hear in the comments below!

“Keep your heart open to dreams. For as long as there's a dream, there is hope, and as long as there is hope, there is joy in living.” -Unknown Author

PS Want to join our tribe? Check out our latest collection Eternity, which was such a hit on my travel adventures! Also, these pieces are easy to pack and super versatile for travel outfits!

Thanks for reading, 

Cassandra

xo